Interior Designers have been moving much of their sales and marketing into the digital world over the last few years. Maybe this was because of great looking Apple products or maybe just because as new, young designers come into larger business they bring in with them the gadget trends of youth. Or maybe because all this digital e-stuff actually can work and can work quite cost effectively if done right.
I’ve written a few articles on this general subject over the years (I’ll reference some of them at the end of this post. However things have moved on in the real world and some of what I’ve PREVIOUSLY written has been superceded or improved.
1. Blogs, Twitter, Web sites, LinkedIn and Facebook – linking them
It’s still mostly true that you will use your web site as your show case for your business. Your blog will be a part of your website and, unless you sell products that require an up-to-date online catalogue, it is your blog that will contain the information that CAN AND SHOULD be regularly updated. (That will boost your google position). Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook come in as networks you are building. All good stuff.
The problem used to come in how you would simultaneously update all these networks without having to manually re-submit the information. That would obviously be time consuming as would installing and keeping working additional pieces of software that glued all the bits of your marketing together.
Well now it is relatively straightforward to have your wordpress blog update your twitter account, your LinkedIn presence and your facebook business page. Similarly twitter can also update your facebook page automatically. Lots of these automatic links now exist within the main software websites (wordpress, twitter, etc) so you only have to write new information (blog posts or tweets or on your wall) once and then the software you use automates the distribution of that information across lots of different web site and online communities. Sorted, no mystery any more.
2. Vanity URLs on Facebook
This area used to be horrendously complicated and thankfully facebook have now simplified how to create a venity URL. What I mean by this is how do you create and use www.facebook.com/kothea …or of course you would have your business name at the end of that.
Essentially you can now just create a PAGE and give it a name (eg KOTHEA in our case) straight away. Gone are the ridiculous but well intentioned rules about having a certain number of fans.
3. Building networks with Facebook
You probably already know that once you have created you PAGE in facebook then you can use facebook as if YOU are the ‘page’. Rather than the person you really are. So rather than having your facebook activities in the name of ‘Joan Smith’ you make comments as if they are coming instead from your business ‘Smith Interior Design’.
google are also trying to “do a facebook”. This is their Google plus network. You can ignore that for the time being.When was the last time you or your kids used it?
Much better for your branding. Remember to be nice ad say sensible things and don’t get carried away!
4. Gadgets
Especially in the Interior Design and Architecture industry lots of people use Apple iphones and ipads. Of course your clients may well also use these devices but perhaps are also quite likely to use other ‘tablet’ devices and other smart phones like Blackberries.
Like you, your clients lead hectic lives. They are on the go and people are increasingly looking for information on the move. So all the electronic marketing you do needs also to work on these devices so your potential clients can read it and find it.
This is not so hard to achieve. Facebook and Twitter and LinkedIn will automatically do it. WordPress blogs will do it if you check a box in one of the admin features. It might be harder for your web site to do it properly so have a word with your web page designers.
You can use something like http://marketing.grader.com/ to tell you for free some of the more technical things (like working with mobile/cell phones)
Here are some of the posts I previously wrote or you can find them all in one go by <clicking here>
1. How to get links to your web site
2. Interior Designers: Why does no-one visit your web site
3. Interior Design Marketing Strategies
4. Effective Ad Writing For Interior Designers on Facebook
5. Five Crucial Bits For Your Facebook Business Page
6. Seven Facebook Mistakes Interior Designers Make
Related articles
- Can I post to Twitter and Facebook at the same time? (marketing.yell.com)
- Interior Designers: Why does no-one visit your web site? (kothea.com)
- Superior Interiors with Kelly Hoppen | Channel 5 (kothea.com)
- How do you explain INTERIOR DESIGN to a 6 year old boy? (kothea.com)
- The Business Bible For Interior Designers (kothea.com)