Building Trust with Your Branding & Website

“Know, like, and trust” factor is still alive and well! It’s the key reason people choose YOU as their interior designer to reimagine their home or workspace. Perhaps the most powerful of this dynamic trio is “trust”. In order to bring you into their home with confidence, they need to trust you. Not simply as having interior design skills, but also as someone who can guide them to bring their vision to life. They need to trust you’ll take the time to listen, see, and understand them. Their tastes, lifestyle, and goals. 

Building trust begins long before you step foot into their space and even long before the Discovery Call. You can start building trust with a website and brand intentionally designed to create a connection and inspire them to say “yes” to working with you! 

Lead With Your Philosophy (and keep it simple!) 

What do you believe about design? What’s your unique angle or personal philosophy? Do you have an unpopular opinion or believe something no one else in your industry dares to say? 

Your design philosophy should shine through simply and clearly the moment they enter your site and set you apart from the competition and noise. 

Make it crystal clear by: 

• Avoiding buzzwords 
• Skipping the long-winded intros and making it the “me me me show” 
• Show how your design philosophy impacts THEM 

Think clear, concise, and confident. Express how YOU believe the spaces you design should feel, function, and support the people who live in it. 

Create Connection with Storytelling 

Building trust isn’t just sharing what you do, it’s why you do it and who you do it for. Building trust on your website and brand happens as you provide them with an experience of what to expect when they choose you. 

One of the best ways to do this and to create a connection is to tell stories! 

Here are some we encourage interior designers to share: 

• Your story! What led you to become a designer? Who/what inspires your work? What kind of clients do you love working with? 
• Your client’s stories: How have others’ lives been impacted and transformed? Why do they choose you? What challenges and problems were they facing prior to working with you and what was the outcome? 

Stories create connection. Connection builds trust and trust is a memorable brand experience. 

Build Trust Through Consistency 

You’re probably sick of the word “consistency” and hearing about how important it is. But, it’s cliche for a reason! Consistency really is key when it comes to building trust in you, your skills, and your brand. 

Think about everything you do: your social media, website, emails, networking, business cards, speaking/workshops, all your marketing and outreach… it all needs to work together as a cohesive whole. 

If everything sounds like it has a different tone, or is riddled with different colors and fonts, or just doesn’t quite connect because it’s piecemealed together from here, there, and everywhere, your message will be confusing and may even fall flat. It slowly erodes trust when our branding isn’t consistent across all touchpoints. 

Help your future clients feel confident by ensuring visuals, voice, message, and tone are all working together as a unified whole. Clients will feel confident that you’re the reliable, professional, and intentional professional you say you are. 

Consistency = Trust. 

Elevate Your Brand Photography

Crooked pictures, low quality images, and let’s face it… the ones taken on your phone aren’t going to properly highlight and showcase your work and they may even lead to questions about whether or not clients can take you seriously. 

Great photos that are stylistically in line with your work, style, and branding elevate you. They communicate that you’re serious about your interior design business and also allow potential clients to visualize the possibilities when working with you. 

Don’t forget to include photos of yourself and your team! It humanizes your brand and helps people feel like they know you before they even reach out. 

To Niché or Not to Niché… there’s no wrong answer for once! 

When building trust, don’t be afraid to choose a niché and stick to it. And, conversely, don’t be afraid to not define one if you aren’t ready yet or don’t want to niché down. 

Confidently own your way of doing things is an instant trust builder in and of itself. People trust brands that know who they are and what they like to do. Your people will find you whether you design solely beach houses and moody lounges or if you’ll work with them on anything from their high-end kitchen reno to a color consult. 

Build trust by clearly showing your services and offerings, identifying that you have a process, and clarifying your values. 

Show what makes working with YOU different and give them a taste of the unique experience they can expect. 

Building Trust is a Stepping Stone to Transformation 

The more clearly and consistently you show up in your branding and online, the more trust you build. Dream clients will more readily say “yes” to working with you. An intentional, holistically designed website and brand goes beyond the aesthetics to how you make people feel seen. 

At Vetted By Design, we recommend Madi Wright of Embolden Design Studio, a Full-Service Design & Branding Studio that will embolden YOU to harness your full potential. Learn more by checking out Madi’s Vetted By Design profile here. 

Give your clients an opportunity to feel safe, seen, and excited to take the next step!