The Kate Show

Are you looking for a solid marketing plan that actually makes sense for your home industry based business? After providing many marketing consultations, I’ve been able to layout a framework of fail-proof principles that can help nearly any interior design, home staging, and workroom business create a marketing plan that works for them.

Want to hear the worst piece of business / marketing advice floating around right now? “I try to keep business and personal totally separate. It isn’t professional to talk about myself as part of my business.” Following this mindset leads to poorly branded interior design, staging, and workroom businesses. It leads to shallow marketing (or a gross lack of marketing since the business owner will of...

When you know exactly who your target client is, you’ll find that writing a social media caption, a blog post, a newsletter, and new website copy becomes simple. Why? Because it’s easier to talk to someone than it is to talk to no one. Are you currently serving no one in your business? If you define your ideal client only by their budget and location, you don’t have an ideal client. Chances are hi...

In this episode of The Kate Show, I discuss every big question I’ve ever been asked about email newsletters and email marketing in general. After meeting hundreds of interior designers, home stagers, and window treatment workroom owners who struggle with email marketing, I was able to pinpoint their biggest problems.

In the words of Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh, “Chase the vision, not the money; the money will end up following you.”

If you need to prepare your SEO for a post-Google Plus world, or if you just want to know how you can easily improve your business’s ability to be found on Google, this episode is for you. Today on The Kate Show, I explain how to add SEO to your portfolio images, blog post images, and why the headings in your website copy matter to Google.

What happens when a former Google employee and founding member of Youtube sets her sights on the interior design industry? To sum it up: You get DesignerInc., the Amazon of the trade-only interior design industry. DesignerInc.com is the most comprehensive trade-only marketplace for the interior design industry, and it is free to all registered interior designers. Amassing hundreds of thousands of...

Lead magnets are a great way to attract more interior design or home staging clients. These handy little marketing tools provide immediate assistance to your potential clients and address their pain points. Lead magnets made you look professional and contribute incredible value to your sales funnel, even when you are trying to reach clients local to your area. Today on the Kate Show, I’m talking a...

Do you ever feel pressured to implement every piece of marketing advice that falls into your lap? Does the pressure to keep up with your colleagues on social media - only to see zero results for your efforts - feel exhausting? Today on The Kate Show, I’m sharing a unique way to approach marketing your interior design, staging, or workroom business. It’s called backwards marketing. (I coined the te...

Finding the right vendors for your interior design projects can be difficult. Who should you trust? Will they value your business as a long term relationship? Will they respect your professionalism and add value to your client experience? These are just a few of the questions I asked Revel Woods co-founder John Dupra on The Kate Show. If you’re looking to expand your interior design services and p...

Whether you’re a new business owner in the home industry or a longtime entrepreneur looking to revitalize your pipeline, your business will grow from collaborating with other businesses and brands. In fact, marketing your business in this way is more lucrative than paid advertising and can also help bolster other areas of your marketing, such as growing your social media channels, expanding your m...

Do you need a new website or logo? Ensure that your project turns out well by getting familiar with the design processes of both. In this episode, I'm sharing the unique client process we use here at Socialite to make sure our clients' brands and websites are successful, beautiful, and functional.  Be sure to check out the show notes at katethesocialite.com/the-kate-show to access the helpful reso...

Marketing is a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you approach marketing with the mindset of, "This is going to suck," then yes, it will be an awful and depreciating experience for you. However, if you approach marketing with the mindset of, "I'm here to help a specific group of people in the best and most authentic way possible--I just need to find them," you'll find that marketing becomes less like ru...

Do you struggle with planning your social media content? As an interior designer, home stager, or window treatment workroom, what you post on social media directly impacts the type of clients and projects you will receive. Creating a strategic content calendar protects you from falling into the trap of only talking about your services, sales, or promotions. Instead, a content calendar helps you at...

What if.... Working with a business coach pushed you to the next level of success? What if... Working with a business coach actually increased your long term profits? This success is the result for thousands of interior designers, home stagers, and workrooms who partner with coaches to grow their businesses. If you're ready to grow your business from the inside out, build a team, and develop proce...

Have you tried (and failed) at blogging for your interior design, staging, or window treatment business? Blogging can be difficult if you don't know how to structure each post, what to write about, or how often to post new articles.  In this episode of The Kate Show, I chat with my best friend (in real life) Jaquilyn Edwards of Ochre & Beige. Jaquilyn is a blogger for interior designers. Browse he...

I stared at my Instagram empty schedule for the month and gulped. Here I was, an experienced marketer, and I had no clue what I wanted to say in that given moment. Call it the result of hormones (always a good excuse), brain fog, or an overly packed schedule--I had a bad case of marketer's block. Fortunately, I've gleaned tips on how to conquer this and come up with a few of my own that I still us...

Paid advertising has its time and place, but not as often as you'd think. Advertising is also not a replacement for genuine marketing. If you're ready to learn when, where and how to run a successful ad--and how to recognize when it's truly a waste of money--this episode is for you.  *If this podcast is helpful to you, would you please leave me a review on iTunes? It really makes a difference!

Do you overthink your decisions in business? *raises hand* Yep, I lean toward indecisiveness too, and I've found a four step process that helps me strategically navigate my options and make a decision that I can walk away feeling confident about--without all of that false "buyer's remorse" getting in the way. If you tend to ask handfuls of people for their opinions before making a decision, if you...

How long has it been since you updated your professional bio or the About page on your website? (If your answer makes you cringe, you're in the right place.) Your bio can be a powerful part of your marketing, the piece that convinces clients to fall in love with what you do because of who you are.

One of my listeners emailed me recently and asked the question I'd been only vaguely answering up to this point: "How did you become okay with being successful, making money, and not feeling guilty? How do you reach the point of feeling valuable and acting like it? I try so hard to do everything right, but I can barely make ends meet after all these years. Am I simply not meant to be successful?"...

This is an excerpt from my masterclass, "Marketing Your Business Beyond Social Media," as part of The E-Design Experience seminar weekend. Have you been wanting to launch your e-design business or add virtual interior design to your service packages? Whether you're a total newbie or an experienced traditional designer, this episode will help you set up a sales funnel to sell your e-design services...

Do you avoid looking at your Quickbooks account? Do numbers make your cringe? Are you unable to pay yourself consistently as an interior designer, stager, or workroom? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you likely have negative money mindset, one that will continue to stunt the growth of your business until you choose to overcome it.

Are you trying to attract high end clients for your interior design or home staging firm? Your visual presence and client process matters. If you're still emailing client documents and designs, hold up right there. If you're still constantly updating your client on the status of his/her project and wishing you could find an easier way to stay organized while allowing your client to require fewer h...

I chatted with fellow lady boss Albie Buabeng of Albie Knows Design and founder of The E-Design Experience, a virtual seminar and society centered on helping interior designers launch and grow a profitable e-design business (or simply add e-design to their list of services). Albie's innate business sense, intentional moves, and tough but honest questions catapulted her from one industry to the nex...