The BEST Interior Design Business Podcasts - Episode 244

In today’s installment of interior design business podcasts, we’ve got six stupendous episodes from hosts Rhiannon Lee, LuAnn Nigara, Cheryl Kees Clendenon, Liz Lapan and Renée Biery.

Today’s sole podcast guest is April Gandy - Alluring Designs Chicago.

Enjoy :)

Today’s Interior Design Podcast Episodes:

• Designing Success - Rhiannon Lee - Navigating the line between what to give away for free and what to charge for - 20 min

• A Well-Designed Business - LuAnn Nigara - April Gandy: The Key to Managing a Successful Renovation Project - 1 hr, 7 min

• Damn Good Interior Design - Cheryl Kees Clendenon and Liz Lapan - Charging What You Are Worth Is a Crock of Cheese Curds - 45 min

• Only Girl on the Jobsite - Renée Biery - Pricing with Confidence Starts with Knowing Your Value - 26 min

Designing Success - Rhiannon Lee - Navigating the line between what to give away for free and what to charge for - 20 min

In this week’s episode, host Rhiannon Lee is giving us two opinion pieces.

Today's topic - what is appropriate to share for free and what would you hold back inside of your paid services. In a world where you always here "give more value" how much is too much and when do you cross a line into giving away your best kept secrets?

A Well-Designed Business - LuAnn Nigara - April Gandy: The Key to Managing a Successful Renovation Project - 1 hr, 7 min

In today‘s episode, host LuAnn Nigara is joined by April Gandy, owner and Principal Designer of Allure Designs. With six successful years in the design industry and an appearance on HGTV, April could teach us a lot! But today she wanted the focus to be on what you, and your client, can expect both mentally and financially when working on a renovation project. This is an episode that will give you simple AHA moments. Any episode where my guest wants to help with the process with our clients, is a win.

Pick It Apart

• [3:28] April starts us off on the things designers should walk clients through when doing a renovation.

• [14:12] April explains how designers formulate that initial investment range to their clients in the beginning without a spec book.

• [19:55] What April includes in her design fee.

• [33:24] Things April has learned to avoid and/or keep doing from experience.

• [36:15] LuAnn and April talk about April’s “Erika Ward transferable skill,” and how valuable these skills are for designers.

• [46:23] The level of detail that April and her team goes with client checklists that they follow.

• [51:27] April tells us about the group coaching she does.

LuAnn Nigara and April Gandy's Ah-Ha Moments

• “Understanding what you are doing before you do it is going to help you keep your time lines and budgets in check, but also your client in check,” - April Gandy

• “The more information that you give them from the start, the more you ensure them that you know what you are doing and they’ll trust you,” - April Gandy.

Damn Good Interior Design - Cheryl Kees Clendenon and Liz Lapan - Charging What You Are Worth Is a Crock of Cheese Curds - 45 min

Today, Cheryl and Liz focus on the questions of whether you should be paid what “you’re worth” or whether you consider the “value” you bring to your client.

• Are you choosing to engage with a client simply because they are willing to pay your hourly rate, or is it because their project will bring real currency in terms of value to your firm?

• Have you set an hourly rate arbitrarily with no concrete reason?

Cheryl underscores the significance of the “education of experience” in accepting a job that might not be your typical project. Still, it allows you to solve problems and build value for your business. Don’t miss Cheryl’s damn good truth at the end of this podcast.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• You must first assess your services and experience to create value in your business. Ask yourself what services you can deliver.

• Be careful not to price yourself out of the market. You may have a high hourly rate but have no clients. 

• Assess what learning opportunities each job presents before turning it down. It could offer currency to your business in value if not financially.

Only Girl on the Jobsite - Renée Biery - Pricing with Confidence Starts with Knowing Your Value - 26 min

I hear a lot of designers struggling with how to price their services for construction management as well as decorating for potential clients.

What I want to talk about today is not the actual dollars and cents but how pricing with confidence starts with knowing the value you bring to each and every project.