A very warm welcome to the three hundredth episode of A Well-Designed Business today- and happy birthday to us! February the 15th was the second birthday of the podcast and we are having our birthday party tonight (21st February) at Lefroy Brooks in New York City. Today is a really big day for the podcast and there's lots of awesome news too, so listen in now to find out more.

It really takes a lot of effort from many people to get this podcast aired each week and I'm truly grateful to everyone involved! I'm especially grateful to you, my designer friends, who show up and listen in to the show every single week! Listen in today as I share some news and express my heartfelt thanks to everyone who has played their part in making this show so successful!

Show highlights:

• A special mention of thanks to everyone that works so hard to get this show ready and aired!
• Special thanks to our featured sponsors- Kravet Inc and MyDoma Studio.
• How we know that Kravet is truly in the business of helping you to run a better business.
• Why I really love MyDoma Studio so much!
• A shout out to all our other sponsors.
• Thanks to all the wonderful guests who have been on the show!
• A really HUGE thank you to you, my designer friend, who listens to this show every week- It's because of you that I show up each week!.
• How my world has expanded tenfold because of my designer friends, who follow me, interact with me on Instagram and Facebook, and give me really valuable feedback.
• The changes that are happening with the show.
• Why we will be airing our shows just twice a week, as of next week.
• We will be adding more video content to the podcast as we go forward.
• How the Well-Designed Business Fan Club got started.
• The details about the first meeting of the fan club. You're welcome to join!
• How you can really benefit from joining the fan club.
• About my book- The Making Of A Well-Designed Business. It's finally out!
• The biggest lesson that's in my whole book!

If are just hearing about this and you'd like to join us at our birthday party, there's still time for you to get in, so go on over to Party.

To get our amazing newsletter every Wednesday, simply text 444 999 and enter the word designbiz.

The first meeting of the Well-Designed Business Fan Club will be on Friday 23rd February at noon (eastern time). To join, email Deborah at hello@vegandesign.org and put LuAnn Fan Club in the subject line.

My book, The Making Of A Well-Designed Business, is available in e-book form and in paperback. The paperback is $14.95 and the e-book is $7.99, but from 21st February until 28th February 2018 the e-book will only be $3.00- in honor of our 300th episode! Go to The Making Of A Well-Designed Business.

Welcome to A Well Designed Business! Today we have Rich Rogers as our guest and he is the sales manager for the exterior side of Window Works. Rich is someone who has really been making LuAnn's life a whole lot easier in many ways and for many years and he is a real asset to the team at Window Works, with his experience in the trade and his knowledge about product lines. On the show today he will be talking about awnings and discussing some awesome solutions to almost impossible situations. Listen in to find out more.

Before coming to work at Window Works Rich was the senior regional manager for K E Dorosoil Awnings Inc., an Italian based company and the primary awning supplier that Window Works have used since 1985. They really provide an enormous range of outdoor shading solutions, with a slightly European, outdoor restaurant feeling. Listen in now to find out about a shady way of offering savvy solutions and making more money in your design business!

Show highlights:

• Rich's thoughts on where designers tend to miss the boat with outdoor shading solutions for their clients.
• Understanding both the products and the solution.
• Creating amazing awnings for awkward spaces.
• The lasting quality of the products that Rich works with.
• The awnings are so awesome that people even take them with when they move house!
• Creating awareness about quality, unique awnings, and their features.
• Offering solutions using exterior products.
• Operating automated products with your smartphone.
• Automated products are not only functional, they're really beautiful too.
• Some high-end options for you to offer your clients.
• The featured 'Genius Project' and how this product line differs from others.
• The unbelievable size of the awning that was put onto Nomad Pizza in Princeton.
• Creating shady solutions at the Life Hotel.
• The benefits of starting out with the Genius range of products.
• Why you really need not be intimidated by this kind of product.

Link:

The Dorosol website: KE Outdoor Design

The Window Works website: Window Works NJ

Welcome to another episode of A Well Designed Business! We have Mikel Welch, of Mikel Welch Designs, as our guest on the show and today we pull back the curtain to find out what the lifestyle of a celebrity interior designer is really all about. And guess what? It turns out it's not at all the way we think it is. It involves a lot of risk-taking situations, unforeseen bumps in the road, sleeping on sofas at other people's houses and even asking friends for some help. Mikel, who is a really hard worker with a very clear vision for himself, grew up in Southfield Michigan. Today, he works as an on-air personality and design expert for Pickler and Ben TV show and he is also the brand ambassador to Inspire Closets. All this, in addition to running his own interior design projects. On the show today Mikel shares his really remarkable and encouraging success story. Listen in to hear about a turning point with Steve Harvey and other ways that doors keep on opening for Mikel.

Mikel worked as a set designer for the Steve Harvey Show in 2012, where he created lavish green rooms for prominent people, including First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Joan Rivers, Halle Berry and Tyler Perry, just to name a few. In 2012, before joining the Steve Harvey Show, he was on the HGTV Design Star's season seven, where he finished as a top-four contender. Before that, in 2011, he was behind the camera, as a set designer for Style Network's hit reality show, Jerseylicious. He has appeared as a design expert on WGN TV, CBS-TV's The Talk and he has made special guest appearances on behalf of West Elm, CB2 and Pottery Barn. His designs have been featured in The Huffington Post, HGTV Magazine, Essence Magazine, Chicago's NBC-TV, HGTV's Shop This Room and The Fabulist on E! Network and Splash Magazine. Mikel was also recently profiled in CS Magazine, Modern Luxury Interiors and Crain's Chicago Business. It all sounds so exciting and Mikel really sounds like a lucky guy, doesn't he? Listen in today, as we pick his incredible career apart and find out the truth behind how it all really happened!

Show highlights:

• What Mikel had in mind, and how things fell into place for him when he made the move to New York from Atlanta.
• What has happened as a result of Mikel donating his time and services.
• How Mikel used Craig's List to start his career as an interior designer.
• The unglamorous start to his New York life.
• Creating unbelievable opportunities by working strategically for free.
• Getting set design experience while building a portfolio.
• Mikel's first real experience of a reality show.
• What he had to go through working on Jerseylicious.
• Pushing through the fear and just doing it!
• The benefits of boot-camp with a celebrity coach.
• The challenges of working on television.
• The really lucky break with Steve Harvey.
• Why Steve Harvey liked and helped Mikel.
• Mikel's way of working smarter, not harder!
• An awesome new opportunity at Inspired Closets.
• Taking the right kind of risks.

Resources: 

A soon as the new Kravet website goes live, you can use the promo code AWDB10, for a 10% discount on any Kravet fabric, trim and wall covering order.

Welcome to today's show! We have Ruthie Staalsen with us today and she's someone who is really loved by many! Ruthie operates out of the Dallas Fort Worth area in Texas, she has had more than fourteen years of experience as a designer and she's also on the board of the Design Blogger's Conference. Ruthie focuses on making homes look collected rather than decorated and there is a European flair to her personal design style- with an eclectic twist. She views her privilege of having had the opportunity to experience many different lifestyles as the greatest gift of her childhood. Listen in today to hear our awesome conversation with Ruthie about the value of mentorship, the value of attending conferences and Ruthie's way of running her business.

Ruthie was born and raised overseas  and many of her influences come from Europe, Africa and Central and South America. She is an internationally published interior designer and she has built her business from the ground up. She was awarded the 2016 Designer Of The Year from the National Interior Design Society for a kitchen renovation project and she was nominated as one of the top fifteen decorators in Dallas. Her work has been published in Elite Monde- a lifestyle and fashion magazine in Dubai and also in Traditional Home Magazine Great Kitchens. Listen in to find out more.

Show highlights:

• The incredible kind of connections that can be made with others at the Design Blogger's Conference.
• Ruthie's daunting first experience of a Design Blogger's Conference, about seven years ago.
• The way that your business will benefit from your attending conferences.
• Things that will keep you going and really spur you on with your business.
• Ruthie's awesome relationship with her mentee, Cheryl Luckett. (Episode #291)
• How you can really benefit from being a mentor.
• Some of the things that newbie designers tend to struggle with.
• Ruthie's take on charging the right fee, as a new designer.
• What happened when Ruthie started to hire people to help her.
• The huge responsibility- and benefits of hiring new people.
• Some interesting things about the way that Ruthie has set her business up.
• Ruthie's Away For The Day design service.
• Mistakes will happen- just get up and carry on!
• Living a really purposeful life as a designer.
• Ruthie's personal approach to decorating people's homes.
• How Ruthie finds the very best vendors to work with.
• How Ruthie really manages to express her authentic self through her blog.

 Links:

To join us at our birthday party go to the RSVP at Luann Nigara Party.

Welcome to another episode of Power Talk Friday! There have been perhaps a dozen times in the last two years that someone has suggested to LuAnn that she does a show about vendors and what it's like working with them. Then, something quite incredible happened in a Facebook group recently, where a vendor spoke out very directly to a particular designer about his experience with other designers. This brought about mixed reactions from designers in the Facebook group. Some were incensed at his misdirected wrath, saying that it was ridiculous, while others felt it was better to just walk away. LuAnn's opinion, however, was that this was really a vendor to hang on to for dear life, because although he had been both blunt and less than politically correct, he was honest without being mean, cutting or personalizing his opinion- really epitomizing what it is that vendors have to go through. Listen in today, to find out what LuAnn has to tell you about how designers are directly affected by whatever their vendors are going through at that time.

For the last two years on this podcast, LuAnn has championed you, as designers, standing in your space and helping you to teach your clients how to do business with you. So when the vendor stands in their own space and wants to teach you how to do business with them, you really cannot take offense to that, now can you? Listen in today and learn as LuAnn explains how to work with your vendor and also, how you can express your needs to your client about how you want them to work with you.

Show highlights:

• LuAnn reads the Facebook post from the very straightforward vendor.
• Ways that you can learn to think from the point of view of the vendor.
• The difference between your relationship with your client and the relationship that your vendor has with you.
• The kinds of difficulties that vendors tend to have and how they usually deal with them when they are not yet standing firmly in their own space.
• Why it's actually easier for a vendor to have “the hard conversation” upfront- even at the risk of losing the whole project.
• What Lee Cockerell, the senior vice president of Disney World, had to say in episode #222 about doing hard things.
• Becoming empowered, setting boundaries and teaching your clients how to do business with you.
• Learning from your mistakes- without throwing your vendor under the bus.
• What inevitably ends up happening to you when you try to blame your vendor.
• It's really all about very good communication.
• Some great tips for working really well with your vendors.
• Protecting your vendors from information overload.
• The benefits of using a project management software like MyDoma Studio.
• Really valuing the kind of vendor that makes it clear to you how to work successfully with them.
• Giving your vendor the benefit of the doubt. 

Links:

To be on our email list: Text the number 444999 and enter the word designbiz.

To come to our birthday party, generously hosted by Lefroy Brooks, on Wednesday, February 21st go to Luann Nigara Party 

On Monday, February 19th Blanch Garcia will be doing a Lunch And Learn at out New Jersey showroom on running your design business.

If you are facing new challenges in your interior design business or are just starting out with the podcast, then you might be a bit overwhelmed by all the information the Well Designed Business Podcast has accumulated over the past two years. If you are in need of a jumping off point, then look no further than this episode! It’s a solo show today as I organize and highlight the episodes that have made a real impact on me and the audience. The show is nearing 300 episodes, and that means if you are just now joining the party that you have quite a bit of info to sift through. Luckily, I am giving you a jumping off point so that the party can begin right away.

I have gathered together the best of the best into 5 different categories. You’ll hear my recommendations for practical business advice, building up a pipeline, understanding your YOU and your ideal client, creative inspiration, and the quick starter designers that have inspired me. If you are listening to the podcast, you are the kind of person who will work hard and be successful in your design business. I am celebrating the success of the show by helping you on that road to success. Consider this episode the fast track!

If you are just now joining us, welcome! If you are a longtime listener, I sincerely hope you enjoy re-listening to these episodes. You are on the path to success just by showing up for your business today.

More in this episode:

• Hear my vision for the Well Designed Business Archives.
• For practical business advice, listen to episodes 2, 36, 45, 68, 180, 233*.
• Need help building your pipeline? Check out episodes 40, 245, 266
• To understand your YOU, your ideal client, head over to episodes 15, 256, 22, 26, 125.
• Several of you have listened to episode 192 multiple times! It’s so full of good info.
• Time to dig into episodes for creative inspiration! Try episodes 21, 18, 165, 169, 184.
• These designers really blew me out of the water. Here are your best places for Quick Starts episodes—167, 179, 211, 203.
• I want you at the podcast birthday party!

Resources:

info@luannnigara

luannnigara.com/party

Iwce-vision.com

Your Business in Words

Today we have Jana Platina Phipps, affectionately known as the “Trim Queen” by her clients, as our guest on the show. Jana and LuAnn met each other in person last year at the IWCE in Charlotte, where they were both speaking, and this year Jana will be speaking again at the IWCE in Tampa Florida. Jana is an embellishment expert, a designer and she's also an agent for Classical Elements. She develops custom trimmings for NYC-based fashion companies and she also designs made-to-order home and fashion accessories, using trimmings and vintage jewelry. Jana teaches other people her technique of Trim Alchemy, which involves turning something ordinary into something really extraordinary, using trimmings to express their personal creativity. Listen in to find out more about what Jana will be doing at the IWCE this year.             

Jana started a blog in 2013 and she uses her social media channels to keep an account of how the design community uses trimmings creatively. She lectures at The New York School of Interior Design, Continuing Education Seminars and on Webinars to the interior design community, drawing on her knowledge of the history of passementerie and also on her hands-on experience with fabrication. She is a regular contributor to WF Vision and Designers Today Magazines, and Universal Furniture’s Smartstuff Social Station blog. She also conducts DIY workshops and stages a Trim Alchemy Show at the Country Living Fairs across the country. Jana is planning a Trim Queen Maker Tour of Venice Italy for Spring 2018. Listen in now to find out what she has to share with you on today's show.

Show highlights:

• Jana talks about what she has going on at the IWCE this year.
• How Jana's college education has come into play for her in her career.
• The details of what's happening with Jana's workshops in the Construction Zone at the IWCE this year.
• Why Jana really loves going to the IWCE!
• What you, as an interior designer, can gain from the community on the Construction Zone floor at the IWCE.
• About Jana's work with Classical Elements.
• How the blog post- Trim Queen came about, and the mission behind it.
• The new avenue of creativity and business that Jana has created with Trim Queen.
• The power of getting great feedback.
• The fine line between giving people advice and being taken advantage of.
• About Jana's really helpful peer mentoring group.
• How Jana moved Trim Queen into becoming a really viable business.
• Jana's really intentional way of starting out with doing video.
• The magic of developing your business through the creative process.
• Something that has really helped Jana with her creative process this year.
• All about Jana's Trim Queen Maker Tour in Venice Italy next year.
• What Jana's awesome concept of maker tourism is all about.
• What's coming up with Jana and the WCAA, out of Connecticut. All the info will be on the events page of Jana's website. (trimqueen.com)

Resources:

Trim Queen

Instagram

Facebook

Twitter

Youtube

Pinterest

Linkedin

Welcome to Power Talk Friday! I’m excited to introduce you to Summer Tannhauser, and I’m eager to hear what she can teach us about using Pinterest to grow an interior design business. She’s a Pinterest expert, a business coach, Mastermind leader, and a business/marketing mentor to female entrepreneurs who want to create an impact online through their personal brand and business. She has some really cool things going on now, like her Live More, Work Less business model, and blog series.

We have touched on the world of Pinterest in earlier episodes: Ep. 209 with Leslie Carothers and Sam Henderson of Savour Partnership, and Ep. 223 with Allison Fannin. Today’s episode focuses on the ins and outs of this important platform and pulls back the curtain on Pinterest to show how web designers can use it to build our brand.

Show highlights:

• Why Pinterest is a vehicle for growing your business locally
• Summer’s advice about using keywords about your location to draw people in and showcase your brand
• Setting up your Pinterest account and profile---Do’s and Don’t’s
• How to set up “rich pins” and validate them
• How rich pins bring people back to your website
• Start off with your business name in your profile, use keywords, location, your website, and a description of your business
• Have a minimum of 15 boards to show that your profile is complete
• Creating board titles using important keywords
• Going from a personal to business account: how to clean up or delete existing boards that don’t fit or promote your business
• How to fill your boards with a combination of other people’s boards and your own content
• Why some pins should be on multiple boards
• See what people are looking for to get great ideas for blog topics
• Change your perspective and think of Pinterest as a search engine and NOT a social media platform
• Summer’s advice for pinning people’s pins and following accounts to increase your engagement, if you have less than 100 followers
• “The first step is to make sure your website is updated and presents your brand well. There is no sense spending hours on Pinterest driving people to a website that’s a hot mess.”
• Focus more on your state name than city name, but include local town names on your profile and on boards
• Your Pinterest content will have people engaging long-term over time, so don’t focus on short-term events and happenings
• Getting consistent and active on Pinterest: Consider investing in a scheduling program so it can pin for you on a consistent basis
• Which platform is best for interior designers if you have limited time?
• Summer’s Live More, Work Less blog series, highlighting entrepreneurs who are making it work

Resources:

Her website:

Summer Tannhauser

Her free course:

Free Pin Course

Summer’s social media:

Twitter - @summerktann

Facebook

Pinterest

Instagram

Tail Wind App (To use for Pinterest and social media scheduling)

Today we are very happy to have Warren Pearl, the president of Lefroy Brooks, as our guest on the show. If you are a regular listener you may already know that Mr. Pearl has invited us to celebrate our second year birthday of the podcast on 21st of February, at his New York City showroom! Listen in today to get the details.

Lefroy Brooks has been in business for the last twenty-five years and they have showrooms in Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago. They are known as the Rolls Royce of bathroom and plumbing fixtures and on the show today you will hear how and why they got this name. Lefroy Brooks create plumbing fixtures who's design would compliment any decor, from any era, from early 20th century all the way to the end. Cooper and Graham take it from there, with their elegant and forward-thinking designs for the 21st century.  In addition to having a really outstanding line of plumbing fixtures which are renown for their superior quality, Lefroy Brooks are a company who really believe in and support interior designers with their education and customer service. Listen in today to find out what Mr. Pearl has to share with you.

Show highlights:

• What earned Lefroy Brooks their reputation as the Rolls Royce of the plumbing fixtures industry.
• The philosophy behind the Lefroy Brooks product.
• How Lefroy Brooks became known as the Rolls Royce of bathroom and plumbing fixtures.
• The selection of 21stcentury designs that can be accessed through Cooper & Graham.
• Some really awesome and interesting background info about Warren Pearl and the really famous people that he has dealt with.
• The special kind of customer service that Lefroy Brooks provides to the trade.
• The role of interior designers in Mr. Pearl's vision for Cooper & Graham.
• Why interior designers who haven't yet broken into the high end, luxury market should not be intimidated by the Cooper & Graham product line.
• The CEU's that Lefroy Brooks provide for interior designers.
• The fantastic new plumbing technology that's coming up in the future for Cooper & Graham.
• The classic elegance and authenticity of the Lefroy Brooks fixtures.
• The unique way that Lefroy Brooks approach their marketing.
• About the different Lefroy Brooks classic collections, many of which were designed in the 1940's.
• The Lefroy Brooks presence, outside of the USA.

Go to My Doma Studio to find out about your special offer, as a listener of the podcast.

Link to RSVP for Birthday Party:

www.luannnigara.com/party

Resources:

Lefroy Brooks

Cooper And Graham

Instagram

Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

We have some really happy news today! We have Fred Berns back on the show! Since the beginning of this podcast he has appeared on episodes #22, #48, #96, #174 and #226 and if you are a new listener, Fred is one of our favorite returning guests because his advice is really so actionable. Today Fred will be talking to us about the seven habits of highly effective luxury interior designers. Listen in now to find out more!

Fred is the only interior design business coach and speaker who creates personal bios and other promo materials for design professionals worldwide. He has more than twenty-five years of experience training design professionals, from Dallas to Dubai. He helps to create their online profiles, their websites, their social media copy, blogs, and marketing forums. In addition, he also offers a wide range of coaching services which include his High-Performance Coaching Program, his Bio Briefing, and his Website Once Over. Listen in to find out what he has to share with you on the show today.

Show highlights:

• What Fred is currently up to and how got to the information about how the really successful, top designers and architects got to where they are today.
• The kinds of projects these really top designers and architects work on, and the famous people that they work for.
• Some of the characteristics that these top designers and architects have in common.
• Strangely enough, the top designers are not always the best designers- Fred discusses what actually makes them so successful.
• The mindset of a lot of the high end, really successful design professionals.
• How the really successful design professionals managed to tap into the high-end market.
• Fred discusses some of the onlys of the top design professionals.
• Optimising your
• Pinpointing the pain points, problems and challenges of the high-end market.
• Ways of creating really relevant blog posts, or videos for great marketing.
• Positioning yourself in order to break into the luxury, high-end market.
• What you really want to emphasize in your bio.
• The seven common habits that the really top, successful designers seem to share.
• Why it's important to get some price objections.
• The real value of being stubborn and not quitting.
• Fred's awesome Website Once Over- to help position you in a higher place.
• Fred's Bio Briefing coaching program- for you to really come across as someone who is highly qualified and an expert in your field.

Links:

For Fred's Website Once Over go to Website Onceover

For Fred's Bio Briefing go to Bio Briefing

Today we have Jason Oliver Nixon, one of the dynamic partners of Madcap Cottage, with us on the show. LuAnn has really been looking forward to this interview because she and Jason Oliver are both going to be at the IWCE (International Window Coverings Expo) Conference in Tampa Florida in March, where Jason and his partner John Loecke are going be giving a keynote address. On the show today Jason will be talking about the IWCE and also about his business, Madcap Cottage, so listen in to find out more.

There are so many parts of Madcap Cottage that have intrigued LuAnn and she really admires that way that Jason Oliver and John stand so firmly in the space of their design aesthetic. These Madcap gents are well known for their whimsical use of color and pattern, really bringing their client's story-lines to life and their out-of-the-box website really says it all! Listen in today to find out about Madcap Cottage's really unusual and fascinating approach to interior design.

Show highlights:

• How Madcap Cottage came about.
• The way that Madcap Cottage approaches the needs of their clients.
• Jason Oliver explains how both his and John's former experience as magazine editors and television producers assists them with bringing their client's stories uniquely to life.
• The way that they challenge and push their clients to bring prints and patterns into their lives.
• Prints Charming- the really awesome book that Jason Oliver and John have written as a primer to give people permission to bring prints and patterns into their lives.
• Why people come to Jason Oliver and John.
• The reason why it's never a head-to-toe look from Madcap Cottage.
• The intuitive and thoughtful way that Jason Oliver and John work with their clients.
• How constant traveling really helps them to keep their eyes tuned and their clients well informed.
• The evolution of the Madcap brand.
• How Jason Oliver and John trained themselves as interior designers.
• Where Jason Oliver finds the time to rest with his hectic schedule.
• What luxury really means.
• What to expect from Jason Oliver's keynote address.

Resources:

Book: Prints Charming- Create Absolutely Beautiful Interiors With Prints And Patterns by Jason Oliver Nixon and John Loecke

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Prints Charming- Create Absolutely Beautiful Interiors With Prints And Patterns by Jason Oliver Nixon and John Loecke

Robert Allen fabric collection

Jason Oliver and John will be giving their keynote address at 8 am on 27th March the IWCE.

Big news! We are nearing February and the 2nd birthday for the podcast! Our 300th episode is coming on February 21; there’s a BIG party in NYC---and you’re invited! Listen to today’s show for details!

Today’s guest is Sandra Espinet, a luxury interior designer and the principal of SE Designs, based in Los Cabos, Mexico. Sandra is warm, genuine, intelligent, and a very smart businesswoman. She knows the nuances of catering to the luxury design market, and how it carries its own code and way of doing things. As a lifelong traveler, she embraces the concepts of relaxed luxury and casual international style in her designs.

Her experience and extensive travel have given her a unique perspective on her design style. Her work has been published in several international publications, and she has received numerous awards and distinctions, in addition to appearing on several HGTV shows and radio shows. Her first book is The Well-Traveled Home and her newest book is Barefoot Luxury: Mexican Resort Living, due for release in a few weeks.

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• How I met Sandra through Andrew Joseph PR: the similar focus on how they work with clients
• Getting real with yourself about the client you want to work with and what you want to do
• Why you can’t be an expert on everything, but you CAN be an expert in your field
• Knowing what calls to you and attracts you
• What it means to design for luxury clients
• Understanding the client in THEIR world and in THEIR space
• Locking down the intangibles to move to the next level
• Finding the balance between “staying in your lane” and branching out
• How to decline the projects that aren’t aligned with your focus and having the power to say NO
• “If you know that you can’t lead, then be a follower, but follow the best person you can find.”
• The other legs of SE Designs and the business positives that come from them
• Staying conscious of your core clients, especially about social media exposure
• How Sandra gets clients with NO advertising
• Sandra’s recent award from AD Mexico as a Top Ten Designer in Latin America
• How Sandra manifests her strengths in each job
• Why Sandra works now with a smaller team and with fewer simultaneous jobs
• The unique focus of each of Sandra’s books: one eclectic book about travel and one about casual lifestyle trends in the luxury market
• Why Sandra LOVES to shop with her clients
• Plan and focus: How Sandra’s shopping trips begin with a budget and a floor plan
• Becoming fully immersed in the total experience with a client in the psychology of design
• “I’m designing a stage for fabulous people to lead fabulous lives.”
• The power and responsibility in spending other people’s money

Resources:

Website: Sandra Espinet

Find Sandra’s monthly blog: 7 Things I Cannot Live Without

The Well-Traveled Home by Sandra Espinet

Barefoot Luxury: Mexican Resort Living by Sandra Espinet

Welcome to today's episode of Power Talk Friday. We are really very happy to introduce Jeff Bullas, an expert social media marketing blogger, strategist and speaker from Sydney Australia, as our guest for today's show. LuAnn has been a great fan of his work for years and she has also been on his email list and following him for a really long time. Despite all the conversations that we've had on the show about blogging, there are still some things about it that continue to plague us, as designers. So today Jeff will be talking about why blogging really works and he will also be sharing some of his expertise about ways to get your audience to find you on social media and how to write killer headlines. Listen in to find out more!

Jeff is the author of the book Blogging The Smart Way- How To Create And Market A Killer Blog With Social Media. He is listed in Forbes as one of the Top Twenty Influencers of CMO's in 2017, he has been ranked by Apollo Research as the Top Twenty Influencers of Digital Marketing in the USA and he is also number one in Global Digital Marketing Influencer 2016. He has been named as one of the Top 100 Social Media Influencers in 2015 and he was featured in Inc.Com as one of the twenty digital marketing experts to follow on Twitter. Forbes ranked Jeff as number eight on The World's Top 40 Social Marketing Talent, and he gets over four million visitors to his site each year, so listen in to find out what Jeff has to share with you today about blogging and getting yourself known on social media.

Show highlights:

• Jeff discusses his passion and philosophy and talks about how blogging can really become a positive force in your business.
• Attracting an audience that really loves what you do.
• Overcoming problems and challenges through writing blog posts about your pain points.
• Why Jeff believes that content and blogging is so important.
• Are you wanting to become an industry leader or a celebrity designer, or are you just looking for a stepping stone to creating more business for your business? Jeff explains the different tactics for the different goals.
• Email is still the business tool of choice for communication, so Jeff explains some ways to inspire people to hand over their email addresses.
• Creating really effective lead magnets.
• Some awesome advice about titles and headlines.
• What you need in order to build your distribution on the more visual platforms like Instagram and Pinterest.
• Looking at what the top performers are doing in order to get some great ideas.
• Developing the kinds of habits that will really work for you.
• What deep work looks like and why you really need to do it!
• Creating content of consequence.
• A success habit that many smart people seem to ignore.
• Some strategies to help your audience to find you.

Links:

Connect with Jeff:

Blogger at JeffBullas.com - more than 4 million people visit every year

Author of the Amazon Best Seller - "Blogging the Smart Way - How to Create and Market a Killer Blog with Social Media" 

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Welcome to today's show! Today we have another show featuring a husband and wife team and we're really excited to have Morgan and Ryan Motsinger, the owners of Lot 35 Homes as our guests. Ryan is a contractor and Morgan is a designer and until recently they each used to do their individual jobs. During the summer of 2017 however,  they combined their skills and opened a business together and now they have a really cool thing going on! Listen in today as we take apart the way that Morgan and Ryan work together as a husband and wife team.

Lot 35 Homes is a full-service residential construction and interior design company, specializing in creating spaces that are relaxing, comfortable, functional and also beautiful. Ryan and Morgan really love their local community in Tillamook, on the Oregon coast and so they align their business values as closely as possible with those of their community. Listen in now to find out more about the really awesome way that they go about their business.

Show highlights:

• The really awesome website that Morgan created for their business. (lot35homes.com )
• How they came up with the name of their business.
• What lead them to the decision to combine their businesses.
• How the great dynamic between Morgan and Ryan really works for them as a professional team.
• The major contract that they have recently signed.
• Where and how their new major client managed to find them.
• Their intentions for the marketing of their business in the future.
• The kinds of projects that Morgan undertook for her three guinea pig clients.
• The merits of using iPhone photos on Instagram versus using professional ones.
• Morgan's rationale behind the recent adjustment of her fees for consultations.
• How Morgan developed the confidence to present herself as a professional designer.
• The great features on their website.
• How Morgan highlights other people's creativity through the services that she offers.
• How Lot 35 Connect can really help make the lives of parents with special needs kids more comfortable.
• Their goal with Lot 35 Connect.
• Their game plan for engagement on Facebook Live.

Links:

Morgan and Ryan's website: Lot 35 Homes

Go to Curated Kravet, select the items that you want and use the code CK Podcast at the checkout to get 10% off your entire first order.

Welcome to today's show. Our guest for today is Caitlyn Waite, an interior designer from Mobile Alabama. Caitlyn has been chosen to head up the very first affiliate chapter of Savvy Giving By Design, a really wonderful organization started by Susan Wintersteen (#164) with a mission to provide comfort, healing, and support to families with a child facing a medical crisis. This is done by transforming the interior space of the bedrooms of the child and their siblings, at no cost to the family. Listen in to find out more.

Also, through her interior design business, Caitlyn has developed a relationship with a builder and she already has twelve confirmed projects lined up with him for 2018. Today she talks in detail about how this relationship came about and also about the kind of things that you, as designers, really need to know if you would like to duplicate in your design firm what Caitlyn has done in hers. Listen in today to find out more about Caitlyn's approach to cultivating valuable relationships with builders in order to create a really successful design form.

Show highlights:

• How Caitlyn initially came to hear about Savvy Giving By Design through this podcast.
• The whole legal process that Caitlyn went through in order to become set up with Savvy Giving By Design.
• Caitlyn talks about her very first Savvy Giving project.
• The story of Caitlyn's daughter's Angel's Kiss.
• How Caitlyn found Georgia, the first child who's room she will be transforming.
• The unforeseen difficulties that Caitlyn experienced in finding nominees for the Savvy Giving project and what Susan Wintersteen has done to help overcome this.
• The kind of fund-raising that Caitlyn has done for the project- and how you can also get involved by making a donation.
• There are even some tradespeople who are willing to donate their time to this project.
• The way that Caitlyn works with the children to create a space for them that they will really love.
• How this project differs from a standard design project.
• The way that Savvy Giving is working as a cohesive unit towards attracting national fund-raising.
• Caitlyn explains how she developed her relationship with a local builder and she discusses her business model for 2018.
• Caitlyn's dream solution to the general difficulty that many designers experience in finding sub-contractors to execute their work.
• Some tips from Caitlyn about the way that her finances are handled with Joe, the builder that she works with.
• The freedom that Caitlyn experiences through the kind of work that she does with Joe.
• Caitlyn discusses some of the challenges that she deals within her 'spec' design projects.
• Some awesome advice about having a successful initial conversation with a builder who you may want to build a relationship with.

Resources:

If you would like to donate towards the awesome Savvy Giving By Design project, you can go to their donate page on Savvy Giving By Design.org

Go to My Doma Studio to sign up for a 30 Day Free Trial with My Doma Studio. Upon signing up for the trial, you will receive 20% off your subscription, as a listener of the podcast.

Welcome to today's Power Talk Friday. We are really happy to introduce you to today's guest, Madeleine Macrae. Madeleine and LuAnn are going to be co-presenters at the International Window Coverings Expo in Tampa Florida this March. Listen in today to find out more about Madeleine, why she's here on the show and why she's been invited to present at the Window Coverings Expo.

Madeleine is the highly motivated CEO, founder and chief innovator for M MacRae, a national learning, coaching and consulting firm which focuses on the development and growth of pros and companies in the home professionals industry. More than thirteen years ago Madeleine developed a time-tested process and also a language for bridging the gap between the needs and expectations of the corporate world and the needs and expectations of their greatest asset- the pros out in the field. In Madeleine's bio she says that she is connected and responsive, she has a three hundred and sixty-degree view and understanding of objectives, goals, and stakes and that she derives her energy from educating, inspiring and leading her clients. Listen in today, to find out what Madeleine has to share with you about creating really effective and manageable goals, both for your business and for yourself personally.

Show highlights:

• The joint goal setting seminar that LuAnn and Madeleine will be doing.
• The Five Days To Goals training that Madeleine does and offers to her clients.
• Madeleine explains her philosophy around goal setting and she discusses how she arrived at her Five Days To Goals training.
• Madeleine explains the steps that are involved in the goals training that she offers her clients.
• Stop beating yourself up with the stick of blame.
• How to do the Data Dump.
• The value in keeping notes about the things you intend to do.
• What you could gain by doing things as tasks, rather than as projects.
• A sophisticated neuro-trick to use when making your lists.
• The amount of information that comes at us, compared with what we can actually focus on.
• Getting really clear about what you want in your life.
• A smart way to work out what your priorities really are.
• The hardest step for people to accept.
• Daring to dream about what you really want!
• The difference between a goal and a task.
• Breaking your goal down into achievable milestones.
• You really know so much more than you think you know!
• Madeleine's Daily Blueprint- a really fantastic tool for attaining your goals.

Links:

To find out more information about the International Window Coverings Expo, go to: IWCE Vision

To get access to some of Madeleine's goals training absolutely free go to: Fast Track Sales Systems

Today's guest is Blanche Garcia, a certified interior designer with more than eighteen years of experience in commercial and residential design. Blanche is one of the principal designers featured in the Travel Channel reality series Hotel Impossible and she was also a contestant in season six of HGTV Design Star. Blanche owns a design business and she also does a lot of speaking at design industry events, where she shares her proven methods for 'surviving' her interior design business. On the show today she will be discussing how she runs the business side of things, so listen in to find out more.

Blanche is the owner of B. Garcia Designs which is based in Montclair New Jersey. She is a member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and she's also a 'Green Design' LEED Accredited Professional through the United States Green Building Commission. Listen in today as Blanche discusses her really focused approach to running a successful design business.

Show highlights:

• How Blanche ended up doing so much public speaking for the design industry.
• Where Blanche finds the time to do everything that she does.
• What helped her to learn to figure everything out really quickly.
• A simple way to teach people how to treat you.
• Putting up parameters in order to maintain professional control.
• Taking the pain out of the whole billing structure.
• Having the right kind of agreement with your client.
• Giving yourself the time to be creative.
• How Blanche assesses what the budget of a project should be.
• The importance of clear communication.
• The insane amount of purchases that are going through Blanche's office.
• Blanche's remarkable time management.
• Her disciplined and focused approach to her work.

Resources:

Her website: B Garcia Designs

Her Book Link: Empowered Design

Instagram Link: Instagram

Twitter Link: Twitter

Facebook Link: Facebook

Photo Credit: Ciara Perrone

We have Anita Dawson with us on the show today. She is the president and owner of the Dawson Design Group, a full-service interior design firm based in San Diego Southern California. DDG specializes in all things modern, and since 2007 they have completed more than a hundred projects in Southern California, Chicago, and Atlanta. They have been awarded The Design Impact Award and Design Excellence Award by the American Society of Interior Designers; multiple Home of the Year awards from San Diego Home/Garden Lifestyles and also an Award of Excellence- Architectural Rehabilitation award from the City of San Diego Historical Resources Board. Anita has a really unique and interesting story to tell, so listen in today, to find out what she has to share with you.

Anita founded Dawson Design Group to fulfill her true calling in a creative and hands-on environment after her previous successful careers in the performing and visual arts. Anita's clients gravitate towards the relaxed style and clean-lined approach that she has perfected in her design over the last decade. She and her team at DDG provide homeowners with sophisticated and interesting spaces which are unique to each client. Anita has been featured in HGTV's Professional Network and she is a Houzz.com influencer and a member of Design Trust Ltd, which is an exclusive group of leading interior designers across the country. Listen in today as Anita shares some actionable ways for you to make yourself really valuable as a member of a full-service design team.

Show highlights:

• How Anita's firm got to be the type of firm that does the bigger projects.
• The way that Anita's maturity has contributed towards her level of comfort around high net worth clients.
• The importance of being able to give really clear direction to your contractor to communicate what you want to have built.
• Developing the kind confidence that's necessary in order to get to the next level.
• The value of not being afraid to say that you don't know something.
• Developing collaborative relationships with experts in certain fields, so that you can give up your control in those areas in order to make for a better overall project.
• Some lessons that Anita learned while she was leasing a workspace within the space of an architect, who ended up becoming an informal mentor to her.
• Some of the really helpful people that Anita hired, in the beginning, to help her set her business systems up.
• The kind of marketing that Anita did in the first three to four years of her business.
• The value of using 'printed marketing' in conjunction with Instagram.
• Anita's way of fast-tracking herself, while still maintaining her niche market.
• How Anita managed to start attracting the kind of clients who are aligned with her values, through her whimsical and humorous style of advertising when she started out.
• Some of the ways that Anita gave some value back to the architect who became her informal mentor in the beginning.
• Some tips on how you as a designer can really bring value to the builders that you work with.
• The importance of having a really great team for high-quality projects.
• It's okay to boost your photo shoots with some accessories that you bring along yourself- the client may even want to buy them if they really enhance the space!
• Why you really need to be physically present at all your photo shoots.
• Building great relationships with your vendors is really very important for your business!

Links:

Things I learned from Anita Dawson:

https://luannnigara.com/anita/

The guest for today's Power Talk Friday is Adam Urbanski, aka The Millionaire Marketing Mentor and he's a real headliner in Online Marketing and Podcast circles! There are so many ways that Adam could really help and influence all LuAnn's Designer friends to get that extra 'something' to tweak their businesses, so today, she's decided to go with Adam's Dream Business Design Process. Listen in to find out how this process helps Designers to identify what they want to sell the most and also how to sell to the most clients.

Adam, who has been in business for seventeen years now,  is really the 'go-to guy' for Coaches, Consultants and other Service Professionals who want to attract more clients, convert more high-value sales, build an authority brand, or grow a Lifestyle Business that has more impact and generates more income. Adam's clients have often doubled, tripled and even ten times-ed their businesses, some of them in as little as ninety days! All of this and Adam started out with only $194 and limited English and he still managed to turn his first business into a seven-figure business in less than ten years! LuAnn knows that she's in the presence of a true expert with Adam, so she's very grateful that he's on the show today! Listen in now, as Adam shares some really hot tips with you, to help you to become a way better business strategist!

Today, Adam talks to LuAnn about:

• Becoming a master of, and being known for a very specific approach.
• What his six question worksheet allows you to zero in on.
• How he discovered his ideal clients.
• That 90% of his clients are women and this happened by design!
• That marketing is really all about listening.
• Adam talks you through his six questions and how to best approach working with them.
• Finding your specific magic, as a Designer.
• Thinking about your dream income, per client.
• Identifying your dream project.
• Identifying the characteristics of your dream client.
• What you'd need to do in order to execute your project in the best possible way. (i.e. identifying your Superpower)
• Really understanding the expectations that you have to meet with your project.
• Expressing what you're really good at to your client.
• Establishing systems for really clear processes in your business.
• Knowing that everything is changing all the time, so you need to maintain a constant process of evaluation with your clients.
• Asking yourself how much money you'd like to make from each project, per year.
• Examining which three to six marketing activities you really need to focus on- to avoid becoming overwhelmed.
• That you should really become a one track pony, in order to not lose sight of your core competencies.

Links:

Adam's websites: www.adamurbanski.com or www.themarketingmentors.com

Adam Urbanski is also on Facebook

My guest for today’s amazing show is Candy Scott, the Principal of MOOD Design + Build, based in Chicago. She gives practical advice on launching, growing, and sustaining an interior design business. Candy has 15 years’ experience in both commercial and residential design. She graduated from Meredith College in Raleigh, NC, with a BS in Interior Design. You’ll hear her describe how her early experience working with a large developer and with large corporate clients, outfitting high-rise condominiums, lobbies, model homes, and showrooms all contributed to some of the principles and lessons she brings to her own business. She founded MOOD Design + Build in 2014, and continues to work with residential clients and small business owners with their homes, offices, and small-scale commercial interiors.

Show highlights:

• Candy’s background and experience after design school
• Benefits to working at a furniture store, learning customer service and different segments of the business
• Making mistakes in the early years: “falling down and getting back up again”
• The consciousness it takes to “get out of the drama”
• Finding the place of relating to clients, vendors, and contractors with a sense of mutuality
• Meeting clients where they are: hearing their frustrations and fear
• The range of services offered by MOOD Design + Build
• How the design phase and the build phase differ
• Breaking down a project into smaller increments and tracking the data
• How to be the go-to for referrals for the business that larger firms don’t want
• Why you must attend networking events
• Weekly sales activity: why you can’t let this part of your business go
• Developing relationships with realtors
• Candy’s blog post with 7 Initial Questions for Developing a Beautiful Space and 5 Steps to Making a Beautiful Space (check out her website!)

Resources:

Candy’s website and blog:

www.modddesignbuild.com

Her Twitter:
https://twitter.com/CandyScott_

On today’s show, we have the lovely Erika Ward! Erika started out as an accountant for a design, build company. While still working in corporate settings she started her own firm called “Erika Ward Interiors”. She used her background in financing and her creative side to grow her business and has since then built her business to the greatness that it is now. Erika not only works with individual clients but also works close with retail brands like Home Depot!

Links:

Welcome to another episode of Power talk Friday! Today LuAnn has Stephanie Chung with her on the show. Stephanie has a company called Stephanie Chung and Associates, where she offers Sales Training, Executive Coaching and also Small Business Mentorship, to companies nationwide. Stephanie also has a course, called High Ticket Selling Made Simple which has been designed to help business owners sell more and make more. Listen in to find out more about Stephanie and her company.

Stephanie used to work as a Sales Executive in the Aviation and Private Jet Industry, where she mastered the art of high ticket selling. She has mentored and coached numerous people, including some of the highest paid, most elite Sales Professionals in the country. She serves Business leaders, Entrepreneurs, and Sales Professionals, using her proven Executive Coaching and Sales Training. Stephanie is a contributor on ABC, CBS, and NBC and she's authored Profit Like A Girl- A Woman's Guide To Kicking Butt In Sales And Leadership and also Embrace The Suck- How To Grow And Succeed In Business. LuAnn is really beyond tickled with all of this, so listen in now, as she and Stephanie discuss the mindset moves that are necessary to really scale your sales.

Show highlights:

• What it all really comes down to is your own version of your own self-worth. Your financial beliefs play a role in the whole equation and sometimes people tend to struggle with that when selling their intellectual property. Stephanie digs into all the factors that contribute to that struggle.
• Financial self-worth and your mindset- why you should be very careful to never let your own financial beliefs creep into any sales conversation.
• It's never about you- it's always about the buyer in front of you.
• Stephanie explains how you can break out of a limited mindset. Remember that it's not your concern how much your customer can afford. You need to ensure that your presentation of your product (your digital footprint), or service actually aligns with your product or service.
• Run your business with excellence.
• If someone agrees to meet with you, it means that they've already done some research about you and they have already decided that you are going to be worth their time.
• Always approach a conversation with a buyer by looking at what it is that they want or need.
• Ask the buyer questions that go a little deeper, because sometimes the buyer can't really articulate what it is that they need.
• Use the power of silence.
• Really knowing your stuff and getting results will help build your confidence.
• Stephanie shares a technique that she uses with her VIP clients, called Pre-emptive Strike. Know the objections that are going to come your way and bring them up in advance, so that you can control the message.
• Remember to never bring your price down, if the buyer can't afford it. Rather take something away. This way you keep your price integrity.
• Only ask the buyer questions that you don't know the answers to. This will help you better understand how to solve their problem.
• After setting your agenda with a client, mention that you're not necessarily the Designer for everyone.... Great for getting the right
• If you really want to become a better salesperson, there is ample information out there, for you.
• Stephanie has done courses before, specifically for Interior Designers. (For example, High Ticket Selling Made Simple)

Links:

Stephanie's website: www.stephaniechung.com You can find loads of free resources there.

To get a free download of Stephanie's book, go to: www.profitlikeagirl.com

My guest today is Judi Kieffer, who has over 24 years’ experience in hospitality, luxury residential, and restaurant design. Her portfolio is full of top-tier projects and satisfied clients. In our conversation, she shares advice about how she built and now manages her design firm in Boise, Idaho. Judi is involved as an advocate for the personal and professional development and for sustainable products and developments.

She participates in several local philanthropic and civic groups and is a mentor for women’s and children’s organizations. She was recently appointed as a spokesperson for the American Society of Interior Designers and is a certified Green Globe auditor. Her passions are yoga, fine wine, riding horses, hiking, and inspiring other designers to run more profitable and enjoyable businesses. Join me for this conversation with Judi!

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• How Judi’s career began, working for three different companies before opening her own firm
• The benefits of experience, classes, and various job positions before going out on your own
• What it’s like to build your own design firm in the beginning: cold calling, mailings, projects, and referrals
• What the builder or architect needs to hear from the commercial designer: how our services can fit into your project
• How to use directories for leads on upcoming commercial projects
• How to find free top sheets in your local area
• The benefits of long-term relationships in the design business
• Judi’s recommendations for software, including Quickbooks, Studio Designer, and MORE!
• The challenges as your business grows: having systems in place and using personality profiles as you add more people to your team
• Day-to-day running the firm: journals and calendars
• Judi’s superpower? Using the interior as a marketing tool
• Clear practices for charging fees
• Judi’s advice to a new designer with no portfolio: show your passion and excitement, have confidence, ask questions, and present solutions
• Judi’s interest in green building products
• The recent surge in green products
• Advice Judi’s received that is still with her:
  • Be absolutely true to your passion
  • Honor yourself
  • Allow yourself time to breathe, renew, and relax
  • Be transparent in communication
• What’s ahead for Judi? Hiring an office manager and hosting eco-glamping retreats

Resources:

For the free WindowWorks newsletter, text 444-999 and enter “designbiz”

www.usgbc.org  (Find out more about green building products)

Search the GreenWorks or Green Standard group in your local area

Judi recommends the following books:

ECO-preneuring by John Ivanko

The Northwest Green Home Primer by K.L. Smith and Kathleen O’Brien

The Philosophy of Sustainable Design by Jason F. McLennan

Women in Green by Kira Gould and Lance Hosey

Value Pricing for the Design Firm by Frank Stasiowski

A Guide to Principles and Practices for Interior Designers by Harry Sigel

Marketing and Selling Design Services by Mary V. Knackstedt

Interior Designers Business Handbook by Mary V. Knackstedt