If you notice a serious competitor in your market, you might find yourself frustrated or even a little freaked out. After all, this is your turf! That can lead to frantic changes to your billing or rethinking EVERYTHING you're doing because you think they're going to take your business! Right?! Wrong.

There's no need to panic over competition. In fact, there are 4 very good reasons to celebrate having competition. I can hear you say: "Celebrate, Kathleen?!? I don't think so!" But, seriously, this can be a good thing!

1. Competition Means There's a Need

Look at it this way, if there's more than one interior design firm in town, that means people are definitely interested. It's like having a good selection of doctors and lawyers - people want their services, so there are plenty to choose from. And there is no way you can service every house in your city. Many of us can only take on 1-3 major clients in a year. Having competitors means that there will be a lot of people happy in their homes!

2. Competition Educates Your Audience

Having more interior designers in your marketplace means that more people will understand how important your services are! There will be more marketing and more information going to your target clients. Having many design advocates in a city or town helps people see the value in your skills and knowledge. That's NEVER a bad thing!

3. Competition Pushes You to Be Better

We all need a fire lit under us every now and then. For me, competition keeps me on my toes! Don't you feel the same? After all, you're going to do your VERY best on a presentation if you know someone else is also trying to win that client, right?? We can all fall into patterns and ruts, but competing against someone else for the same projects definitely will make you step up your game!

4. You Can Learn from Competition

Anyone can learn new tricks! Maybe it's a new way to market, or you hear about a new presentation technique. I'm not saying that you should copy your competition - far from it! But, you can learn about new ideas by seeing what they're doing and adapting those ideas for your own business. It helps you step out of your comfort zone and keeps your business on the cutting edge of how interior design is being done today!

Bonus: One Thing You Shouldn't Do

Having said all of that, there's one thing I DO NOT want you to do with your competition! Don't watch them obsessively and compare yourself to them. Especially if you're looking at Instagram only! A lot of that is smoke and mirrors. It can look like a field of roses over in their business, but that's rarely true of ANY business! Don't compare your two businesses, just keep an eye on what they're doing. That's the smart way to compete!

And the best way to stay ahead of your competition? Run the very best business you can, with all of your systems and procedures absolutely on point. Remember that my Return on Interiors system has all of that already planned out and set up for you! Click here to learn how it can help you squeeze every bit of profit out of your projects and keep you humming so your competition will be watching YOU!

xoxo,

Kathleen