I never thought that I would ever mention COVID 19 in one of my posts or blog articles. During the first lockdown in the springtime of this year, I had some coaching clients in my program. I always told them, that even in scary times they should focus on their dream business in the Home industry. I said that if they stay focused, it would give them self confidence to start or grow their business as an entrepreneur.
And now most of us in Europe and abroad are dealing with the same restrictions again. We are all in the same situation again.
The truth is: that during the next few months some personal characteristics are demanded from all of us, especially from entrepreneurs like we are: RESILIENCE, CREATIVITY, and POWER OF ENDURANCE.
And the good news is: You already know all these characteristics! That’s why you are an entrepreneur and why you build your own business. And it doesn’t matter how long or how successful you are – you have all these characteristics within you!
How you use this time to strengthen these characteristics depends mainly on you. Whether you spend this time enjoying some off-time or looking for new inspiration, or thinking about your business model and how to go on in these scary times.
Or you start focusing on your online marketing: you can be more present on Social Media to stay connected. You can create a digital product that opens new business opportunities for you and gives you more freedom and safety. And the most amazing thing is: a digital product can help you build an additional income that is independent of your normal business in the home industry.
There are so many ways you can exploit the momentum of this time to your advantage. Whether you are in a „slowdown“, a „shutdown“ or a „lockdown“ now is the perfect time to create a new marketing strategy and I want to encourage you to show up with all your boldness and start making the first steps in the world of digital products.
Having an online marketing strategy and a digital product as an entrepreneur in the Home Industry is essential for your visibility, awareness, yes! But most of all it is essential for your clients. So, whatever you do in your marketing, you should do it with your customers in mind and with the intention to help them!
We all have to face a new reality – a new normal in business. And your business has to be able to not just roll on but to be prepared for these new challenges and come out with an intentional communication with your customers.
To make it short: Stay connected with your clients!
Here are some suggestions I want to share with you because done right your digital product can connect directly with your dream clients, speak to them, and connect with them. You can offer your help and support and position yourself as an expert.
Continue reading – I have some ideas for you.
And if you are just starting your Home Staging or Interior Design Business I recommend reading this ARTICLE where I share with you how a sales process works and what you should keep in mind when talking to your customer.
4 proven examples of digital products for your Home Staging or Interior Design business
This year 2020 is special. And at the same time, it is a great chance to think about new ways of communicating with your dream clients.
Talk to them and let them explain, what their biggest hustle is in these scary times. If you listen carefully, you will quickly realize their problems and you can start thinking about how YOU can help and provide a solution. People don’t buy digital products. They buy a solution to a problem!
F. ex. one challenge at the moment may be open house events, where you can offer a free checklist to them. First of all, talk to your agents and find a guideline to keep everyone safe at open house events in your running projects. Your agents need your understanding and your help.
#1 Create a "One-page-Checklist"
Here is your „how-to“: List some bullet points of what your agent should take care of during open house events. List the items/services you can provide and what your agent has to provide. Make it a nice design in your company colors (Brand Identity !) and don’t forget your logo and your contact details. Save the document as a .pdf file and send it via email. And hey, this is your first digital product!
I really want to motivate and encourage you in general to create a digital product for your dream clients! Either as a free download or as a paid product. Wondering what this digital product can be?
#2 Create a "Guide"
Use your creativity and create a „Holiday decoration Guide“. You can show different styles of decoration. It can be a modern or traditional way of Holiday decoration, a skandi style, or a „Canadian Winter“ style. When you know your dream clients really well, you can create your Guide based on their lifestyle or interests.
A Guide is also a perfect way to show your expertise and give personal insight. F. ex. show your personal color scheme, either as „your“ color of the season, or your beloved color for Christmas decoration.
You can also use the official color of the year (from Pantone). Choose your favorite products, that reflect your personal style or the latest trends. Always keep in mind, that your prospects are looking for real value and help, that you are giving them. They will feel understood and will become thankful followers on your social media profiles, or your blog.
A Guide up to 5 – 7 pages should be offered as a free download (Freebie).
An extended Guide with up to 30 – 50 pages can be sold for a small fee like 29 or 47 $. In this kind of guide, you’re going more into depth with your topic.
And now you ask yourself: 30 – 50 pages? How should I fill all these pages ??? You are a bit shocked! Am I right?
Don’t worry: for a Guide, you always use a bigger font size, a larger distance between sections, and many pictures to give it a modern look and make it easy to read.
Your topic could be: „My ultimate quick and easy do-it-yourself Home Staging guide“
#3 Create a Portfolio or "Brandbook" as Ebook
Here you should again create a pdf document, (E-Book) that you can send by email. If you decide to create a portfolio it can be like a pdf version of your website.
Here are the topics you should cover in your portfolio:
- say something about you: who you are and how you became an entrepreneur, showing some private insights also builds trust and emotion
- talk about the services you offer and how they can help your clients, what is the benefit for them
- show some of your projects (before and after photos) and share some information, such as: how fast the property was sold and at what price, compared to the listed price
- at the end of your portfolio invite the reader to contact you and to book a first informational call with you.
When you create your portfolio keep in mind to look at it through the eyes of your customer. What does your customer really need? What is the solution you can provide? A portfolio can be more emotional and show empathy.
My tip: use Powerpoint, Keynote, or Canva to create a presentation and save it as .pdf!
When going for a „Brandbook“ you use the same topics but your point of view is your business. It shows your values, your style, your brand. Here you can be more objective, modern, stylish to impress your prospects. You present your business as a valuable company and you show your expertise and professionalism. Create your Brandbook with your entrepreneurship in mind.
#4 SHOWTIME ! Create "Videos"
Now it`s SHOWTIME: Sharing Video content is just one great marketing strategy if we are talking about Instagram stories, Fun Videos, etc. But video can also be a perfect digital product for you. Did you know that video is the most effective way to share your expertise and the most clicked content?
Here are some inspirations:
Image Video
- Intention: impress your customers ( as in the Brandbook mentioned before) with your expertise, your professionalism, and your style;
- place it on your website
- promote it on social media
- Share it for free in your acquisition process
3 – part video series (Mini-course)
- Intention: providing help for your customer (f.ex. Do-it-yourself Home Staging: from planning to realization; how to declutter a furnished home and prepare it for selling)
- Create a Landing Page for this product
- address it directly to your customers via Email
- promote it as Social Media Ad (start with 5 Dollars/ Euros a day) to your target audience
- aks for a small fee, such as 29$ / 37 $/ 49$ max
Videos of your projects – Before & After
- Intention: show how Home Staging works – from first mood board impressions to the finished project
- Topics can be: „How I organize my projects“ „How I develop a color concept for a new project“
Do you want even more tipps and inspiration to stay connected with your customers?
I have created a totally new Guide with even more tips and recommendations that I want to give you for free.
You can download it here
Thanks a lot for reading so far!
I’m so excited, that you have spent your valuable time here to read this blog post.
All the best to you
XO Iris
