Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Winning at Home Staging #3

Have you ever heard the saying, "You get what you pay for?"

Most of the time, when I think of this saying, I'm thinking about buying something or I'm regretting having bought something. Often it is linked to the prospect of purchasing something of quality or something cheap.

Most times in life, you do get what you pay for. So if it's cheap, it probably has low quality.

But the phrase also refers to getting out of life what you're willing to pay for. What do I mean? Well, you've probably also heard the saying, "You've got to pay your dues."

In business, one usually has to invest a good deal of time, energy and money to eventually turn a profit. One has to "pay one's dues". It takes time to learn your craft, gain expertise, become confident and so forth.

What are you willing to "pay" for your success? I've personally worked very hard all of my life to get where I am today. It doesn't happen overnight. All too often people start businesses with unrealistic expectations of what and when they will succeed.

Work diligently. Be patient. You will get "what you pay for" - eventually.

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Overcoming Your Staging Fears

What do you have to change in your life to move forward?

What fears do you need to conquer?

Are you afraid of failure or success?

Are you worried about what people will think?

Years ago I decided I wanted to learn how to play the drums. I love percussion and I thought it would be great to play for a band or at church.

When I mentioned my desire to a group of women my age, one of them laughed at me in a mocking kind of way. And because of that, I decided to buy a full set of drums, get a teacher, learn to play and do it in spite of her.

And that's exactly what I did, even though I was nearly 40 years of age, a white woman with minimal natural rhythm.

I learned to play well enough to accompany a women's trio specializing in gospel music. We played at many venues in the Southern California area and I even played with my choir at church.

So don't let anyone mock you and make you feel that you cannot be what you want to be, do what you want to do, have what you want to have. Do it in spite of them.

Friday, May 19, 2006

Winning at Home Staging #2

Life is a learning experience. Each day brings new lessons - some you will like and some you won't.

When you change your thinking and realize that success is a process that you want to continue, and not a status or the top of a mountain you reach once and for all, you will look at life and business differently.

If you look at success as attaining a particular plateau or comfort zone, you may stop growing and reaching upward.

It's very easy to just "settle in" and maintain that level. If you do that, you'll probably be out of business soon because you have to keep regenerating new business and expanding on old business.

Don't settle for the status quo. Keep growing, reaching, expanding and learning.

Thursday, May 18, 2006

Winning at Home Staging #1

Whether you like your body or not, it is yours for a lifetime. Take responsibility for it. Treat your body as you would if it were a spacecraft, not as if it were a used car.

Your health and body is your most precious asset. Don't abuse it and take it for granted.

Get a physical annually. Note the health history of your relatives.

With a doctor's guidance, make an exercise plan that is sensible for you. Make it fun to do.

Go for a fast-paced walk. Do gardening. Vacuum your whole home. Go up and down your stairs 20 times a day. You can burn calories and get something productive done at the same time.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Home Staging Costs

Determining the right fee to charge for home staging services is difficult and is one of the questions I am most frequently asked.

Some stagers price their services by the square footage of the home. Obviously this is easier to estimate if one is only providing a consultation, letting the home owner do all of the work.

It gets much more involved and cumbersome to come up with a flat fee if you are doing the work for the home owner.

Rather than pricing by the square footage, one might be better off pricing by the day as home staging services can drag on for days, depending on the size and condition of the home.

All of that needs to be balanced, of course, with the price of the home and whether it is empty or not.

Tuesday, May 16, 2006

Charging for Home Staging Services

QUESTION
Thank you for all your generous information!!! I ordered "HomeStaging for Profit" and so far I have read about 1/3 of the book.

I have my first potential job referred to me by a friend, and the realtor called me today, she has a vacant 1300 square foot home that she says has been remodeled and needs staging.The realtor wants to know how much I would charge. I am just starting the business, and this will be my first job, so how much should I charge her? Should I look at the home first, and determine style and take measurements of the rooms I'll be staging? I have a moderate amount of accessories, no major pieces of furniture, should I rent what I need? please advise me.

ANSWER
It's pretty tough right out of the gates to get into renting furniture yourself. You can if you want. You'll need to go to the home first, however, and see what you'll need. Then visit rental companies and see what package plans they offer and for how long they last. Find out about delivery and pickup unless you own a truck.

Since you're brand new, I'd try my best were I you to have the homeowner actually rent the furniture and leave you out of the loop. You can help select what should be rented, but try to keep out of the transaction. Less stress for you and puts all liability on owner and rental company, not you.

Price yourself by the day for however long you think you'll be needed. That takes some apprehension away. Don't worry if it takes longer than you anticipate - it probably will. But it's a learning experience, so no matter what you make, it's worth it all of the experience and photos you'll come away with.

So figure out how much per day you need to make to be happy with your compensation. Then assign a number of days needed and you have your estimate. Tell them it will be plus or minus that figure depending on actual timing. Sometimes it's good to give a range: minimum to maximum.

Friday, May 12, 2006

Marketing a Home Staging Business

Why not develop a 360-degree view of your business.

Amazingly, opportunities are falling all around you silently, probably going totally un-noticed. Whenever you start a business, no matter what it is, you have to acquire marketing antennae.

That means you have to sort of eat, sleep, drink it. It has to be on your mind constantly. If it's not, then for sure you will be missing the opportunities around you because your focus will be elsewhere.

Look squarely at yourself and dig out your hidden assets. Open your eyes to new ideas of generating business. Exploit them. Even tiny improvements can make a big impact.

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Marketing Your Staging Business

If you ask the wrong question, you'll get a wrong answer.

Most people ask themselves, "What do I have to say to get people to buy from me?"

Instead, ask yourself, "What do I have to give?" "What benefit can I offer them?"
"What value do I have to share with them?"

I once went into a car dealership to buy a car. I was very specific about what I wanted when it came to upholstery and color and so forth.

The salesman, who was new, was far more concerned with just making a sale to get his commission than he was in helping me find what I wanted. He was so obnoxious about it that he even suggested I buy a car that had none of the things I wanted on the interior and then take the car somewhere and have the whole interior redone at an additional expense to me because he didn't have a car on the lot at that moment.

Was it any wonder I got up and left never to venture on to that car lot again.

You don't have to say much. Your true intentions will surface and your client will know whether you're thinking of what's best for them or what's best for you.

Tuesday, May 09, 2006

Focus on the Client

People always ask me about how to price their services for home staging. It's a difficult question to answer.

So much depends first on what you want out of the deal. That will be different for everyone. Some of you would be satisfied with just making some money. Others will want to be paid more than they presently earn doing other types of work. And still others will want to be paid handsomely for their time, effort and expertise.

No matter what your personal monetary goals might be, if you focus your attention on what's best for your client you'll be far better off.

I just interviewed a salesperson for a granite counter top project. She was nice enough, but her story shifted with everything I said. If I was more interested in a particular color, she would tell me all of the benefits of that color only.

When my attention shifted to a different color, she would tell me all of the benefits of the new color, and only then point out the drawbacks of the previous color she had just praised.

When my attention changed again, she raved about the new color and then told me the downside of the previous color which she had again just praised so highly.

It didn't take me long to figure out that she was going to rave about whatever I focused on and not really be as honest as I wanted her to be. I quickly came to distrust her input and opinions. She was not out to protect me and advise me honestly.

I always tell my clients the whole story without thought to what I might gain or lose in the telling. I'd rather they believe me to have their best interest at heart. It is just one valuable reason why my clients admire and respect me and aren't the least bit hesitant to refer me to their friends and family.

Focus on your client first. The rest will take care of itself.

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

May You Be Blessed

Enjoy this short inspirational movie. With Mother's Day on the horizon, I just wanted to share something really meaningful that will lift your spirits and help you grow in your personal life as well as your business life.

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May You Be Blessed
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Monday, May 01, 2006

Fee for Home Staging Services

One of the questions I am most often asked is, "How do I price my services?"

I deal with this subject quite extensively in my tutorial, "Home Staging for Profit", so I'm only going to discuss it briefly here.

What it boils down to, like anything else, is the art of pricing your services so they are affordable and competitive for the market and where you live. That will be different for everyone.

What do you feel your time is worth?
Do you have significant competition in your area?
What do they charge?
Will you just being doing consultations or the actual work?
At what point would you begin to regret doing a project?
What is the selling price of the home?

These are all questions you'll have to ask yourself and assign value to. That is the tricky part. You'll have to test your price, knowing you'll not get every project you strive for. Over time you'll sort it all out.