Interior designers often start their businesses on their own, taking on every role required to keep their new business afloat. But as business inevitably grows, a question arises: Should I hire more employees for my interior design business?
Some interior designers thrive as solo-preneurs, while others feel that hiring more talent for their interior design firm is the best way to grow and expand. Expanding your team is a smart way to jumpstart the growth of your interior design business. With more hands to help, you'll have more capacity to take on new clients and projects. However, building a team doesn't happen overnight. Hiring new interior designers, or general employees, requires patience and foreplanning. It is important that you hire employees who understand your process and ethos, and that you have the right infrastructure in place to help them succeed.
If you're an interior designer considering expanding your team, this article will help you understand when the time is right and how to find the right employees for your business.
3 signs you're ready to expand your interior design team
Everyone would like a helping hand every so often, but you need to decide whether hiring an employee is a sensible and necessary move for your business. Before making the decision to expand your team, assess yourself against these common reasons for hiring a new interior design employee.
1. You don't enjoy your work
Your work should make you happy. If it doesn't, there is a problem. If you find yourself constantly exhausted, anxious, or unmotivated then you may be suffering from burnout. Burnout is a side effect of stress and is rampant among creative entrepreneurs. Burnout can cause your creative spark to fizzle out and as a result, your work as a designer becomes a chore rather than a passion.
And no wonder you're stressed if you've had no time off! Being a hard worker is a great asset, but not if it is to the detriment of your well-being. Remember, you are worth more than your career! If your schedule is packed to the brim, then hiring new staff for your interior design business would allow you to redistribute your workload and take the necessary time off. It will also help reignite your passion and inject fresh enthusiasm into your business. Recruiting a new employee could be your key to a healthier work-life balance.
2. Your quality of work is suffering
If you're not producing your best work and delivering an exceptional service for your clients, something needs to change. Client experience is everything. If your client feels that you are distracted, disorganised, or not delivering on your promises then that will have huge negative implications for your business.
Negative feedback from clients could be a wake-up call to the fact that you can no longer manage on your own. Expanding your team through strategic interior design recruitment will make your whole process more efficient—leaving you time to deliver a personalised, professional service to all of your clients. Hiring a skilled interior design employee is an expense not to be taken lightly, but remember it is an investment in your business's future.
3. You're experiencing rapid growth
Congratulations! This is an exciting time for you and your business, but the success can also be overwhelming. Suddenly, you are swamped with administrative tasks, client enquiries and accounting responsibilities.
Rather than put the breaks on, now is the time to go full steam ahead and hire a new employee to help you continue to grow your business. Think about the areas of business management that are eating into your time the most and make sure you hire an employee who is capable of helping in these areas. Productivity is key in the fast-paced world of interior design. When employees are just as skilled as they are passionate about their craft, you can expect high-quality work and higher attention to detail.
How to hire a new employee as an interior designer
If you've decided that expanding your team is the right move for your interior design business, you now need to know how to hire the right talent for your business. The right employee will bring fresh ideas, have a genuine passion for the role, and be motivated to succeed. As a result, you'll see vast improvements in your firm's productivity and level of client satisfaction.
The key to finding the right talent for your business is to not simply search for new employees but to attract them. You need to make your interior business stand out as a place where potential candidates would love to work by appearing organised, professional and innovative. Follow these steps to attract the best interior design talent and make a hire that will contribute to the growth of your business.
1. Outline the role
When hiring for your interior design business, you need to write a job description that sells. Introduce your firm's culture and goals to attract candidates who share the same values. Keep it clear, concise, and informative. Then, follow with a clear list of qualifications, responsibilities, growth opportunities, and benefits. Tips for writing an effective interior design job description:
- Be transparent and specific. Don't use vague descriptions like "big salary".
- Use positive language
- Use SEO keywords
- Link to your social media pages and portfolio
2. Advertise the role
To attract the right talent, you must advertise in the right places. Interior design job boards and communities are saturated with hiring advertisements, so although it is worth posting anywhere you can, it is also worth thinking outside the box. Try scouting emerging talent from trade shows, university graduates, and small-scale competitions. Try advertising your position on these interior design hiring sites:
- LinkedIn. A leading professional networking platform with a vast interior design community. Engage with interior design groups and discussions to expand your network and attract potential candidates.
- InternMatch. A dedicated networking website specifically designed to connect junior interior designers with established firms. Create a profile for your firm and attract promising candidates looking to gain practical experience.
When a potential candidate sees your advertised opportunity, the first thing they will do is look you up online. Your online presence, across both your website and your social media, serves as the face of your firm. Thus, you'll want to keep them well-managed and updated. Be active on social media platforms, such as Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn. Share your recent projects and actively engage with the interior design community. Present the best of your business online, and you'll attract the best talent in return.
3. Support your new hire
Cultivating a positive work environment is key to retaining great employees and attracting new ones in the future. Provide your employees with opportunities for professional development by off mentorship, and skill enhancement workshops. You should also strive to promote a healthy work-life balance by offering flexible working hours or employee wellness programs if possible. A healthy work environment = happy employees.
The takeaway
Hiring new talent for your interior design firm could be the key to unlocking new business growth. You can hire employees to help take the strain out of your workload and rekindle your passion for interior design, or to help you meet the demands of an already organically growing business.
When you make the decision to hire, you should do so with a clear strategy and end goal. It is important to hire people with passion, professionalism and respect.
