How to Market Paid Design Advice Consultation Services Nationally
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Many interior designers offer consultation services these days, which are a great way for designers to offer value to a wider range of clients. Now, let me clarify what I mean by consultation services. There are two instances when a designer may have a consultation with a client.
01 | The first instance is when a designer meets with a full-service design client to better understand project requirements and define the scope of work. This type of consultation meeting is part of the onboarding process for a full design project and is important for launching the project.
This ^^^ is NOT what I am talking about within this blog. That’s a scope gathering consult.
02 | Another instance when an interior designer would offer consulting to a client is through a stand-alone offering (rather than a full-service one). The client pays for a specific amount of time with the interior designer, and the designer offers advice and suggestions, but no implementation or ongoing support within that service. This is a small, highly defined, and finite service, like a Paid Advice Consultation Session.
This IS what I am describing within this blog.
There are many advantages to offering a standalone service, like a Paid Advice Consultation:
It’s attractive to a client who may not have the financial means to hire an interior designer for a full-service project. It can be a very affordable way for a homeowner to get top-notch designer input on their design challenges without paying full-service fees.
It helps interior designers keep their pipelines full, and can provide revenue between large, full-service projects. It’s an easy, straightforward service for experienced designers.
Designers can offer this type of service virtually to clients outside of their immediate geographic area. Interaction can entirely occur on a video conferencing platform, like ZOOM. So, a designer’s potential audience for this type of service is wide open. It’s just as easy to deliver this service to a client across the country as it is to deliver it to someone down the block.
So, HOW does an interior design business owner most effectively market and provide consultation services to potential clients nationwide?
Well, here’s what I would recommend, in these steps:
01 | CLEARLY DEFINE THE SERVICE.
It’s key to clearly define your consultation service within your marketing, on your website’s Service page, in your service guide, or anywhere you mention this service offering. Be clear on:
How long will the service last?
What's included? What are the deliverables?
What will the client need to do in advance to prepare? Will the designer do anything in advance to prepare?
What will the client need to do after the service is complete? Will the designer do any follow-up work after the service is complete?
Will the designer provide any additional resources to the client?
What types of questions can the designer answer during the service? What types of problems can be solved (or cannot be solved) within this finite service?
What types of projects is this type of service best aligned with?
What will NOT be included in this service offering?
Finally, and most importantly, what is the price for this service? Our Paid Advice Consultation Templates give pricing advice.
You’ll also want to be clear that these are virtual sessions and are great for clients anywhere, as long as they have internet access and can join a Zoom call
02 | MARKET TO THE RIGHT AUDIENCE.
When you communicate this service offering to your audience, speak to the homeowner who may NEED this, and who may not necessarily need your full service. Talk about and show examples of design problems you have solved in these sessions with other clients.
You may also highlight that this service could be ideal for clients who will be tackling a large project in the future, but just want to get their ducks in order before diving into a longer, more expensive engagement. Think about the problem your ideal client would face when booking this service, and position it as the solution.
03 | SPREAD THE WORD.
Once those two things are done, you'll then want to look at marketing channels that reach everywhere. We love:
Pinterest (search engine)
Google
Email Newsletters
Instagram
Ads (Google, Meta, or Pinterest, depending on where your people are)
Whatever channel you use, include a clear call to action to book this consultation service with you.
And if you’ve done #1 and #2 above, all a client needs to do is head straight to your booking page, review all the details, and book and pay right then and there.
No discovery calls. No customized SOW. No back and forth.
04 | MAKE THE PURCHASE SIMPLE.
On your website booking page, you MUST make it easy to purchase this service with a single click. Do not offer any opportunity to book a discovery call, do not offer any opportunity to email you with additional questions. The sales page for this service should answer FAQs and give them all the information they need to book.
Make sure they’ve seen the information from #1 above (details about what’s included, who this service is best for, and what the sessions are best used for).
THEN, the schedule landing page includes a button to schedule the date, pay the full fee, and submit some preliminary project info, all in one fell swoop. (We love HoneyBook for this.)
MAKE THE PURCHASE SIMPLE. On your website booking page, you MUST make it easy to purchase this service with a single click. Do not offer any opportunity to book a discovery call, do not offer any opportunity to email you with additional questions. The sales page for this service should answer FAQs and give them all the information they need to book.
Make sure they’ve seen the information from #1 above (details about what’s included, who this service is best for, and what the sessions are best used for).
THEN, the schedule landing page includes a button to schedule the date, pay the full fee, and submit some preliminary project info, all in one fell swoop. (We love HoneyBook for this.)
05 | MORE ADVANCED: TAKE THIS OFFERING TO A HIGHER LEVEL.
After getting comfortable with your delivery of this new service offering, you can then build an evergreen funnel for this so it continues to bring in leads on autopilot:
Create a freebie or lead magnet, or provide a press piece, or a gated article. Put it on Pinterest and consider running ads to it. This will attract lots of new potential clients.
Once people have signed up to get that thing in their inbox, your email newsletter software (we love Flodesk) can send out a few follow up emails, each sharing a little about your consultation service, the client results, and promoting your design consultation session as the way to achieve the thing they were hoping to achieve when they came to your site in the first place.
Then, once someone has booked the consultation service, set up an automated email sequence on the backend (you can do this through HoneyBook) that sends them (after they book the service) a welcome email, appointment reminder emails, a description of what to expect, and helpful tips for preparing for the session.
You can also set up automations to send offboarding emails after the session wraps, including additional resources, a testimonial request, and a feedback form. It’s always smart to invite them to book another consultation to get more of your input, or for a different room in their home. This can all be part of an automated sequence you set up once and then use on every project automatically.
06 | KEEP THE LOOP RUNNING.
As you complete these services for clients, post about them in your marketing and on your website.
It’s also great to build a waitlist for this service. It communicates to clients that this is an in-demand service, and that others are booking it. If someone reaches your consultation service booking page and sees that there are no available dates, allow them to add their name to a waitlist to be notified when you add more dates.
As you open up additional spots, send the names on your waitlist an email announcing the new dates, along with a link to book and pay directly. This whole waitlist process creates a sense of urgency, and we find waitlisted clients tend to book immediately.
