Each guide below tackles one problem that design and staging businesses run into again and again. They're written in plain language, with worked examples and checklists, and they assume you're busy. Read one in a coffee break, and come back to it when you sit down to fix the problem.
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Decorator, designer or stager: naming your services so the right clients find you
The words you use for your services decide who finds you and who calls. In some provinces they also decide what you're allowed to say. This guide helps you choose them deliberately.
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How to write portfolio project pages that win consultations
A project page wins consultations when it shows a client like the reader, a problem like theirs, and decisions they can trust. This guide gives you a reusable structure and the details that make it work.
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How home stagers build a dependable realtor referral pipeline
Most staging work comes through listing agents, so a stager's pipeline is really a list of relationships. This guide shows how to value them, spot the risk in depending on a few, and widen your base steadily.
Project pages that win consultations
Read the guide to portfolio project pages.
This guide teaches you how to turn a finished room into a page that brings in enquiries, not just compliments. It covers how to choose which projects deserve a page, a seven-part page structure you can reuse, how to write captions that describe decisions rather than adjectives, and how to name and describe photos so search engines understand them.
It's the most useful guide for decorators and designers whose clients are homeowners. It also includes a short section for stagers on presenting before-and-after pairs without overstating results.
Building a realtor referral pipeline
Read the guide to stager-realtor referrals.
This one is written for home stagers. It shows how to work out what each agent relationship is worth, how to measure how dependent you are on your top two agents, and how to widen your base without becoming the stager who only calls when the calendar is empty.
You'll find a referral-value worksheet, an outreach rhythm that fits around busy listing seasons, ideas for content agents actually pass to their sellers, and a reminder of where agents' own rules come from.
Naming your services so the right clients find you
Read the guide to naming your services.
Decorator, designer, stylist, stager, colour consultant: the words you use change who finds you, who calls, and in some provinces what you're legally allowed to say. This guide explains how to choose service names that match the way clients search, how to avoid a title you're not entitled to, and how to structure service pages so each one attracts the work you want more of.
It includes the Ontario title rule as described by the professional association, a short note on French-language advertising in Quebec, and a worksheet for listing your services in the client's words.
Who writes the guides
The guides are written under the direction of Ali Sedighi, MBA, who leads Decor.Marketing and has spent 17+ years in digital marketing. They draw on the same page-by-page method behind the results from our HVAC work, adapted to businesses that sell rooms rather than repairs. We're marketers, not designers, so the guides stick to what we know: how clients find you, how agents choose you, and how your words and pages affect both. Design judgement stays with you.
Where a guide mentions a rule from a regulator or association, it links to the official page we loaded and shows the date we checked it. If a rule has changed since, the official source wins.
How to use these guides
A few suggestions for getting the most from them:
- Pick one problem. Don't try to apply all three at once. Fix the leak that's costing you the most.
- Use your own numbers. The worked examples use round figures; replace them with your fees and conversion rates.
- Check official sources. Where a guide mentions a rule, it links to the body that publishes it. Rules change, so confirm before acting.
- Share them. If an assistant or web person handles your site, send them the relevant guide.
When the guides aren't enough
Some owners read a guide and do the work themselves; that's exactly what they're for. Others would rather hand it off. If that's you, look at the services overview to see how each guide maps to a service, check plans and pricing, or call, text or email us.
Frequently asked questions
Are the guides really free?
Yes. They're published openly, with no sign-up. Use them, share them with your team, or hand them to whoever runs your website.
Which guide should I read first?
Stagers should start with the realtor referral guide. Decorators and designers should start with the project pages guide, then read the naming guide before rewriting their site.
How often are the guides updated?
We review them when rules or platforms change. Each guide shows its last update date, and any regulatory reference links to the official source so you can check it yourself.