High Point Furniture Market begins next week. In fact, Saturday October 13th is opening day for High Point. There are lots of social and educational events scheduled. And, of course, there is always plenty of free food. If this your first time to visit market check out their First Time to Market webpage.

 |Minutes Matter ~ Suites of Market Square (G-4029) |

While at market, come by and visit us in the Suites of Market Square on the ground floor in space G-4029. You can’t miss us we’re the only one with bright pink and white space. Jackie Von Tobel will be there signing copies of her two books. The Directory of Window Treatments and The Design Directory of Bedding are absolutely the most inspiring and beautifully illustrated books for custom window treatments and bedding. Jackie is a very talented artist and designer from Las Vegas. Stop by and purchase your copies.

Anita from Helser Brothers will also be in the booth beginning Monday to show off their new Jackie Von Tobel hardware collection. The collection is gorgeous. They will be hosting a wine tasting on Tuesday from 2:30PM until. To help us get a count, send a quick email to party@minutesmatter.com if you think you can stop by.

FREE SEMINAR ~ Monday, October 15th I’ll be presenting an informative seminar on one of my favorite topics “iPads ~ The New Beginning.” This is just one of many educational seminars that High Point offers. Did I mention they’re FREE, that’s right they are all FREE. Be sure to check out the entire seminar schedule (select date on right menu.) Below are the details on Monday’s seminar. This seminar is approved for a 0.1 CEU.

iPads ~ The New Beginning (Part I of II)

• When: Monday, October 15th 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM
• Where: Market Square Historical Section (Showroom 272)
• Cost: FREE
• Prizes: Yes (giving away 10 of my favorite iPad stylus from Amazon)
• iPads Part II: High Point Spring Market 2013 – “iPads ~ Apps, Apps & More Apps”

Summary: The iPad is fast becoming the “Must Have” tool for designers, and we want to make sure you’re using your investment to the fullest extent for your business. In this session, we’ll cover the settings, best utility apps that make your iPad indispensable, and lots of quick tips. MUST SEE: I’ll show you how to access a website in Safari with just one tap.

High Point Market is again providing everyone with a powerful tool called MyMarket to help you connect with fellow attendee, exhibitors, schedule meetings, find events. It is easy to add vendors, seminars, and any events you want to attend.

 

Merlyn, Studio’s webinar host, never seems to run out of innovative ways to use Studio. This month, she contacted Rowley Co. and asked if we could join in the fun for their inspirational and educational Room Design Challenge  – from design to fabrication. Rowley agreed it would make the contest even more exciting to add Minutes Matter to the mix.

During our October webinar, Merlyn will be demonstrating how a designer can use Studio to interpret room dimensions and client preferences based on the Rowley makeover specifications to create an elevation rendering. We guarantee you’ll learn several new tips and tricks to jazz up your renderings with Studio’s fill & texture features.

“Virtual design” is fast becoming a lucrative addition to a design firm’s services. Learn how you can make it work for your business.

Anyone attending the webinar will receive a Studio room template – two walls and all the architectural details of the room drawn to scale – to make it fast and easy to enter the Rowley challenge! If you’ve thought you never had time to submit an entry for a contest, now is the time. All you have to do is join the webinar to receive your FREE room template in Studio format. Then you simply design the window treatment(s) by dragging and dropping. How easy is that? What makes this contest/challenge so unique is it’s a REAL room. The winner’s design will actually be fabricated. More good news, during the Rowley Makeover webinar (date and time TBD, but around Thanksgiving), there will be PRIZES from Minutes Matter and Rowley! Just submit a design to be in the running.

We hope you will join me, Merlyn, Anna and all the MM staff as well as members of Rowley’s design/fabrication team on Wednesday, October 10 at 1 PM Eastern, 12 Noon Central, 11 AM Mountain or 10 AM Pacific. If you’re not registered for this webinar click the register button below; it’s FREE!

 

 

 

 

Do you know your close ratio? It’s the percentage of interior design prospects you close every month, and the higher it is, the more money you’ll make…and this part is important…without having to spend any extra time or money. And since there are only so many hours in the day to interview prospective clients while serving your current clients, the more efficient you are, the more money you’ll make. That’s called leverage.

For example, if you close 1 out of every 10 prospects, then your close ratio is 10% – not bad in today’s economy. But think of the amount of time and energy it takes to speak with those 10 people. Which would you rather do: attract 10 more prospects a month and have to speak with 20 per month, just to close one additional client? Or would you rather learn how to close 2 or 3 clients out of 10, so that you’re making 2-3 times as much money without having to spend any more time?

How about 5 out of 5? That’s a 100% close rate, and how one of my students – Jamie – is using leverage to spend less time selling and more time doing what she loves…designing beautiful spaces. 

Want to learn more? If you missed last week’s ground-breaking training, “Discover the Secret Formula to STAND OUT from Other Designers and Communicate Your Value So Your Prospects Are Willing To Pay TOP DOLLAR For Your Services!”, you have one last chance to learn what designers around the world are raving about.

SIGN UP NOW FOR THE RECORDING!

“Your design solution was the most amazing formula I have ever heard!” – Mary

“Maria, Loved the presentation…you cut right to the heart of designer’s biggest challenges.” – Becky

“The value formula helped tie together not just problem-solving but how to inspire customers to want to buy.” – Valerie 

SIGN UP NOW FOR THE RECORDING!

The Sleep Cycle alarm clock app is a great way to track your sleep patterns. I know, some of you are thinking sleep cycles. I’ve got too much to do to think about my sleep patterns. Did you know, we need 8 – 10 hours of QUALITY sleep every night? Who knew? I didn’t, I thought because I was so full of energy I only needed 6 – 7 hours of sleep. This year, I found out I have been adversely affecting my cortisol levels. Which in turn affects almost every part of my overall health. Quality sleep is one of the most beneficial things you can do for your health. Of course, quality food goes without saying, but I talking about sleep in this blog.

This .99 cent app wakes you up with a soft melody during a light sleep cycle. You simply, start the app, place your iPhone face down under your sheet, and it begins tracking your movements and then gently awakes you in the morning. Waking up to an alarm when you’re in your light sleep cycle guarantees you’ll be in a better/happier mood and not be so groggy/grumpy. If you use a regular alarm and it goes off at a set time every day, it is probably waking you during your deep sleep cycle; and then comes grumpy bear.

This app get 814 5-star reviews! We all want to live long & finish strong!

 

 

 

Are you kidding me? I thought I just had to design great spaces, set up a nice website and the clients would be knocking down my door!? All I needed to do was build it and they would come, right?

Wrong.

If you’ve ever said those words to yourself, you’re in good company. It makes sense, but I’m betting that you’ve realized by now that the “build it and they will come” strategy doesn’t work. It may work for cupcake stores, but not for design services.

I know, you’re saying to yourself, “I hate selling!” but I’d like to invite you to consider a different perspective. First of all, I used to hate selling, too. That is, in the stereotypical sense of the word when I started out in sales. And guess what? My sales numbers – or lack thereof – proved it. In fact, I was laid off from my first sales job.

I realized that if I was going to be successful, I had to change my perspective about what selling meant to me. I knew enough about goal setting that if my mindset wasn’t aligned with my goals, that I would sabotage my success and never reach them.

So I told myself that I didn’t have to be a stereotypical salesperson. I looked to my father and other non-stereotypical salespeople I admired as proof of this. When I really thought about it, I realized that everyone sells every day.

You’re always selling people on your ideas, your opinions, your preferences, etc. I’m willing to bet not a day goes by that you’re not selling your spouse, child, colleague, friend or relative. Does that make sense? Selling is something we all do every day. You have the ability to choose what selling means to you, and when you do, your sales will skyrocket! It happened to me, and it can happen to you, too.

Want to learn more? If you missed Tuesday’s ground-breaking call, you have one last chance to learn what designers around the world are raving about.

“Your design solution was the most amazing formula I have ever heard!” – Mary

Join Maria Bayer & Gail Doby for an ENCORE complimentary teleclass, “Discover the Secret Formula to STAND OUT from Other Designers and Communicate Your Value So Your Prospects Are Willing To Pay TOP DOLLAR For Your Services!” this Saturday, September 29th, at 1pm EDT (12 pm CDT/ 11 am MDT/ 10 am PDT). 

CLICK HERE TO RESERVE YOUR SPOT!

So often designers tell me they don’t like selling because they think they have to brag about themselves, and that makes them uncomfortable because they don’t want to sound salesy or conceited. The problem is, your client won’t hire you unless they know what you can do for them.

One of my favorite ways to do this is by telling client stories. People are wired to enjoy stories, so rather than bragging about yourself, you’re telling a story about someone else. It just so happens that you’re the person who helped that client.

This is why client stories are so powerful, and my favorite non-salesy way to win a client: 

• It places the emphasis on your client, rather than yourself
• It allows your prospective client to put themselves in the other client’s shoes and imagine themselves experiencing the same result

But if you do it the wrong way, it could come across as salesy. Here’s what you should focus on to ensure that it comes across the right way:

• It needs to be a relevant client story. The example must be similar to your prospective client or they won’t be able to relate, or worse, they might think, “that’s great, but how does that pertain to me?”
• Focus on the relevant problem your client had and how you uniquely solved it.
• Paint a picture of the finished space – how did your client feel about it? What did it do for them? Be descriptive.

Your prospective client needs to know that you’ve helped other people like them before, and if you do it in the way I just described, you’ll give them exactly what they need to hear to HIRE you.

To learn more authentic ways to get your Ideal Clients to HIRE you, join Maria Bayer & Gail Doby for a complimentary teleseminar, “Discover the Secret Formula to STAND OUT from Other Designers & Communicate Your Value So Your Prospects Are Willing to Pay TOP DOLLAR For Your Services!“ on Tuesday, September 25th at 6pm EST (5 pm CST/4 pm MST/3 pm PST).

Maria Bayer, the Authentic Sales Coach for Design Success University, shows interior designers how to take charge of their clients and make more money without being sales-y.

We’ve all been there before. You spend a lot of time with a prospective client and just know you’re the right interior designer for them, and then they say, “I want to think about it.”  Your heart sinks and you wonder what went wrong. You were so sure you were a good fit.

Why did they say that? Listen up, because this is really important. They want to think about it because you didn’t give them a good way to place a value on the benefits of your services. In other words, they don’t know why they should hire you. They’re confused. Always remember this: “The confused buyer says no”.

Think about the times you were in the market to buy something and you didn’t. If you were not clear about why you should buy something – what will it do for you? How will it solve your problem? – Then you won’t buy. You’ll do nothing.

It’s no different with your prospective clients. You need to maximize the value they see in your services so not only do they select you over other designers, but they pay more for your services, too. You’ll hear me say this a lot because it’s so important: “The more value your client sees in your solution, the more they’ll pay for it – period.”

So strive to build as much value as possible in your client’s eyes. One way to do this is to show how you can solve their problem better than anyone else. What do you do that will help your client achieve their goal better/faster/more easily than anyone else? The more you articulate this, the more value you’re building in your client’s eyes. And when you build value, instead of hearing, “I want to think about it,” you’ll hear, “When can we start?”

To learn more ways to build value, join Maria Bayer & Gail Doby for a complimentary teleseminar, “Discover the Secret Formula to STAND OUT from Other Designers & Communicate Your Value So Your Prospects Are Willing to Pay TOP DOLLAR For Your Services!“ on Tuesday, September 25th at 6pm EST (5 pm CST/ 4 pm MST/3 pm PST).

Maria Bayer, the Authentic Sales Coach for Design Success University, shows interior designers how to take charge of their clients and make more money without being sales-y.

Do you ever wonder why some designers get the job and you don’t, even when you know you were the best interior designer for them? What did they do differently?

When a prospective client comes to you to redesign their space – often where they spend a majority of their free time – it’s a very personal and emotional decision to give the reins to someone else, especially someone they don’t know. What they need and want from you as a designer is the confidence that you are the best person to turn their vision into a reality. 

How do you do this? In a way you might not expect…

Many times when we talk with a prospective client, we want to be flexible so they know we’re easy to work with. However, sometimes this comes across as wishy-washy and the client interprets this as insecurity – the exact opposite of what we want to portray.

What the client wants more than anything is to see that you ‘get’ them; that you understand what they want; and have the experience and expertise to turn their vision into a reality. In other words, if they say they want X and you know that won’t work, you need to tell them…and tell them why it won’t work. This shows that you’re the expert. If they say they’re not sure whether they want X or Y, you need to tell them why X would work better.

The more you take control of the design, the more they’ll trust you. Think about the times that you’ve asked someone whether they recommend X or Y. If they say, “either will work”, then you’re left with no more information than you started out, and no more confidence in your choice. If, however, they say, “Definitely Y because…” then their conviction will convince you that Y is the best choice.

Your client feels secure when you’re confident in your abilities. So when they’re entrusting their home to you, they want to feel as confident and secure in that choice as possible. So remember, their confidence in you is directly proportionate to the confidence you have in yourself.

To learn more, register for a complimentary 3-part series, “Three Secrets to Closing Higher Paying Clients Who Love Working With You.”

Maria Bayer, the Authentic Sales Coach for Design Success University, shows interior designers how to take charge of their clients and make more money without being salesy.

When you think of the word ‘sales’ or ‘selling’… does it conjure up a negative image? Do you immediately think of a used car salesman?

That’s completely normal. But savvy business owners learn to change that image in their minds. Why? Because it makes all the difference between achieving your business goals or not.

If your business is not steadily growing, then one of the most likely culprits is your mindset – something you believe conflicts with your business goals. When this happens, you will always sabotage your success and achieve less than you deserve because your brain seeks to maintain congruence.

That means your brain will cause your actions to match your beliefs. So, for example, if you believe that selling is a ‘dirty word,’ but you also have a goal to achieve $X in sales this year, your brain will cause you to sabotage your selling efforts because your goal conflicts with your belief. So what’s the solution?

First, you must recognize the beliefs – or mindsets – that do not support your goals. Do any of these sound familiar: 

• Money doesn’t grow on trees
• I’m not talented or smart enough
• Money is the root of all evil
• Salespeople are pushy
• You have to be a natural born salesperson to be successful, etc. 

Whatever you heard growing up, or believe about sales, write it down.

The next step is to reframe those unsupportive mindsets. The goal is to recognize that whatever you believe is not an absolute fact. In fact, the opposite is true for many people. Once you realize that your mindsets are simply opinions –NOT facts – it is just as easy to believe the opposite.

One of the most famous examples of this is that prior to 1954, no one believed it was possible to run a mile in under 4 minutes. No one had done it before, so people believed it to be a ‘fact’, and a plausible one at that. Then Roger Bannister came along and proved everyone wrong. He chose a winning mindset. He chose to believe that it was possible to run a mile in under 4 minutes, despite overwhelming proof to the contrary.

And in 1954 at Oxford University, he did prove everyone wrong. He ran the mile in under 4 minutes. But what was more astounding? Only 46 days later, another man broke the 4-minute mile! And countless runners have done it since.

So the next time you think that what you believe is a fact, think again! You just may break a record of your own!

To learn more, register for a complimentary 3-part series, “Three Secrets to Closing Higher Paying Clients Who Love Working With You.”

Maria Bayer, the Authentic Sales Coach for Design Success University, shows interior designers how to take charge of their clients and make more money without being salesy.

I hear it all the time. “What do I say when my client does this or says that?” The words you use can often make the difference between winning the business and losing the business.

Early in my career, I had no idea how to ask or answer tough client questions. I fumbled my way through it, sometimes doing it well, but more often not. The result was I lost a lot of business that I could have won.

If I only had the right words, I would have eased their concerns; set expectations properly; or noticed the red flags. And the list goes on.

Thankfully, I learned a way that works. Here’s a great question to uncover whether someone is serious or just kicking tires: 

“Why are you looking to hire an interior designer now?”

The word ‘now’ helps uncover how motivated they are. Bottom line:  if they’re not very motivated, they’re just kicking tires.

To learn more, register for a complimentary 3-part series, “Three Secrets to Closing Higher Paying Clients Who Love Working With You.”

Maria Bayer, Authentic Sales Coach for Design Success University, shows interior designers how to take charge of their clients and make more money without being salesy.