Although it might seem like a frustrating and impossible situation, put on your creative thinking cap and figure out how to get around it! Do not let this weaken your resolve to make a success of your business.
Now, before you get inundated with project requests, is the time to start building your home staging portfolio and obtaining references. When someone contacts you for information about your services and asks for references or to see a portfolio, all they want is to see how capable you are and that you have a good reputation.
Start volunteering to redesign the homes of your friends and family members. Take tons of photos. Do the same in your own home; arrange and rearrange some rooms to demonstrate that you have what your potential clients are looking for. Nobody looking at your portfolio will know if the before and after photos were from paying clients or your neighbors, nor will they care. They want to see that you can stage their home to appeal to buyers.
Whatever you do, do not give in to the temptation to purchase stock photos on the Internet to fluff up your portfolio. That’s cheating. Worse than that is to take other stagers’ photos and pass them off as your own.
Some home staging training companies provide their graduates with before and after photos to use as their own. What happens if they see the same picture in more than one place? It will really tarnish your reputation and we don’t want that. Take your own photos!
After you’ve staged your loved ones’ homes, ask them for written recommendations and ask if they would be willing to provide you with a reference for potential clients looking to speak with someone about what you did for them and their homes.
You have to start somewhere. The best thing you can do is remove any element of doubt from your potential clients’ minds right from the get-go. Make sure you have a sharp looking website (or portfolio listing on a home staging directory) and business cards, a professional sounding greeting recorded on your business line, a confident tone in your voice when talking to potential new clients on the phone and a ‘knock-em-dead’ wardrobe so you feel great about yourself when you’re out networking or meeting with a client for the first time. If you look the part, not many people will question your experience.
This ‘Catch-22' isn’t as impossible as it seems. Start gathering some before and after photos and testimonials from those who know you’re capable and forge ahead!
Internationally recognized home staging expert Debra Gould is president of Six Elements and creator of The Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program with 900+ Graduates worldwide. She is the author of "Staging Diva Ultimate Color Guide: The Easy Way to Pick colors for Home Staging Projects", and "Staging Diva® Ultimate Portfolio Guide: Winning Clients With The Perfect Home Staging Portfolio". Debra also offers a Directory of Home Stagers to help homeowners and real estate agents locate home stagers who will decorate homes to sell quickly and for top dollar. To learn more visit http://www.stagindiva.com.