Navigating Your Business Through a Slow Time of Year

We’re entering into the holiday season, a traditionally slower time for many in the interior design space.  Here are some tips on how to use this time wisely and get the most out of the next few weeks.

Host a fundraiser

Partner with a local organization and host a fundraiser in your showroom, shop, or well-decorated home to not only give back to the community, but raise awareness of your business. This time of year, people are festive and are feeling more altruistic. This is great time of year for a fundraiser.

Start planning for 2020

Review your business strategies from the past year to see what worked and where you can improve.  If you invested in marketing, see what efforts yielded the most for you and where you might want to adjust.  Look at your financials month by month to get a better understanding of the seasonality of your business - it can vary from year to year, but it helps during planning.

After reviewing last year, start planning for the year ahead.  Build on what worked in the last 12 months and introduce some new ideas to improve in the coming year. Whether it’s a website redesign, launching a social media platform, or attending more events, try one or two things in 2020 you’ve never done before and see if it works. If you need help with your planning, check out last year’s webinar on Creating a Digital Marketing Plan for some helpful tips.

Update your Dering Hall profile

While you have some time, revisit your Dering Hall profile.  Perhaps there are new projects or products in your collection since the last time you updated.  New images and products will pull you into the What’s New section on Dering Hall and will increase the likelihood of editorial inclusion.  It’s also important that your brand or business is accurately represented on Dering Hall. Showcasing your most recent products or work is the best way to do that.  If it’s been a while, check out our video library which will walk you through how to manage your profile, whether you are a designer, maker, or showroom.

Take a break

Focus on yourself, not just your business, during this time of year.  This will ensure you are refreshed, replenished and ready to take on the challenges in the year ahead.  

Catch up with clients

Reach out to former clients.  You can send holiday cards or just email check-ins to see how their doing.  Referrals are some of the best ways design professionals get new business, so reach out to your network now that you have some downtime.  

Test new software

There are now countless new design apps and services to help with everything from backend administrative management to project organization.  Take some time to research these solutions and see if any of them might help your business in 2020. We reviewed many different solutions in our May 2018 webinar on digital solutions in the design industry.  

Regardless of how you spend this time of year, all of as Dering Hall wish you a very healthy and happy holiday season.