How do I brand my interior design business? I built my secondary business, Graphic Design for Interior Designers off this question. Branding your interior design business can be a daunting task. However, your ideal client is never going to resonate with your designs if you don’t brand your business correctly. Harsh right? Well, it’s true. There is no other aspect of your business more important than your brand, why? Have you ever heard how someone perceives you within the first few seconds of a meeting is how they will determine who you are? The same goes for your business. It’s hard to hear that someone will be judging you based on just a few seconds of looking at your website, but it is a simple fact. Human nature is to judge and if we don’t put our true selves out there how can we are being based on a template or a cookie cutter brand downloaded off a website? So today we are going to go through the steps of creating a brand that resonates with your brand and no one else’s.
For an interior designer, branding presents a challenge to hone in on one certain style. Modern, traditional, classic, transitional? It should be easy for designers to know their true style right? Well, the answer is no. If you are a designer yourself, you know that often our style can shift more often and mold year by year. More often than not you won’t find designers that have found their desiccant style till their later days in the industry. It takes experience typically to find a “style” most say. So how are we to find our style if we just got started?
Knowing your style is knowing your ideal customers. There are two ways to find your own style – looking into yourself and looking outward at your past projects.
Take a look at how you dress, how your past projects look, and maybe even your Pinterest board. I guarantee there is a consensus. Take a look at how you identify with technology, do you prefer a handwritten note or do you prefer to text or type an email? Are you a designer that can render a beautiful hand rendering? The artsy side of yourself should showcase your brand. If you are more of a techy then that should show as well.
Reflect on Your Past Projects
If you are a new designer, have you done some work for the family, or created some concept boards on the side? If you have worked for someone else for years and are branching out on your own this is relevant too. Either way, reflect on those experiences. Was the client pleased? Were you pleased with the final result? Consider the projects you have most enjoyed and why you enjoyed them. Why did you love the designs? Also, consider the ones you hated and determined why you hated them. This compare and contrast process will create a short list of your signature style.
Consider Your Ideal Client
Now let’s think about who your clients are or who you want your clients to be. Finding out who you want your clients to be can be a daunting task. Demographics like income, age, and neighborhood will matter, but not as much as the personal aesthetic of each client. Make a list of these + your worst and best clients in order to find your ideal client.
Need help finding your ideal client? Check out our Freebie Below
Steps to creating your Interior Design Brand
With the previous exercises, you have identified:
Your favorite and least-favorite styles,
What defined your best and worst projects, and
The characteristics of your favorite clients.
Build your brand from there. Below I’ve created a few examples based on some of the clients I’ve worked on in the past and my own brands.
Modern and Clean
If you are a modern and clean aesthetic designer who likes open-space homes and a preference for young business-minded couples as clients.
Logo: A san serif font is used throughout to minimalize the line within the logo. Add a fun aspect with a circular effect extra text or est date.
Colors: Muted grey and blue tones paired with black. Include white for the background.
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Transitional and Classic
If you are a transitional designer that aligns with clients of the 35-45-year-old age bracket with kids who have a higher budget, the following brand aesthetic might be for you.
Logo: Utilizing a Serif font paired with a classic san serif font will create a graphic design version of Transitional design. Transitional design is modern mixed with classic traditional design so see below for the match made in heaven.
Colors: Natural color palette, rust paired with dark browns and brown greys or taupe.
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Artsy and Curated
If you are an artsy designer that curates timeless pieces for your clients; additionally your clientele might align with a bohemian or antique style, the logo and style below might just be your ticket!
Logo: Choose a detailed symbol to place at the center of your logo then surround the logo with text and other information about your business. Keep it simple but don’t be afraid to have some fun!
Colors: Light neutrals, depending on your clients you might be able to introduce some greens or blues into the mix!
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I hope by the end of all this you feel ready to go and inspired! If you are still not sure, working with a professional will help you tremendously! Our goal is to help you create a logo, palette, and asset set to run a business successfully, just as you can refine the vision of a homeowner for a beautiful room.
Want to talk about defining your interior design brand to attract your ideal clients and projects?
About Me
Lauren started her career as an e-designer in college. She transitioned her company into a DVA services business, assisting other designers, architects, and contractors quickly growing a strong clientele. Her heart’s passion is rendering but what makes her DVA business different is marketing strategies. Lauren truly believes in the power of marketing your business as a DVA or interior designer is the way to success. Over recent years, Lauren has become proficient in graphic design tools like Canva and Photoshop and she is ready to share what she has learned with you! She uses these tools daily in her life as a DVA, with her design clients and her personal projects. Helping you build a professional visual presentation to stand apart from the rest is what she lives for.
Lauren holds a Bachelors’s Degree in Interior Design, a Master’s Degree in Visual Communication Design, and beginning her Ph.D. in Strategic Media this summer. With over 5 years under her belt in the E-design industry, she knows what it takes for your graphics and designs to catch the eye of your ideal client. Contact her today for questions or 1:1 training
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