As an interior designer, home stager, professional organizer, or window treatment business owner, you have too many responsibilities and not enough help (or time) to keep everything moving forward. Because of this, if you're anything like me, you may have started relying on apps for, well, everything. Today I'm sharing 10 amazing and fairly new app…

You started a business and now you are questioning everything about your identity. Your skills, your talents, the value you bring to the world — everything you once believed about yourself is now held in question. And the insecurities you had previously? Well, those have likely gotten worse. If this sounds like you, you need to take a few deep brea…

Today's topic was requested by successful home stager Theresa Ceglio of We Stage Jacksonville:Home stagers get a lot of push back in this hot seller's market both from the agents and home sellers. They feel they don’t need to do anything to their listings or properties because everything is selling so quickly. I work with agents that see the value …

If you don't have a defined sales funnel for your home industry business, you'll find that marketing feels very difficult and expensive. You might even feel like nothing is working - which is not a great feeling to have! I've talked for dozens of hours on the importance of having a sales funnel, and today I'm breaking down the framework of an ideal…

Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing a lightweight business model that has become popular with home professionals who want the flexibility of working remotely, but they don't want to offer e-design. The cool part about this consultancy business model is that you can still meet with clients in person, just as you would for a normal, on-site consultat…

Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing five key areas in your marketing that are likely far too generic. If you are suffering from a lack of clients, despite an overall booming home industry (circa 2020 and 2021), the issue might not be external (i.e. the economy, your location, YOU). The issue could very well be that you just aren't vocalizing what y…

Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing 4 simple ways you can connect with followers. This will push you out of your comfort zone, as it should. This will help you achieve the goal of higher interaction rates on your posts, and it definitely isn't magic. It's about being a real person. It's about being yourself.…

Are you stressed out because you aren't getting new clients from social media? Today's episode of The Kate Show might be one of the most enlightening episodes I've ever selected for the show. Listen to it, and you'll walk away with an entirely different perspective on what social media is actually supposed to be doing for your business.…

As our businesses shift and grow, it is possible to outgrow your original ideal client. On today's episode of The Kate Show, I'm sharing a strategy that will help you redefine your ideal client, restructure your flagship service offering, and actually speak directly to your leads in a way that makes hiring you not just a want but a need.…

In today's episode of The Kate Show, I'm teaching you how to become the home professional who knows the right people. If you've listened to Episode 153, in which I shared actual scripts for connecting with referral partners, this episode is not a repeat. Rather, it builds off the methods and strategies I shared previously, with specific positioning…

Blogging is so impactful that you know your home industry business needs it, but you're wondering how you can reuse the content you've worked so long to create. Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing easy tips for reusing your blog posts as marketing videos. Don't worry, the process is short and sweet. In fact, your biggest hurdle won't be filming the…

Writing blog posts for your interior design, home staging, professional organizing, or window treatment business doesn't have to become your next part-time job. In today's episode of The Kate Show, I'm sharing everything from blog post writing strategies to best practices that can directly impact your SEO and result in faster content creation.…

Pinterest is quietly making changes to its platform. While they have a right to make these changes, you have a right to be aware of how they intend to use your content and how those changes will directly affect your marketing as a home industry entrepreneur. Today I'm sharing a summary of these Pinterest changes and what you can consider changing i…

Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing one such tool with you: Canva. Though a fun and lighthearted tool, it can do so much more than help you create your next social media post. Whether you have the free version of Canva or you've drunk the Kool-Aid of Canva Pro (I have! No regrets.), you are going to learn something new today about how Canva can ser…

Have you ever struggled with what to say on your website? Do you ever worry about your SEO? The majority of interior designers, stagers, organizers, and workroom owners I speak with would say yes to both. Copywriting can be difficult, especially when you are trying to write something about your own business, or worse, about yourself. Today on The K…

Whether you've just started your business, have recently moved to a new state, or are looking to break into a new market, getting your first few clients can feel like an insurmountable task. How do you find those new clients when no one knows your name yet? Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing the strategic referral alliances you need to make and ex…

If you listened to my previous episode regarding how to turn your home industry knowledge into a paid membership, you won't want to miss this sequel. Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing the steps you'll need to take in order to effectively brand and market your membership. If you aren't sure whether you are well suited to launch a membership around…

Since the launch of Vault, my peers in the industry have asked me about the technology and processes I use to make it all work. Today, I'm transposing that information into a plan that is specific to you, the home industry professional. If you are passionate about what you do and want to serve people at a higher level while using the one-to-many bu…

"How can I get consistent, high-quality leads for my design firm?" This question popped up in my inbox recently. It's one I've been asked many times over the past few years, and it's one that every entrepreneur in the home industry should be asking. If you don't have an email list, but you know that you should be using email marketing to bolster yo…

As an interior designer or home stager, you might love the hands-on projects - the ones that put you in the same room with your amazing clients. Or maybe you're trying to scale up your design consultancy. Or maybe you have no idea where to put your efforts or what you'd really love to do yet. Before you become overwhelmed or feel like you need to l…

If you are being told that affiliate marketing is passive (or have figured out that it isn't), this episode of The Kate Show is for you. Today I'm sharing what it takes to earn real income from affiliate sales, from the effort you need to put into the stats you need to hit. Because I believe in alternatives and solutions and real income strategies,…

Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing the four primary reasons why marketing your new business might feel absolutely terrifying and why your inner confidence might have suddenly taken a plunge. Spoiler alert: It's normal - but it doesn't mean you should stay in that place. After this episode, you'll walk away with just a little more courage, a lot of…

Not every home industry business owner will need the exact same first hire and not every entrepreneur will need or want to hire an employee when hiring a subcontractor is so much more freeing. I've hired and fired (ugh) over the past few years and each decision, each movement, made my business more profitable and lowered my stress in the long run. …

"Working less and producing more is possible, even with a little one." In today's episode of The Kate Show, I'm sharing with you how I work as a mom and an entrepreneur. I'm giving you tips on how you can batch-work your business (my batch working process on a monthly schedule!), especially if you have little kiddos to help you get ahead of things …

If you are looking for inventive ways to serve your ideal client and set yourself up for a new year of pre-booked projects, you won't want to miss this episode of The Kate Show. I'm sharing actual holiday-themed service packages that you can sell on your website (or through My Doma, DesignFiles, etc). Plus, each package is easily adaptable to the p…

We've been programmed to answer the question, "How are you doing?" with an instant, "I'm doing great. How are you?" It's time to stop lying to ourselves and others in the name of nicety. If you are a business owner and parent, you are likely more stressed out right now than ever before. I feel you, and I have some tips. From how to plan your week a…

Figuring out what to say in an email newsletter can leave many home industry business owners feeling bewildered. In today's episode of The Kate Show, I'm sharing actual scripts taken from four of some of the most-loved email newsletter templates in Socialite Vault. If you want to see the design and layout of these scripts in a clean and crisp newsl…

In this episode of The Kate Show, I'm sharing the first thing you should do to market your business, which is entirely dependent on your ideal client, and how that will impact the other pieces of your sales funnel.If you've ever felt overwhelmed and bewildered by marketing and growing your home industry business, this episode is for you.…

Setting up more than one income stream is a great way to bolster your design, staging, workroom, or organizing business in new ways. Aside from offering virtual consultations, coaching and mentoring can be used as alternate income streams. If you've been asked more than a few times about your success in business, your processes and systems, or even…

You might think, "I'll just never retire."But you will. You'll retire from one career to something else. What will you do with the business you built? Will you try to sell it, only to realize you don't have any of the right systems or infrastructure in place to make it sellable? Will you let it fade into oblivion, as though it never existed in this…

This is one of those topics that I didn't want to talk about for a long time, but a desperate Google search of, "What to do when someone copies your business" yielded sparse results and made me realize that I needed to create this. If you are wondering, "Did someone copy Kate's business?" You'd be correct...about five times over.I hope this never h…

After designing around a hundred websites for the home industry, my team and I know what a website needs in order to effectively sell your services and packages while creating a great and memorable brand experience. Because my website design team often has a waiting list that is months long, I knew there had to be a better way to serve more of you …

A few years of marketing your business has likely taught you that certain marketing ideas just don't work for everyone. Plus, they can actually hurt your business and result in a huge waste of time or money. Today, I'm sharing 17 marketing myths that I've had to navigate as an entrepreneur in the home industry. If you find that you're using a few o…

If you've never worked with a marketing agency, you might have a few qualms about just handing over your brand to an outside party (or maybe you can't do it fast enough?). If you've already worked with a marketing company and were less than satisfied with the results, you will have a whole other mindset, both of which I will address in this episode…

As an interior designer or home stager, your website is both an online portfolio and a sales person who never sleeps - or at least- it should be. If you are looking for a new website and trying to sort through the dozens of website designers vying for your attention, you'd do well to narrow them down with a quick interview process. The process I'm …

Do you want to reach more clients in the high-end, luxury demographic? The majority of design firms, staging companies, and custom workrooms that we serve here at Socialite would say, "Absolutely!" If this desire aligns with your business, too, you might be wondering how to find these high-end clients or, going a step further, how to delight them t…

Pinterest is a powerhouse for increasing website traffic - you know this. What you might not know is that Pinterest has made some updates to how it prioritizes content. This impacts how you use Pinterest to market your business. In today's episode of The Kate Show, I'm sharing all the Pinterest updates, including why pinning your portfolio images a…

Branding is more than just a logo. For years, I really didn't understand this concept. What makes a "good" brand and how exactly does that impact your design, staging, or workroom business? Great question; there is no short answer. A brand is equivalent to a personality. Your personality is determined by how you carry yourself, how you dress, how y…

The coronavirus was a great multitasker - did you know that? While it was running around scaring the pants off people (and apparently wrapping them in excess toilet paper), it was also doing a few other crazy things, specifically in the business world. I can guarantee that business owners, especially those of you in the home industry, are going to …

I can't tell you how many times someone in the home industry has told me, "I ran a Google ad and it didn't work." Sadly, I've seen people spend thousands of dollars on Adwords, only to receive zero customers. ZERO.If you're befuddled by Adwords, if you have no idea how to use Google Analytics to your business's benefit, and if you aren't sure why y…

If your website is just sitting there looking pretty but not sending you any new leads, you know you have a problem. You might have the best website design in the world, but no website in the "history of never" has automatically generated leads by itself. You actually still have to work for it.In this episode of The Kate Show, I'm breaking down the…

Like most of you, I'm emotionally and mentally exhausted from hearing, reading, seeing, and saying the words COVID-19, coronavirus, and pandemic. I have deep empathy for anyone affected - both personally and in business. Before I discuss how to move forward during and after "The Pause", I have to give a huge shout out to my followers and Vault memb…

"But is email marketing even relevant anymore?""I don't want to send email newsletters because people already receive so many emails."Ever thought this before? I sure did! In fact, I believed these myths for several years, significantly slowing the growth of my business in its early phase. Now, I know better. Admittedly, I missed a lot of new busin…

I've received many questions from my clients and members over the past several weeks regarding how they should handle the pandemic as it relates to their clients. While the questions have been varied, they all have one overarching theme.In today's unconventional episode of The Kate Show, I'm sharing the best advice I have on navigating this issue i…

"How do I get more people into my furniture store?""Can you help me increase foot traffic in my window treatment showroom?"In an age when you can order just about anything online, you might think your brick-and-mortar store has been given a death sentence. However, that actually isn't the case. The era of prolific online business simply means an of…

Today is part 2 of How to Sell Online Design & Staging Packages. If you're a note-taker, please pull to the side of the road. I'm going to share so much information, so many resources, so many examples... If you've been thinking about selling your interior design or home staging packages on your website, you will have no excuse to put it off after …

Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing the main things you'll need to effectively sell online staging or design packages, from consults to designer-for-a-day to anything else you can put in a tidy, sell-able package. I'll start by covering the basics that you'll need, everything from the technology to the marketing strategy.…

"You really need a CTA." What the heck is a CTA? CTA simply means, "call-to-action." That, my friend, is a technical way of saying, "dear potential client, here is the next step you need to take if you want to work with me."Today on The Kate Show, I'm simplifying the call-to-action overwhelm and giving you specific steps and scripts you can use to …

Back in episode 73 of this podcast, many of you heard me describe how I was preparing my business and my team for my new role as a mom. Now that my daughter Sadie is six months old, I'm reporting back with what worked, what didn't, and what I'm doing differently. Let's talk business and babies.P.S. Shout out to all the mompreneurs who have reached …

On this episode of The Kate Show, I'm sharing the struggle and angst that I faced as a new business owner six years ago in hopes that it will encourage you to keep going, continue doing things that make you ridiculously uncomfortable - and know that the payout will be so much more than you ever imagined. The first two years in business are often th…