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ACTIONABLE BUSINESS STRATEGIES
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MEMBERS-ONLY ARTICLES PUBLISHED WEEKLY
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PRIVATE LIBRARY OF EXPERT INSIGHTS & ADVICE FOR INTERIOR DESIGNERS
| ACTIONABLE BUSINESS STRATEGIES I MEMBERS-ONLY ARTICLES PUBLISHED WEEKLY | PRIVATE LIBRARY OF EXPERT INSIGHTS & ADVICE FOR INTERIOR DESIGNERS
Dear Dakota: When Should I Send An Investment Guide? Before or After the Discovery Call?
Dear Dakota,
When exactly should I send my Investment Guide? Does it come after an Initial Inquiry but before a Discovery Call?
I love the idea of client "pre-qualification" because I've spoken to SO MANY people who do not fit my ideal client avatar; mainly, they have champagne ideas on beer budgets.
Does this mean I should have certain things in my Investment Guide that sort of weed out tire kickers? What would that verbiage look like? Would it be as simple as providing a page outlining sample budget ranges (small, med, lg) I'd work within, or should it be a straightforward statement such as, "Currently accepting clients with starting investments of $10,000," or some such?
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Dear Dakota | How To Know When It’s Time To Rent A Studio Space For My Interior Design Business?
Dear Dakota,
One thing I am struggling with is knowing when the right time is to no longer work from home.
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How to Get Interior Design Clients to Stop Calling You All.The.Time
A designer submitted a question that represents the frustration a lot of business owners contend with — how to free yourself from time-consuming and distracting (and sometimes incessant) phone calls during your workday, yet still be responsive and supportive to clients throughout the design process. Please note: this is NOT about getting potential clients to stop calling you (although, I have personal opinions on not giving anyone access to you until they’ve been screened…different post for a different day; this post is how to get paid clients to stop calling you all the time if that’s now how you prefer to communicate.
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Dear Dakota: How Should I Present Furniture Pricing on An Invoice?
ear Dakota,
I do flat fee billing and am a huge advocate of “the fewer invoices the better.”
The question is: how do I invoice?
I love the invoice capability of my product management software but it lists each item by price. I can’t decide if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I love the idea of high-low design and sometimes it takes one expensive piece to make the space. I always panic when I list prices individually in case the client will see the expensive item and give pushback (even though the total is coming in on budget.) They will see the price of an individual item and think it’s too much to pay for whatever item it may be.
I’m curious how others are invoicing. Are they sending a general invoice with only final pricing, or are they itemizing each item listed with an individual price?
What have you seen work the best?
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Dear Dakota: What Do I Do When a Client Doesn’t Provide Timely Feedback?
Dear Dakota,
What do I do when a client doesn’t provide timely feedback?
This is a question we hear all of the time from our 1:1 clients.
In our experience, most designers give between …
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Dear Dakota: Should I Give Friends and Family a Discount?
Dear Dakota,
Should I give friends and family a discount? If so, how should I structure it so I don’t get burned?
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ACCESS A PRIVATE LIBRARY OF EXPERT ADVICE for INTERIOR DESIGNERS
My strategies have shaped the way thousands of interior designers and luxury service providers do business.
Inside The DTS Files, you’re getting the original insights straight from the source—tested, refined, and backed by my experience working with 100+ design firms.
And because this is a members-only space, I can go deeper than ever before—sharing the real strategies that help designers build profitable, sustainable businesses with confidence.
HEAR FROM SOME OF OUR MEMBERS:
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PRICING PLAYBOOK for INTERIOR DESIGNERS
The Complete Guide to Pricing Your Design Services
Grab my pricing playbook, The Complete Guide to Pricing your Interior Design Services, to learn:
the six most common pricing models for designers
who each one is best for, and
how to know if your pricing model is broken
NEED BUSINESS SUPPORT ASAP?
SHOP TEMPLATES
Plug-and-play templates, questionnaires, processes, and guides for interior designers who want to stop reinventing the wheel with every new project.
The Design Library helps you streamline client communication, set clear expectations, and protect your time—so you can spend less time in your inbox and more time designing. Inside, you’ll find:
✔ Professionally written client emails and marketing guides for every step of the process.
✔ SOPs to standardize service delivery and create a seamless, high-end experience.
✔ Contract templates with sample scopes to protect you, your team, and your clients.
What took me years to refine can be in your inbox in minutes.
*for interior designers only, not interior design business coaches, consultants, mentors, strategists.
SHOP WORKSHOPS & TRAININGS
Learn from my team (comprised of industry experts and educators) and me all the things they don’t teach in design school. And we know because two of the women on my team went to interior design school!
After consulting with and doing hands-on implementation for over 100 interior design business owners, I’ve seen what works (and doesn’t) across every business model imaginable. We are familiar with various software types, team structures of 1 to 20, and the challenges that are coming, whether you’re on your way to your first $100,000 or already making multiple millions.
On-demand trainings for your busy schedule.
*for interior designers only, not interior design business coaches, consultants, mentors, or strategists.
JOIN 16,000 DESIGNERS EVERY FRIDAY
Proven strategies and tools to streamline and elevate your interior design business.
COMPLIMENTARY QUIZ FOR INTERIOR DESIGNERS
Feeling stretched thin in your design business?
You’re busy—but is your business actually working for you? If you’re constantly putting out fires and second-guessing what to focus on next, this 2-minute quiz will show you exactly where to start.