Dear Dakota,

I am struggling with my fee structure proposals whereby I make good profit but also retain clients, make them happy, and get repeat business.

For instance, I’m bidding on a ground-up assisted living residence. Rooms will be replicated (cookie-cutter) and public spaces aren’t vast. I don’t yet know the budget and this is my client’s first time with a project like this. 

Help!

Join The DTS Files to get the advice and insights I shared with this designer.

In 2023, my team and I wrote 89 blog posts for interior designers (this one makes it 90), doubling our total from last year! There is nothing we enjoy more than sharing our insights and helping designers improve their business operations and client experience. Today, I’m sharing the top ten blog posts for interior designers from this year, plus the blog posts I enjoyed writing the most.

Thank YOU for being here and for reading my blog, The Weekly Install, and my Instagram posts. 

So, without further ado, here are the TOP 10 BLOG POSTS FOR INTERIOR DESIGNERS from 2023.

Many designers we talk to say the interior design process can feel very “up in the air” or “loose,” and that’s why they never know when they can actually start new projects - so they just say yes and start them all right away. 

Not a good plan!

While interior designers clearly know the “design” part of the process, the timing of onboarding a new client and actually starting the project can be confusing. So today, we’re sharing a few tips for figuring out when you can begin new interior design projects and how to schedule them so you’re not burning the candle at both ends.

Join The DTS Files for my advice and insights.

Dear Dakota,

I’d love to know more about setting up a design library for my boss. As a former librarian of books, I know my way around a library. However, I am not familiar with design libraries and best practices for them. I would love practical information on doing this.

Join The DTS Files for my advice and insights.

Are you thinking about opening a retail furniture showroom to expand your interior design business?

I recently had the opportunity to chat with Heather Draper of The Heather Co. to talk about her experience adding a retail showroom to her interior design business.

In case you missed our conversation, you can grab the replay here.

We covered a lot, but here’s an overview:

Dear Dakota,

Can you tell me whether the processes are the same for commercial and hospitality projects as for residential ones? What do I need to do if I want to expand into these project types?

Join The DTS Files for my advice and insights.

It’s all about creating a design process that’s efficient, sensible, and enjoyable - and the most climactic moment of all is when your client sees their design presentation for the first time. You want to provide the highest quality design presentation possible so your client can clearly see and understand the vision you have for their space, and you also want to minimize the number of hours you or your team sit at a computer creating it! So, the choice of software for interior design presentations is key in streamlining this part of each project and ensuring a whole-hearted “WE LOVE IT! APPROVED!” from your clients. With so many software programs available to interior designers, it’s important to choose the right one based on the types of presentation drawings you typically produce and your comfort level with each platform.

In this blog post, we’ll highlight the best software for interior design presentations and share the project type each is most ideal for.

Join The DTS Files for my advice and insights.

Whether you price your interior design services hourly or based on a flat fee, I am a strong proponent of tracking your time. And if you don't track your hours or find yourself saying “you aren’t good” at tracking your hours, then you cannot, under any circumstances, bill hourly for your interior design services.

You may have heard the saying, “In God we trust, all others bring data,” and I’m here to tell you: the data is in the numbers, and the numbers don’t lie.

As a business owner, it is your job to know your numbers, and part of that is knowing how long things take. 

Tracking your time and reviewing the numbers will empower you to make critical decisions for the long-term success of your company. 

Here are a few benefits of tracking your hours for interior designers…

Join The DTS Files for my advice and insights.