Stop Hiding in Your Interior Design Business: How to Get Seen, Found, and Hired

Here’s something I see in interior design businesses all the time, and it has nothing to do with your talent. You’re hiding in your business. Not on purpose. But you’re hiding all the same. And hiding means you’re not being seen, you’re not being found, and you’re not getting hired.

Let me share how I define creativity first, because we haven’t talked about that yet. Creativity is where art and science meet and make magic. After 30 years in interior design I treat design and creativity as one and the same.

When you’re hiding, you’re not contributing to that magic. You’re sitting it out. So let me walk you through the many ways that happens, so you can recognize yourself and step back into the light.

Perfectionism Is the Biggest Trap

You hold a high standard of excellence, and I love that about you. But perfectionism will sabotage your success, because you’ll keep raising the bar to a place that’s impossible to reach.

There’s a wonderful spot to play in called Good Enough to Be Considered Done. I’m not talking about sloppy or incomplete. I’m talking about finished.

Think of a client hunting for the perfect piece of furniture. In this moment, there’s a perfect piece. In the next moment, there’s a different one. The search never ends unless you put a deadline on it. Deadlines pull you out of hiding. Use them.

You Don’t Need a Logo. You Need a Client.

To be in business, you need a client, you need to get paid, and you need a project. That’s the whole list.

You don’t need a logo to start. You’re not hired for your logo, and neither is Nike or AT&T. A logo builds recognition, and that’s lovely, but it’s not what lands the work. You don’t need a business card either. I’ve been to recent events where almost no one carried one. 

And you don’t need a mission statement. Your client doesn’t care about your mission. What they care about is what you can do for them. It’s all about them. A mission statement can bring you clarity behind the scenes, and it’s valuable for that. But it’s never a reason to delay opening your doors.

Build the Plane While You Fly It

This one is common, especially when you’re coming from another industry. “Melissa, I’m working on my processes.” Wonderful. But while you’re heads-down on systems, you’re not marketing, and you’re not being found.

Build the plane while you’re flying it! Is it easy? No. Is it comfortable? Definitely not. Does it work? You bet. This is how most successful entrepreneurs operate. They start with the concept, the talent, and a willingness to be imperfect, to learn on the fly, and to experiment.

In my world there’s no failure. There are only lessons learned. Some of those lessons are painful, and some hit your wallet, but you learn them, gain the wisdom, and move forward lighter and brighter.

So please don’t set a big orange “under construction” cone in front of your business while you wait for perfect processes. Get the client, then bring in the support to sort the rest out. I’ve done it many times, and it works.

Bring Your Whole Self to the Table

You’re hired for your talent, and that’s only a piece of it. There are many talented interior designers. You’re hired for resonance, for your one-of-a-kind blend of education, experience, personality, hobbies, and interests.

When you leave those pieces out, you’re hiding.

I read a lot of websites, and I recommend a “Meet You” page to an “About You” page, because it’s more personal. Too often the copy is clever marketing speak that could belong to anyone. Nothing memorable, nothing personal.

Our clients hand us their homes, their offices, their external hearts. They’re being vulnerable, and they must feel a connection before they can do that. When they can’t find the points of connection, they won’t hire you.

Word of Mouth Isn’t a Marketing Plan

Word of mouth happens to you. You can foster it, and I encourage that, but it’s erratic and unpredictable.  You want predictable marketing engines running in your business, so you stay off the revenue roller coaster.

There’s a hidden trap, too. When you’re busy but you don’t love any of your clients, and that work is arriving by word of mouth, non-ideal clients are referring more non-ideal clients. Birds of a feather flock together.

Step back and get selective. Be picky about who you say yes to. When you lead from hungry and desperate, you attract poor-fit clients, and the only reason you’re hungry and desperate is that you’ve been hiding. It comes full circle.

Be Consistent, and Be Where Your Clients Are

When I look at your social media and it’s weak, random, or missing, that’s another form of hiding. Posting once a month won’t move the needle.

This is about being consistent and persistent. The ideal rhythm is three to four times a week, and those include reels and video, not simply static posts. And stories need to be twice a day to stay at the top of the feed. 

Stay on top of what’s working now, not what worked a year ago. And remember, posting alone isn’t enough. You must engage, comment, and do outreach, because relationships deliver revenue. Write that one down.

Networking Without the Dread

I don’t think you’re afraid of relationships. I think you’re sometimes afraid of how to get to them. You might be deathly afraid of networking, and I’m right there with you.

I’m an introvert masquerading as an extrovert, which makes me an ambivert. Put me on a stage to deliver a training and I light up. Take away the role, drop me into a networking room, and I’ll find a wall to lean on and something to nibble.

So let’s reframe it. Walk into the event as though it’s a social gathering, a party where a few interesting people might become clients. Show up curious instead of trying to be interesting.

Be a great listener and shine the spotlight on others. Ask what they do, what they’re proud of this year, their favorite restaurant, the last movie they loved, where they love to travel. You stay comfortably out of the glare while stepping into the light, and the light is where the magic happens.

You Don’t Have to Do It All

Another quiet form of hiding is believing you have to offer everything. One designer told me she only wanted to do furnishings, not full service, and braced herself for me to say no. I said go for it. It’s your business, your way.

When you specialize in what you love and what you’re genius at, you earn more than when you scatter your gifts across work that drains you. Pair up with designers whose strengths complement yours. An introvert and an extrovert together can be unstoppable.

When you love furnishings but not kitchens and baths, find a couple of kitchen and bath designers you admire and collaborate. When your client needs the rest, you say, “I have the perfect design partner for you.” You bring the team, and the client never has to go hunting. That’s exciting for them.

I once coached a designer who was brilliant at construction and finishes, yet the final 5 to 10% of furnishings felt like pulling teeth. Several clients wrapped up those pieces themselves, and she lost testimonials and portfolio shots in the process. We added deadlines, time-management tools, and a furnishings expert to her team, and the hiding stopped.

Don’t play to your weaknesses. That’s a joy killer, and it robs you of your essence.

Make Your Business Your Playground for Profit

I want your business to be a playground for profit. A place where you’re fully alive, comfortable, engaged, and connected, and where being seen and hired feels exciting instead of dreadful.

Get out of your head while you’re at it. The head is the logic place, the overthinking source, and overthinking is one more way to hide. When you’re spending an hour on a single email, you’re hiding.

And once you make one brave move, keep going. A designer I work with raised her rates and thought she was finished. I told her to keep stepping. Every time you move beyond your current comfort zone, you land in a new one, and the faster you step, the more you grow.

Ready to Stop Hiding?

You don’t get to make magic from behind the curtain. Come out, shine the spotlight on others until you’re ready to step into your own, and let yourself be seen, found, and hired.

When you’re ready to land ideal clients and grow profit with a proven path, grab my new book, Design Discovery: The Proven Process to Land Ideal Clients and Grow Profit.

Listen to this episode on Design Business Freedom™ Podcast – Episode 198

Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Audacy, Deezer, Podchaser, and Everand.