125: Crystal Bright, How she streamlines virtual projects with Design Live
08/02/24 • 67 min
Shaun and Rebecca sit down with Crystal Bright, a virtual interior designer. Crystal shares how she grew her business in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Crystal has completed over 400 projects in the past five years and helps other designers transition to virtual work. Crystal explains how she uses AI and tools like 2020 Design Live to streamline her virtual design process and provide high-quality services to clients.
In this episode, they discuss:
- Crystal’s story of starting a virtual interior design business and growing a lot during the 2020 pandemic
- Crystal was offering kitchen plans on Fiverr initially at a low cost of just $15 but later realized her value
- Overcoming impostor syndrome, and gaining confidence in her design work through education and experience, and taking NKBA courses
- Virtual design and rendering software that Crystal uses – 2020 Design Live, SketchUp, Lumion, etc
- Pros and cons of flat rate vs hourly fee structures for design services
- Challenges of in-person design work vs remote work and balancing business and creativity
- How Crystal automates her client communication and uses tools like Canvas, Monday CRM, Zapier, etc, to simplify workflows
- How Crystal streamlines her virtual projects with Design Live
- Finding a balance between charging rates that clients can afford and appropriate compensation for her skills and expertise
- Strategies for negotiating project proposals
- Using AI tools like ChatGPT to streamline client onboarding, interpreting clients’ questionnaires and design preferences, etc
Mentioned:
Follow Crystal:
@crystaldbright
https://www.instagram.com/crystaldbright/
@livingbrightinteriors
https://www.instagram.com/livingbrightinteriors/
@3dbrightdesigns
https://www.instagram.com/3dbrightdesigns/
Living Bright Interiors Website: https://www.livingbrightinteriors.com/
NKBA courses for kitchen and bath: https://nkba.org/
Scanning floorpans with Canvas app: https://canvas.io/
Lumion for renderings: https://lumion.com/
Monday CRM app to communicate internally: https://monday.com/
Zapier for automation: https://zapier.com/
Loom for video replies and communication: https://www.loom.com/
Learn more about Cyncly and Design Live: https://www.2020spaces.com/2020products/2020designlive/
Our links:
Subscribe and leave a review - Apple Podcasts
Like, Comment, & Follow - Hot Young Designers Club Instagram
For more information - Check out the website
Become a “Loyal Hottie” - Support us on Patreon
Design Resources - Check out our shop
Shaun and Rebecca sit down with Crystal Bright, a virtual interior designer. Crystal shares how she grew her business in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Crystal has completed over 400 projects in the past five years and helps other designers transition to virtual work. Crystal explains how she uses AI and tools like 2020 Design Live to streamline her virtual design process and provide high-quality services to clients.
In this episode, they discuss:
- Crystal’s story of starting a virtual interior design business and growing a lot during the 2020 pandemic
- Crystal was offering kitchen plans on Fiverr initially at a low cost of just $15 but later realized her value
- Overcoming impostor syndrome, and gaining confidence in her design work through education and experience, and taking NKBA courses
- Virtual design and rendering software that Crystal uses – 2020 Design Live, SketchUp, Lumion, etc
- Pros and cons of flat rate vs hourly fee structures for design services
- Challenges of in-person design work vs remote work and balancing business and creativity
- How Crystal automates her client communication and uses tools like Canvas, Monday CRM, Zapier, etc, to simplify workflows
- How Crystal streamlines her virtual projects with Design Live
- Finding a balance between charging rates that clients can afford and appropriate compensation for her skills and expertise
- Strategies for negotiating project proposals
- Using AI tools like ChatGPT to streamline client onboarding, interpreting clients’ questionnaires and design preferences, etc
Mentioned:
Follow Crystal:
@crystaldbright
https://www.instagram.com/crystaldbright/
@livingbrightinteriors
https://www.instagram.com/livingbrightinteriors/
@3dbrightdesigns
https://www.instagram.com/3dbrightdesigns/
Living Bright Interiors Website: https://www.livingbrightinteriors.com/
NKBA courses for kitchen and bath: https://nkba.org/
Scanning floorpans with Canvas app: https://canvas.io/
Lumion for renderings: https://lumion.com/
Monday CRM app to communicate internally: https://monday.com/
Zapier for automation: https://zapier.com/
Loom for video replies and communication: https://www.loom.com/
Learn more about Cyncly and Design Live: https://www.2020spaces.com/2020products/2020designlive/
Our links:
Subscribe and leave a review - Apple Podcasts
Like, Comment, & Follow - Hot Young Designers Club Instagram
For more information - Check out the website
Become a “Loyal Hottie” - Support us on Patreon
Design Resources - Check out our shop
Previous Episode
124: Niche Is Riche, Creating the business you want
You know what they say – Niche Is Riche. Finding a niche for your interior design business can make you rich and successful. But how do you get there, hotties? Shaun and Rebecca discuss the importance of finding and defining your niche in your business. They also share different approaches to finding and defining your niche, from being true to your personal style and skills to identifying unmet demands in the market. They also explore how to define and market their niches through refined language and curated portfolios.
They encourage you to get out there and find your niche. With the right niche, you can build the business and life you want!
In this episode, they discuss:
- Shaun and Rebecca’s plans for the 2024 High Point Market
- What is a niche, and how can interior designers find and define their niche
- Different approaches to finding and defining your niche:
- Being true to your personal style and skills
- Doing research and understanding the market gaps to find your niche and not just following trends
- How can interior designers niche down in terms of project type, price point, design style, home type, or target demographics
- How Shaun and Rebecca have been refining their business niche over the years
- Importance of finding a niche that aligns with your skills and expertise
- How niching helps with marketing, branding, and attracting ideal clients
- Editing your portfolio — hiding projects that don't align with your style, highlighting projects that showcase your style
- How to overcome common challenges in niching like differentiating from other designers
- Showcasing your niche through imagery, mood boards, Pinterest, blog posts, etc
- Working remotely or nationally to broaden your market size
Mentioned:
Episode 121: Evan Larkin, SEO for Interior Designers: https://hotyoungdesignersclub.com/episodes/121-evan-larkin-seo-for-interior-designers/
How to Find Your Business Niche on Business News Daily: https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/6748-business-niche-characteristics.html
Our links:
Subscribe and leave a review - Apple Podcasts
Like, Comment, & Follow - Hot Young Designers Club Instagram
For more information - Check out the website
Become a “Loyal Hottie” - Support us on Patreon
Design Resources - Check out our shop
Next Episode
126: Project Timelines, managing your bandwidth, deadlines, and planning capacity
What are your project management strategies? How do you set expectations with clients and manage your deadlines? Shaun and Rebecca discuss their project management strategies and methods for setting expectations with clients and managing deadlines in the world of interior design. They also dive deep into the challenges of managing project timelines, client expectations, predicting and planning capacity to avoid overbooking, and much more.
In this episode, they discuss:
- How Shaun and Rebecca handle multiple projects and manage client expectations
- Determining if you have the capacity to take on a new project and avoid overbooking
- Organizing and visualizing project workload and pipeline
- Handling challenges like clients being unresponsive or changing their minds during a project
- Setting realistic project timelines and communicating them effectively to clients and adding buffer time for client feedback and approvals
- Some project management tools – Gantt charts, Basecamp, Monday, etc
- Dealing with clients who constantly change requirements or are slow to respond and how that impacts workflow
- Taking time off as a business owner, and challenges and considerations around taking a long break
- Story of a problem Rebecca had with a third-party Dubsado template
- The importance of having backup systems and emergency contacts in place for your business
Mentioned:
PMO Work Management Software | monday.com: https://monday.com/work-management/pmo
Gantt: https://www.gantt.com/
Basecamp: https://basecamp.com/
ClickUp: https://clickup.com/
Dubsado: https://www.dubsado.com/
Our links:
Subscribe and leave a review - Apple Podcasts
Like, Comment, & Follow - Hot Young Designers Club Instagram
For more information - Check out the website
Become a “Loyal Hottie” - Support us on Patreon
Design Resources - Check out our shop
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