Kitchen & Bath Business - January 2016 - 30

Better Business

while the dog barks - said NO ONE EVER!)
Provide your services
with passion and thoughtfulness, and thank
your clients. Thank your employees and reward
them well. Gratitude goes a very long way in
this business.

Stay relevant in social media. You may think
people are not paying attention, but they are.
The Millennial generation is here and they are
shopping. Guess where they will find you? That's
right, social media. Don't resist it; it's here to stay.

Support your community. Get out and talk to people, go to events, donate to local fundraisers and
charity. The important thing is to not advertise
or get into sales while doing these things. Simply
let people know what you do.


Join local design chapters. This is usually a great
way to enter awards competitions and meet other like-minded people who can be influential to
your business.

Call the press. Don't be shy. Chances are they
will not call you, but when you win an award
or complete a fantastic project, write about it
and submit a press release. They won't always

Be grateful and humble.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T
S u c c e s s f u l d e s i g n e r 's t i p s
for building a powerful and
esteemed firm in your community
EVERY DESIGNER I have ever met over the years has had many things in
common, but one of those commonalities rises to the top: the need to be
powerful and respected in their community through recognition from peers,
media and most importantly, new clientele. There are many ways to create
a successful business, but the designer who consistently creates projects of
distinguishable interest to the public by breaking the rules, introducing new
materials and concepts, intertwining with community events and using social
media, are using the most powerful tools in self-promotion and advertising.

THE POWERFUL COMPANY

Powerful defines a company that is considered as the go-to for excellence and
quality by the community as a whole. This kind of company always gets the
premium, higher-end projects, is written up consistently in local media and
wins the majority of the local design awards year after year. This company
has consistent staff, has a presence in every social media outlet and has your
attention. This equals power in design terms.
A respected company is one that has had a long-term presence in the
community; everyone has good things to say about your company and loves
working with you. Respected is when the media outlets call to ask what you
are working on or what's coming up next. When every client can say you do
your job well and deliver quality, humble service with spectacular results -
your company has achieved respect. But this is mostly accomplished when
you have respect for yourself and the work you produce, which exudes confidence. Confidence is power, and now we have come full circle with power
and respect.
So how does one build these two things? Let's start with the obvious.

When every client can say you do
your job well and deliver quality,
humble service with spectacular results -
your company has achieved respect.
respond or follow through, but once in a while -
if they like what they see or your work is relevant
to their content - you have given this to them
on a silver platter. Once they publish your work,
you will be on their permanent radar.

Photograph your projects. If you don't, you may as
well not have done the job. A photograph is the
most credit-worthy evidence of your designs,and
a picture explains a thousand words. Hire a professional photographer; it is worth every penny.


Get help! You cannot do this alone. If you are in charge of accounting, billing,

project management, email correspondence, product sourcing, blogging,
trying to keep up with the unquenchable thirst of social media, visiting
tile and cabinet shops, drawing and all those other things in between like
sleeping or eating - when do you have time to actually design?

Get a public space. Clients like this. It's professional, says you are invested
in your company and provides the proper environment for employees and
clients. By having your own space, you can also offer business hours - this
means you are accessible and paves the way for a successful relationship
with your clients. A public space gives you structured brick-and-mortar
credibility. (I like to drive through a neighborhood, park in front of the
basketball hoop, look for the side gate to the house, tinker with the latch

30

BY NAR BUSTAMANTE,
president & founder
of Nar Fine Carpentry, Inc., with
locations in El Dorado Hills and
Carmichael, Calif.

There is so much one can do to establish a powerful and respected business. The reality is that a
design company is always changing with the times.
Your work is never done, but the joy is always there
in creating a portal of passion and design.


Kitchen & Bath Business / JAN. 2016 / KBBONLINE.COM / The official sponsor of KBIS (KBIS.com)
http://www.KBBONLINE.COM http://www.KBIS.com
Kitchen & Bath Business - January 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Kitchen & Bath Business - January 2016
