MICHELLE CHIANG

Grow Your Design Business

Over two years ago, as I was trying to manage and grow my business, I discovered that Hunter Douglas has a series of CEU (Continuing Education Units) seminars on business management and development and all the topics were what I was interested in!

The speaker for my area is Shelley DeVall. She is absolutely wonderful! Shelley is passionate about the program. Having owned a successful business before, Shelley really knows the in’s and out’s of managing a business. Besides business fundamentals, the program also incorporates utilizing technology for business. Susan Leinen is the speakers for subjects covering the Internet and Social Media. After meeting Susan, I have had the pleasure to work with her on designing the website for Conejo Association of Professional Interior Designers (CAPID), an organization I belong to. We are now partners for the Social Media Coaching program.

To date, I have attended most of the seminars at least once. The contents are constantly updated, so I always learn something new. My business is always changing, so I get different inspirations even when I take the same class for the second or the third time. This program pushes me to constantly think about my business and examine it from different aspects. Knowing information and resources are available to me, I am no longer afraid of or stressed out about the business side of design. For a small business like mine, it is truly beneficial to have such a program available. There are so many classes on products, but most designers also need help on business management and development. The classes are tailored for design businesses. Since most of the attendees are designers, we support each other by discussing problems and offering tips. I highly recommend this Design Center Program to anyone who wants to thrive in business.

I take most of these classes at Drapery Affair – Floor to Ceiling Interiors in Ventura, California. They have made a great effort to make the showroom a learning and support center for designers. The classes are very affordable. Everyone at the showroom is helpful and knowledgeable.

Just to clarify, I did not get paid from any business mentioned above. I am thankful for the program and want to have more people be aware of it so it will stay around and continue to be better.

Social Media Coaching – July 9, 2013

Our second Social Media Coaching workshop was on July 9, 2013. We want to thank Archer Weiss again for letting us use their beautiful conference room for the workshop.

Our focus this time was on Houzz.com. This website has become a great way for design professionals to showcase their works to and interact with homeowners. Professionals can also interact with each other. Reviews are a big part of the website. Clients can review design professionals, and professionals can review other professionals.

By the end of the session, our attendees either created their professional profiles or added photos and details.

A Way With Designs

Catherine S. Grasso, Design For Living

JA Design

Joan Larson Interior Design

Joann Baker Interior Design

Westside Remodeling

Ventura Builders

Our next workshop is on Tuesday, August 13. CLICK HERE to get details and register!

Rendered Chairs

Look what I found! I did these chairs in college for an assignment. It was a one-night project. A blueprint machine was more accessible than a copier, so these chairs were done on blueprint paper. I miss the good old days when I stayed up all night in the classroom with close friends and work on projects.

Social Media Coaching – June 11, 2013

We had our first Social Media Coaching workshop on June 11, 2013. We are very grateful that Archer Weiss provided their beautiful conference room for the workshop.

We started the session by welcoming all the attendees and introducing our generous hosts Barbara Archer and Marc Weiss.

Susan made a easy-to-understand presentation on using Pinterest for business. She even included a step-by-step guide. Some of us had started using Pinterest, but for personal use only. This image-driven website is one of the best E-marketing tools for designers to showcase their design styles and expertise.

After the presentation, everyone was motivated to start creating their business presence on Pinterest. There were three “tutors” going around helping everyone. At the end of the class, over half of the attendees signed up for the next workshop on Houzz.com.