10 Steps to Starting Your Own Virtual Interior Design Business
You’re ready to start a virtual design business. You have the education, licensing, and the drive to go out on your own and serve clients or other designers with design, renderings, modeling, admin assistance, and more.
But, what do you do next? How do you actually launch a business?
We’ve been there before –– a few times. We’ve launched and built successful virtual interior design businesses and we’re ready to share our knowledge with you.
Starting an online design business sounds easy enough, right? You choose a name, put together a website, and find clients. Before long, you’re living the creative small business owner life you’ve always dreamed of!
Not quite.
While launching your business is exciting and does have incredible payoffs, there are critical steps you need to take to make sure you’re set up for success –– and a legal, financial, and long-term plan. We want to make sure you’re equipped with the know-how to tackle the entire process, not just the fun, flashy items. So, here are the ten steps to start a virtual design business that you need to know.
1. Decide on your business focus or niche
When you decide to start a business, the first question you should ask yourself is, “What do I do and why do I do it better than anyone else?” A commonality among all our mentors is a niche that gets at their unique skills, whether that’s a particular software that they are the expert in or a certain rendering style they’ve mastered.
While it may sound counterintuitive, focusing your work actually opens you up to more work. As you build up a portfolio within a specific niche, you’ll become the go-to person when someone needs exactly what you do.
Consider what you do best and what gets you excited to work every day. How can you leverage that into a business model and what does it offer clients that no one else can?
Chief Architect Rendering by Kelly fridline | Processing using Raytracing to the Chief Architect for Interior Designers Course
“When I established Kelly Fridline Design, I had grand plans of being a full service Interior Design firm, but I was struggling to attract clients. With the help of my amazing business coach, Nancy Ganzekaufer, I was able to define my niche and focus on rendering, virtual design assistance, and Chief Architect. The specificity of these services helped to build a foundation that has to lead to my success today. As Nancy regularly says, ‘Niche is rich, broad is broke’.”
3. Apply for a tax ID number through the IRS
You can apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) online through the IRS. It’s an easy, free process that will allow you to use a randomly assigned tax ID number rather than your social security number when filling out tax forms. Note: if you decide to apply for a business bank account, a tax ID number will be required.
4. Decide what type of business entity is right for you
As a small business owner, you have several options when it comes to how you’ll operate your business, each with the positives and negatives.
If you choose to operate as a sole proprietor, you are the business. It’s simple and straightforward both in everyday operating and taxes. However, because you are the business, should a client sue you and win, they could have access to your personal assets.
A limited liability company (LLC) is the other common route for small business owners. This ties all of your business assets up within the LLC and separates you, personally, from that entity. You will have to pay filing fees when you set up the LLC. A similar option to an LLC, is to incorporate as an S-Corp.
Of course, the only way to figure out which of these is right for you is to speak with a small business lawyer and a certified public accountant.
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LLC’s are great for entrepreneurs because they offer liability protection for the business owner’s personal assets and allows them to use tax write-offs. As your business grows you may want to take a look at converting to a S-corp or have your LLC be taxed as an S-corp. By doing so this will allow the business to pay the payroll taxes, which is a business expense, and eliminate the self-employment taxes that are required with an LLC.
LLC vs S-Corp
LLC
All income that is generated is considered taxable income
Owners must pay self employment tax
Offers liability protection and tax write-offs
LLC’s can also be taxed as an S-corp
S-corp
Business Owners are Shareholders
Shareholders are paid a salary and the business pays their payroll taxes
The payroll taxes can be deducted as a business expense
Any leftover profit can be distributed to shareholders as a dividend which has a lower tax bracket.
Usually have directors and officers.
Directors oversee the formalities and big decisions
Officers manage daily operations.
-Drew Horsley, Business By The Book
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5. Apply for a small business bank account and get Business Insurance
We hope that, shortly after launching, you’re already starting to see those invoices roll in! Which means you’ll want to make sure your business bank account is set up before launching. Why do you need a separate bank account? It makes bookkeeping, invoicing, paying invoices, and paying taxes streamlined and avoids confusing and commingling with your personal funds. Trust us, come Tax Day, you’ll be glad you opened the separate account.
Note: if you choose to operate as an LLC, you are legally required to open a small business bank account!
Additionally, you’ll want to invest in business insurance both to protect your own equipment in case of an incident and to protect you from liability should something happen.
6. Nail down your ideal client persona and build your brand to speak to them
Let’s think back to number one, where you decided on the focus and/or niche for your business. You know what your business does or offers to clients –– but who are those clients?
Think about your ideal client from a holistic perspective. What is their demographic? What do they do in their free time? What kind of design do they prefer? Who do they follow on Instagram? How do they speak? What kind of messaging would resonate with them? What are their needs? Why would they come to you?
You want to think about every deep detail on this target persona and then tailor your brand to suit them. Everything from your brand voice to the typeface you choose to the colors that represent your brand should speak to this persona. And, once this brand is in place, it should be pulled through in every single communication and touchpoint.
““Starting up a business as a single mom in the middle of a pandemic was no walk in the park, although I did plenty of that to keep my sanity! I realized through growing my business and honing in on my ideal client that my goal was to give some relief to other designers who were overwhelmed and struggling in their business. Many of my clients are mothers as well as business owners, but all of my clients have reach out to me because they were overwhelmed to some extent and needed assistance in their business. I am able to take things off their plate and give them a chance to breathe easy. I built my brand with cool and calm colors and a peaceful and positive vibe. I believe this draws in my ideal client who is looking for some peace of mind in their business and in their lives. “ ”
Rendering by Theresa Gresham of Theresa G. Designs
7. Build a website to reflect consistent branding and goals
Your website is your calling card. It’s where a prospective client goes when they are first considering hiring you. So, it should serve as a showcase of the brand you created in the previous step! It should speak directly to your target client persona. The second they log on to your site, they’ll read clean, concise copy that gets at their pain point. “Oh my gosh, is she reading my mind?!” Your goals are your client’s goals and that should be clear on page one.
As a copywriter, I work with interior designers to nail down their unique brand voice and their value proposition that sets them apart from the hundreds of other business owners a prospective client could encounter via Google or Instagram. Lots of designers are talented but it’s a combination of your personality and your specific ability to appeal to a hyper-focused niche that will drive a client to pick you –– and it’s up to your website to tell that story.
Think about your homepage as the front door to your business. What invites a client to come in? Then, once they’ve walked in, why should they stay? How can you create a user experience that is approachable, welcoming, knowledgeable, and answers all their immediate questions, while still leaving them wanting to know more? You want to hit the high points: about, services, portfolio, and testimonials. And, on each page, you need a clear call to action –– one that encourages a prospective client to continue the conversation.
And, don’t forget, your social media presence should reflect the same brand that is on your website!
8. Make sure you have your contracts and legal policies in place
Back to some of the less sexy logistics! From your very first client, you’ll want to have airtight contracts and legal policies in place, both to protect yourself and them. Plus, clients want to see contracts and formal agreements to guarantee credibility. When you take your legal policies seriously, clients will take you seriously.
Additionally, there are professionals who’ve developed templates you can use for your own business. Check out Amira Irfan’s VIP Bundle and her VDA Agreement, created in collaboration with Kelly, for verbiage and contracts to kick off your client relationships.
Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, software like Dubsado makes it easy for small businesses to set up and automate the contract process. Check out Dubsado here or use the code thevirtualdesignmentor.
9. Set up an account with an accounting software
Bringing in the money is the fun part...invoicing, collecting on invoices, and keeping track of expenses is the less fun part. But, luckily, there are multiple software options that are designed with small businesses in mind.
Set up an account with Quickbooks, Freshbooks, Wave (it’s free!), Honeybook, or others and you’ll be able to manage clients, send invoices, collect payments, and track your own business expenses all easily within one platform.
If numbers and finance are not your strong suit, then look into hiring a bookkeeper or CPA for assistance.
10. Network, network, network
Lastly, we can’t emphasize this enough: it all comes down to who you know! The wonderful thing about the virtual design world is the willingness of designers to help other designers –– but you need to know them first! So, network, network, and network some more.
Join Facebook groups like “Presentation By Design,” engage on Instagram, and reach out to others in your field. Consider joining a Virtual Design Mentor networking group or booking time with a Virtual Design Mentor to meet someone more advanced in running their own small business. The more connections you make, the better. These are the people who will be your cheerleaders, your supporters, and the people you’ll pass business back and forth with in the future.
“My entire business was built by networking - not in person, as I am not a social butterfly, but virtually, online. Being active on Social Media groups is why I can say that I am successful today. It was my most important tool to get started in this business, and how I found and signed on all of my clients.”
Need a More Hands on Approach to Launching Your Own Business?
If you read through this and found your head hurting, don’t worry. We’ve got you. Virtual Design Mentor is uniquely positioned to guide you through the steps to start a virtual design business because we’ve done it. Our mentors have launched businesses across verticals within the virtual design world and we’re here to help you figure it out!
Whether you’re eager to get started or simply want to talk through the idea of launching your business, book a mentor consultation today. You’ll learn from experts on the logistics of how to actually launch, how to create a website that speaks to your unique voice, and, of course, how to sharpen your design and rendering skills. Virtual Design Mentor also gives you access to exclusive networking opportunities, training, and more. If you’re ready to launch your business or elevate your existing company, now is the time. Book a consultation today.
Author of this blog post:
Heather Bien
Content Writer & Copywriter for The Virtual Design Mentor
Heather Bien is a Washington, DC-based content writer and copywriter. She works with creatives to bring their work to life through concise web copy and inspired content storytelling.
Throughout her writing career, Heather has worked on e-commerce launches, developing all web copy for new brands and entrepreneurs, maintained blogs for creatives, including designers and photographers, written for online publications on the topics of creativity and productivity, and published articles on home decor and design. And, while she works within a range of verticals, interior designers are near and dear to her heart.
Heather graduated from the University of Virginia in 2007 with a BA in Art History and Architectural History. She went on to work as a Junior Designer and Project Manager at several high-end residential design firms before embarking on her writing career. Those years spent working in the design world give her the vocabulary and understanding to speak to the value prop designers have to offer and to identify what sets a designer apart in the field.
When she's not writing, you'll find Heather trying out a new recipe in the kitchen, traveling (often in search of antiques), blogging, or working on her creative hobbies, including photography and painting.