I'm walking you through who to hire first, what to outsource, what can be done remotely, and what’s needed in-person. Then, we’ll take it a step further and walk through a few sample org charts so you can focus on scaling your interior design business in the future.
Today's episode of The Interior Collective is all about Managing Your Interior Design Business - from the softwares we swear by to the intimate workings of hiring, benefits, company policies and managing HR. We’re covering a lot.
In full transparency, I spent the majority of 2021 hashing out every detail of my business, defining our company culture, putting new policies in place and building up industry leading benefits for my team. We were lucky enough to bring in a corporate strategist to help us research, define and implement the most useful practices of large companies, on a small scale. This year, we’ve put it all to paper and created a plug and play template for you to adapt in your own design firm.
An excerpt from the episode:
Key Softwares and Automations
I wish I could tell you there is one software program that we suggest for everything but that is just not the case, and I am ok with that. I would rather use a program that was really good at a couple things, than a program that tries to do so much, it doesn’t do anything well.
IDCO would not exist today without Dubsado and as I’ve learned more from our interior design clients and their process, I’ve figured out the best way to utilize Dubsado for interior designers. Before using Dubsado, I’d used Asana, Trello and Basecamp, but none of them offered the caliber of client experience I was looking for. Essentially, Dubsado is the legal project manager for your interior design business. From initial inquiry to final goodbye, every piece can be used for:
Sending invoices for consultations and e-design
Sending presentations
Revisions
Feedback forms
Contracts
Proposals
Scheduling
On-boarding and off-boarding clients
Project Management (lightly, not like construction management)
Canned emails
Forms like your lead inquiry form and client project homework. Legally Binding Signatures: imperative for time stamped signatures on every proof, even if it’s just a revision.
Automation:
Investment guides
Contract thank yous
Receipts
Welcome kits
Homework
Follow ups
Workflows
Canva is an online graphic design software that is super user friendly and cost effective. As professional graphic designers, we of course use the Adobe Creative Suite for all our client work. But we really believe in the productivity and abilities of Canva for an interior design studio.
All of our IDCO Studio client processes and marketing templates in the shop are designed in Canva. Some people say that Canva is not as “legit” as InDesign or Illustrator, which is true for professional graphic designers, but not in the ways that an interior design studio would use it. Our professionally designed templates are equally beautiful and easy to use.
Keeping an Organized File System
Here’s my #1 tip to keeping an organized file standard. Templated Client Folders: Create a template folder to work off of for all future projects. Or anything else you make more than once. Create a file in Google Drive titled 00_Client Template. The 00 puts it to the top of the folder automatically (assuming you filter your files in alphabetical order).
Within that folder, have pre-created subfolders with the following titles:
Measurements + Plans; Architect Plans
Project Photos; Before Photos (by room), Progress Photos, Accessories
In Progress Technical Drawings + Renderings; CAD Drawings, Photoshop drawings, 3D Renderings
Final Design Plans
Spec Book
Notes; Internal Notes, Meeting Notes (by date)
Then when you have a new project, simply right click that templated folder, hit “duplicate” and rename. You should also use Google Drive for all Internal Client Documentation:
Training Manuals (such as how to Studio Designer, Light Speed)
Overall Workflow chart
Vendor/Trades List
Tracking Hours Spreadsheets in Google Sheets
Custom furniture/pillow specifications sheets
Admin stuff
HR Documentation like Studio Handbooks, new hire checklist, etc (we’ll talk more about this later in this episode as I walk you through our HR Package)
By having 2 umbrella folders “internal” and “clients”, everything for your business can be stored here neatly without searching through thousands of folders
Establishing a Quality Company Culture
Now that you have the foundation in place, let’s chat growing your team and establishing a quality company culture.
This week, we just released our Human Resources Package at IDCO Studio. It’s something I’ve invested in over the last year as our team grew. We brought in a corporate strategic consultant to help walk me through my options as a small business owner when it came to benefits, health care, maternity leave, flex schedules, and company standards. We took everything we put into our company handbook, and made it into a template. Before digging in too deeply into what you should be including in your Studio Handbook, I want to say that this is a VERY important part of running your business, and sadly, it’s often the part that gets looked over.
The IDCO Human Resources Package also includes an internal onboarding checklist, an onboarding guide to be delivered directly to the new hire, a meet the team Canva template, and an employee review template. I’ve linked all the additional information and breakdowns in the show notes, but I wanted to wrap up with these final thoughts:
Hiring is a revenue stream, not a business expense. Hiring additional designers allows you to bill more hours, and those hours are marked up.
The single most important asset you have in your business is the people who work there. Taking the time to create a safe, creative, flexible environment that allows people to thrive, will pay for itself 10 fold.
It doesn’t have to be scary. Building a team is the greatest blessing as a business owner, ultimately allowing you more freedom to be creative, be present with clients, and have more time with your loved ones.
Thanks for reading a brief excerpt of The Interior Collective Season 1, Episode 11: Managing Your Interior Design Business. You can listen to our episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or access the full episode transcription.
Mentioned in the episode:
What to include in your new hire checklist:
What to Expect on Your First Day
Who You’ll be Reporting to
What Software or Apps to Download Before Arrival
How We Communicate
How We Use Different Apps & Softwares
Wifi Details
Office Details
Login Details
Office Utility Locations
Office Navigation
Office Kitchen Etiquette
Final Naming Conventions
What to include in your Studio Handbook:
Introduction
Employment-at-Will
Employee Classifications
Equal Employment Opportunity + Americans with Disabilities Act
Confidentiality
Personnel Records
Immigration Law Compliance
Pay Periods + Paydays
Overtime
Breaks + Meal Periods
Time Tracking
Hours of Work
Performance Reviews
Outside Employment
Open Door
Anti-Harassment + Discrimination
Diversity + Inclusion Policy
Names + Pronouns
Prohibited Conduct
Complaint Procedure
Discipline + Standards of Conduct
Dress Code
Safety
Use of Business Equipment
Internet, Email, Slack + Computer Use
Social Media
Travel
General Employee Benefits + Services
Wages
Worker’s Compensation
Social Security Benefits (FICA)
Unemployment Insurance
Bonuses
Charitable Donation Matching
Health, Life + Dental Insurance
401(k) + Retirement Planning
Professional + Trade Associations
General Leaves of Absence + Time Off
Flextime
Holidays (we have 15 paid holidays)
Summer Fridays (we have every other friday off during the summer)
Vacation (IDCO has unlimited PTO)
Jury Duty
Voting Time (we close the office for half the day on election day)
Maternity + Paternity Leave
Continuing Education
Unpaid Personal Leave
Contract Workers Time Management
Contract Workers
Contract Workers Taxes
Personal Accounting
401(k) + Retirement Planning
Acknowledgement of Receipt of Handbook
CREDITS:
Design by IDCO Studio, Photography by Madeline Harper
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Episode Transcript
Hi! If you’re new to The Interior Collective- a podcast for the business of beautiful living, welcome! If you’re a loyal subscriber - I’m so glad you’re back for this one. I’m your host - Anastasia Casey. Today's episode of The Interior Collective is all about Managing Your Interior Design Business - from the softwares we swear by to the intimate workings of hiring, benefits, company policies and managing HR. We’re covering a lot.
In full transparency, I spent the majority of 2021 hashing out every detail of my business, defining our company culture, putting new policies in place and building up industry leading benefits for my team. We were lucky enough to bring in a corporate strategist to help us research, define and implement the most useful practices of large companies, on a small scale. This year, we’ve put it all to paper and created a plug and play template for you to adapt in your own design firm.
A quality company culture and smoothly operating business is key to profitability and longevity. Skip back to Episode 2 as I break down the perfect Client Experience for interior designers, but today we’ll pick up where that leaves off with automations and key softwares. I wish I could tell you there is one software program that we suggest for everything but that is just not the case, and I am ok with that. I would rather use a program that was really good at a couple things, than a program that tries to do so much, it doesn’t do anything well.
Before we dig in, just a reminder that today's full transcript, show notes, links and products are all available on our website at www.idco.studio/podcast. I encourage you to listen now, then go back and read to make notes.
Dubsado
That’s enough intro - let’s dig into our must have softwares, starting with my personal favorite, Dubsado.
IDCO would not exist today without Dubsado and as I’ve learned more from our interior design clients and their process, I’ve figured out the best way to utilize Dubsado for interior designers. Before using Dubsado, I’d used Asana, Trello and Basecamp, but none of them offered the caliber of client experience I was looking for. When I found Dubsado, I was one of their first users and have never been more loyal to a brand. Their customer service is incredible - founded by a husband and wife team who were previously wedding photographers needing a better system. Jake and Becca are wonderful people and incredibly inspiring business leaders. They have a culturally diverse staff, with kindness and equity at the heart of their brand. Essentially, Dubsado is the legal project manager for your interior design business. From initial inquiry to final goodbye, every piece
We both use it for:
Sending invoices for consultations and e-design
Sending presentations
Revisions
Feedback forms
Contracts
Proposals
Scheduling
On-boarding and off-boarding clients
Project Management (lightly, not like construction management)
Canned emails
Forms like your lead inquiry form and client project homework. Legally Binding Signatures: imperative for time stamped signatures on every proof, even if it’s just a revision.
Automation:
Investment guides
Contract thank yous
Receipts
Welcome kits
Homework
Follow ups
workflows
Dubsado is perfectly branded and professional looking throughout. Dubsado is entirely white glove - it can be set up to be your URL so it looks like an extension of your website. Integrated client portal with your logo, brand colors and fonts, not Dubsado’s branding. And I really love that it is your email when sending communications to your client. Send your emails through dubsado so they are logged and tracked in the client portal. Any emails sent via Dubsado, the responses will show up there, too.
The key to ensuring a successful client experience is automation + templates so make sure to go back to Episode 2 for my entire breakdown of the client process.
Email Templates
If you write an email more than once, it should be templated. IDCO studio has worked with dozens of designers to create 30 pre-written emails in our shop (also linked in the show notes for easy access). Use promo code PODCAST20 to save 20% off our client email bundle - exclusively offered to The Interior Collective listeners. These done-for-you, ready to copy and paste emails have proven to save our interior design clients as many as 12 hours a week. They provide polite, direct, and educational responses to your clients throughout the entire interior design process. Your email server, like Google, has canned emails and your client management software - like Dubsado (which we just covered), has them as well.
Google Drive
Here comes something pretty controversial - I am a firm believer in Google Drive instead of Dropbox. We moved everything over from Dropbox to Google Drive because it uses Drive Stream - this feature keeps files accessible on the desktop without taking up any storage space on your computer. Since we were already using Google for our company email, this service was already being paid for. It took some convincing, but we’ve converted the majority of our clients to convert to Google Drive now. It’s much cheaper than Dropbox. On average, it saves about $165/month.
All files are accessible from your desktop/laptop as long as you’re on wifi, BUT they aren’t actually stored on your computer. Saves TONS of space, keeps your computer running more efficiently and smoothly. If you’re going to be offline, but want access to files, just click the “make available offline” option when you right click the file from your computer. It’s also great for remote teams because everyone has access to the most final version of the document. Your Google Docs or Sheets can all be saved in Drive, making it quick to navigate to in an organized way.
Now that you’re using Google Drive, I want to walk you through how to make sure it’s properly organized for an expanding team. You should have a corporate filing naming convention, so every file is easily searchable, follows the same naming conventions and ensures the entire team knows what the standard is.
Here’s my #1 tip to keeping an organized file standard. Templated Client Folders: Create a template folder to work off of for all future projects. Or anything else you make more than once. Create a file in Google Drive titled 00_Client Template. The 00 puts it to the top of the folder automatically (assuming you filter your files in alphabetical order).
Within that folder, have pre-created subfolders with the following titles:
Measurements + Plans; Architect Plans
Project Photos; Before Photos (by room), Progress Photos, Accessories
In Progress Technical Drawings + Renderings; CAD Drawings, Photoshop drawings, 3D Renderings
Final Design Plans
Spec Book
Notes; Internal Notes, Meeting Notes (by date)
Then when you have a new project, simply right click that templated folder, hit “duplicate” and rename. You should also use Google Drive for all Internal Client Documentation:
Training Manuals (such as how to Studio Designer, Light Speed)