How to Ensure Your Interior Design Sales Process is Working

To really start a business, you need sales because sales are the lifeblood of a company. It doesn’t matter if you have an awesome idea or if your product and service is best in class if no one is buying. It is just that simple.

Sales are the Foundation of Your Company

What is a sales process? A sales process is the method by which you share your offerings and those in need purchase from you. The sales process is not completed until all obligations of the sale are met by both the buyer and the seller. Maybe you have heard this; you are always selling. Every choice and decision you make in the process matters along the way.

"You are either selling in the moment or selling for the future." - Michele Williams

Your business is just a blueprint if there are no sales. As with any structure, a business is only as good as its foundation and that foundation is sales. You cannot even focus on full-on profitability until you have someone purchasing from you. Cash flow in-and-out comes with the sale. As you analyze your company using these tools, you cannot just trust your instinct or intuition. Because you can’t always see clearly that way and numbers don't lie. Looking at empirical data is vital. Is your sales process building your business's foundation?

Five Signs Your Sales Process is Working for You

1 - You have clarity on your personal income needs to support your lifestyle and the business has enough in sales to meet that need.

To begin, you need to ask the question: “How much do I need to bring home?” This question stumps many designers. There are two common answers given, both equally shocking; either, “I don’t know,” or “$100,000.” Rarely is there another answer. It is almost as if the pendulum swings from I’ll take what I can get to a canned answer of 100k because that is what you are ingrained to think is a healthy salary.

The truth is deeper than that. Knowing exactly how much money needs to come into your home as spendable cash and knowing how much needs to be allocated for savings, retirement, and taxes will give you a very clear definition of what you are working for in your business. If you know what you need to meet all your financial goals, you can set weekly selling targets to reach them. You can then ensure your ideal client and ideal offering are in alignment with the larger goals. To walk into each week with an "I will take what comes" mentality may leave you lacking in income and profit to meet the needs of your family.

I have two downloadable documents on my freebies page on my website, www.scarletthreadconsulting.com, called Financial Health Checkup and Financial Planning Made Simple which will lead you down the path of making these determinations for yourself.

2 - You consistently know and attract your ideal client.

Marketing is like fishing. You are casting out a line or nets and trying to capture those that are hungry for the solutions you are offering. However, if you use the wrong bait or fish in the wrong pond, you just might catch the wrong fish.

"When you speak to everyone, you speak to no one." ~Meredith Hill

If your company provides high-end design services, then you need to have a brand and messaging that reflects that. If you are unclear about who you are or what you are offering, then no one else will know if you are best for them. You also need to consider that your ideal client, product, or service will most likely change and morph over time, so all messaging, branding, and marketing collateral needs to adjust to reflect this as well.

Look at the calls and reach out that you are getting. What percentage of them are your ideal clients asking for the product or service you want to be known for? If these are out of alignment, then something needs to change.

3 - Your ideal client consistently buys from you.

It is not enough to have your ideal clients reaching out to talk with you. They need to purchase from you. Sales is not talking and making friends; it is completing a transaction that has a benefit for both parties – and in your realm, cash is exchanged for beautiful design. Don’t forget this important fact. You need money from sales to keep the business going.

Knowing the number of prospects that you need to close is imperative. Sales always has been and always will be a numbers game. When you know your close rate, you can determine how much to market, when you have reached saturation, and if your message is landing. If you have a goal to increase or decrease that percentage, you can strategize on how to do that.

Relationships are also built in this area. You want your clients to buy from you, repeatedly. Repeat clients are less expensive to sell to than marketing to find a new prospect and going through the sales dance to get them to know, like, and trust you.

"Great salespeople are relationship builders who provide value and help their customers win." - Jeffrey Gitomer

If your ideal client is calling you, talking to you, but not pulling the trigger on the sale, find out why. It could be messaging, branding, or expectations. Work to remove the barriers so that your client conversion percentage is high. Note, you don’t want 100% conversion. That is usually an indicator that your pricing is too low. You'll be busy for sure, but at what cost.

4 - Your company delivers on all commitments and meets or exceeds expectations.

This goal can only be accomplished with clarity. Clearly defining deliverables, communication, and expectations will be paramount to succeeding. One of the biggest challenges is when you and your client have different expectations of completion. Being super clear and going over the details more than once helps you deliver on what you are committed to do. If there is an exclusion in the design, make sure you point it out. Don’t leave it up for interpretation because each person will always interpret a shady area in their own favor.

Do you have clearly defined deliverables, communication strategies, and expectations for every part of your process when working with a client? If not, now is the time to focus on that.

“Commitment is the foundation of great accomplishments.” ~Heidi Reeder

5. - Your client delivers on all their commitments.

Commitments are a two-way street. Your client has commitments to you, and for a sales process to be completed, they must follow through. What types of commitments do your clients have?

• They need to be committed to working within your process which you have clearly defined.
• They need to be committed to paying on time and on the schedule as you have defined.
• They need to be able to make decisions in a timely manner which allows the process to continue at its best.
• They need to approve anything needed when needed.

Your clients are active participants in the sales process. Keep them involved and accountable to the process, just like your company is, to ensure success for all parties.

"In the end, the customer has choices. They honor us with their business." - Shep Hyken

Top of Mind

These five signs that your sales process is working in your interior design business need to be considered and addressed. The company you are building needs a firm foundation and this is the start. Don’t skip these steps with the hope you can figure it out later. The more confusion and lack of clarity you have now, the bigger it will become as the company grows.

These are the same five signs to look for at every level of scaling the business. Because what worked when you started, rarely works without tweaking as you grow. To up-level your business and even to maintain it, these five areas need to be top of mind.

Reach out for a discovery call here, and let’s work together to make intentional choices, so that you can have clarity, confidence, and control in your business. Because profit doesn’t happen by accident.

This training is part of my AIM with Intent methodology. AIM stands for aligning your team, igniting your process, and managing your money with intention. Want to know the building blocks to scale your business? Watch my free masterclass.

About the Author:

Michele Williams is a Business Coach, Consultant, and Strategist. She has quickly developed a reputation of being one of the top coaches for experienced interior designers wanting to grow and scale their businesses.

Michele is masterful at showing designers and creative professionals how to rapidly gain clarity in their business strategy, create confidence in their next steps, and regain control of their time. She has over a decade of experience in teaching and inspiring entrepreneurs in the interior design industry so that they can create the business and income they desire. She is the host of the popular podcast, Profit Is A Choice.