As we've all settled into the clutches of a new year the hopeful vibe of 2010 has replaced the suffering sounds of 2009. Not a surprise. Everyone has finally accepted that the world is different, and so has how we do business. The internet and economy killed everything we knew "how to do," but it also created new opportunities for growth, ingenuity and collaboration. So what did it look like for the design industry and what will we see? I asked four design professionals - designers, bloggers and consultants - what they saw, what they see for the future of design and how to make certain you'll be a thriving part of it. Here are their unedited interviews:
2009: The Internet Impacts the Profit Center
More and more, design clients seem to be “shopping” around. What this means is that designers who give their clients manufacturer and model numbers are then losing the sale because the client goes home and searches the Internet to find it at a better price. Web sites that offer “to the trade” furnishings directly to the consumer are popping up left and right. In response, designers will need to adapt by showing the pieces as more highly customized and not something that you can buy off the shelf. While I typically promote an increase in transparency in a design firm, in regards to resources, I believe that more designers should be private labeling and protecting their resources to protect their bottom lines.
It's Not Enough to Just "Be"
Traditional media alone does not work anymore. If your budget allows, traditional media can be an aspect of your overall media and marketing plan. However, designers and manufacturers are seeing more opportunity to differentiate their brands through using non-traditional media, such as blogging, Facebook, Twitter, and the like. The barriers for entry for social media are very low; the barriers for entry for traditional media are high. More and more, design clients expect and look forward to an opportunity to engage with a potential designer that they might like to work with. Print does not allow for that interaction and engagement. Shelter magazines will need to increase their online presences and will need to develop revenue streams from online ads to counter the increased losses in print. I think that we will see many design blogs become more successful than traditional print magazines.
Be Poised to Thrive During the Upturn
If you haven’t already, cut unnecessary expenditures. I know that doesn’t sound fun and sexy but in the last year we were able to easily save money by reviewing and renegotiating our telephone plan, cell phone plans, and leases. While cost cutting and bootstrapping is important, too many firms are sitting on their hands and not preparing themselves for the upswing that will happen in the next couple of years. Every firm should be utilizing social media. You need a blog, a Facebook page, a Twitter account, and to have each person in your firm to be on LinkedIn. It’s not enough to just be using these tools; you need to be using them to promote your long-term marketing and strategy goals. Work with a company to help you to maximize your strategy. Secondly, pay attention to profit pools. What projects are actually making you money? What clients actually make you money? Focus on those and don’t lose focus on other areas that provide low margin.
Personality Will Win Business
In the last 5 years, if you compared many designers’ web sites to each other there was not much difference. They were static sites with a portfolio, some mantra about client service, great design, and a listing of qualifications. Boring, but we all have/had them. The future of the design and furnishings business will show an increased opportunity for differentiation and branding by utilizing tools like Facebook, blogs, vlogs (video blogs), Twitter, and LinkedIn. Don’t be scared of showing your company’s personality! People want to do business with companies and with people that they like—be one of those people. Especially through blogging, companies can show more of what differentiates them from their competitors. This will lead to attracting better clients that are pre-qualified. These potential clients already like what you do, like what you have to say, and like who you are. If you are not already utilizing social media, start today. Don’t get behind the curve as tools change rapidly and you will never catch up.
Quality and Qualified Define Design Purchases
One of the most significant shifts I saw was a real emphasis on quality. My clients were not just looking for “the look” but also were willing to pay a little more and purchase pieces that were both practical and enduring. We are a high end gallery and we found more clients willing to spend more and get what they really wanted. We found that our clients built their rooms a little slower and waited to be able to acquire all the proper elements.
Yes. Design Information IS Digtially Digested
The changes in print design media are not just a reflection of our troubled economic times but a general shift in the way we get our information. I am personally saddened by the loss of so many “staples” in the publishing business and will miss turning the pages and smelling the fresh ink. On a positive note, new websites and blogs are allowing us to collect information in a more immediate and interactive way, helping design businesses to both stay head of the curve as well as gain a better understandings of consumers/our clients needs.
Three Tips to Thriving (and Surviving)
- BE INNOVATIVE. We are constantly looking for ways to keep our products fresh, with new finishes, fabrics and interesting mixes.
- BE FLEXIBLE. Expand design horizons beyond comfort zones. Accept the fact that clients are optimistically cautious.
- BE ADAPTIVE. Don’t just look at your own business but keep your eyes and ears open and see how other companies are modifying their business models to maintain and grow their businesses.
Design Will Look Collaborative, Green & Practical
- More collaboration. Working on projects with other teams and companies. Design Duets- a concept that has been used extensively in the music industry for years.
- A post war mind set- revolving around practicality, durability & longevity utilizing furniture from that era and repurposing it for a 21st Century lifestyle.
- A continued emphasis on green products and design.
Digital Ink & Opportunities for Young Designers Rise Up
One of the more significant changes I saw in the design business is the increased use of the Internet, and the slow and sad decline of print media for the distribution of information. Although I run an online publication, I do still read print media. It's really sad to see it dying, knowing that there isn't much that you can do (or even that you might be contributing to their decline).
I also noticed the rise in submissions from students. We are now getting a lot more senior projects from students from around the world. It's really a marvelous thing when you're able to connect a student to a company or a prototype to a manufacturer or a designer to a client. When this occurs and you're told that you brought them together, it really makes it all worthwhile.
Stop Discounting Digital Media
We will see a lot less "eye candy" magazines, that's for sure. I'm saddened that some of my favorite publications were buried in 2009. However, I'm hopeful that the writers, editors, and photographers will re-emerge elsewhere, whether it be in another print magazine or online. We already see that with Lonny Magazine, which arose from the death of Domino. While it still doesn't replace the void I personally feel about my favorite glossy, it seems to be doing well.
It's really hard to predict what's coming down the road, but I'd like to see blogs and online magazines begin to receive more recognition and support for what they do. Bloggers earn substantially less than their print counterparts, and often take on the additional responsibilities of photo editing/permission, fact checking, and coding. On top of that they often also manage ad sales, assign stories, do their own accounting, and work with freelancers. Many are one-person websites. Imagine if Metropolitan Home magazine was run and created by just one person. And it published every day.
Adapt Already. It's 2010.
Adapt. These businesses need to adapt to the changing times. Get on board with social media, information sharing, and personal interaction. Sign up for Twitter. Send your new project photos to a blog. Make an online component to your print magazine. Turning away from these and only relying on traditional media could be harmful. Not being on the cutting edge these days can mean the death of your business. Right now, there are still a number of design firms, architecture companies, and furniture companies who don't have a Facebook page or aren't reaching out to bloggers. An example of a company who is doing a great job so far: Ford. Believe it or not, Ford is on board with social media, networking, and really taking advantage of bloggers and other social media avenues to get the word out as well as get feedback. Sometimes you just need to hire the right PR firm
Design Will Open Up Even More
I think more open dialogue, more collaboration, more competitions, traveling exhibitions and shows. Although the Internet isn't face-to-face interaction, it can bring those things about in an even more powerful way. You still can't sit on a sofa from the Internet yet, and until you can get a sample beamed into your living room from your computer, I don't think that furniture shows and design showcases are going anywhere!
Well, clearly the loss of design budget dollars. Once folks stopped using re-finance money to decorate, a large segment of design clients, mostly mid-level, just evaporated. On the high end, much of the spending was put on hold while everyone evaluated where things were going and waited to see what the stock market was doing. Additionally, folks who might have still had the money didn't want to look as if they were flaunting it, so they too put spending on hold or kept it on the down low. I have a friend who is an antiques dealer who said a client asked her to deliver a piece in an unmarked truck so that neighbors wouldn't know they were buying expensive antiques.
Why Print Design Media Still Matters
Well, it's really a sad state because there is nothing like a beautiful print spread in a magazine. Photos online just do not have the same impact. I just interviewed Stephen Drucker, editor in chief of House Beautiful on my show The Skirted Roundtable (http://www.skirtedroundtable.blogspot.com) and he likened magazines to coffee table books, only at a fraction of the cost. House Beautiful has large format photos and beautiful, photo heavy, spreads. I think that's what magazines do best and where they will always beat out websites and blogs. I'd like to see more large, beautiful photos of all kinds of design from all over. I'd also like to see less of the New York/LA centric spreads, and celebrity driven stories. Architectural Digest has gone too far in this direction and I think they suffer for it.
Traditional Values + Modern Tools = Thrive
I think we all need to get back to basics, with a modern twist; Good customer service, value for the price and open communications. Good old fashioned business skills that made so many venerable businesses thrive for years. The modern twist is the use of social media and online tools for close communication and collaboration with clients. I offer my clients a page(s) on my website where they can view progress and ideas I'm working on with their projects. It gives them real time information at a time most convenient to their schedules and means I have to spend less time driving to client meetings to show fabric samples. They can cull out their likes and dislikes online so that the final decisions are targeted and easier to make. And finally, it means they can look at finished design plans to help them remember what's in production and what the end products will look like.
Design Clients ARE on the Web
More and more designers and architects will finally have websites to showcase their work. I still get jobs because I have the website and others don't. On a business level, the internet has leveled the playing field significantly and clients have online access to items that were once only available through designers. As a result, designers are going to be earning less money on sales and will need to make it up on billable design hours and other types of service driven offerings.
