When an interior design project can take months (or years!!) to complete, it's easy to want to rush through the final phases. If it's been a pain of a project with lots of challenges, we all can be guilty of just trying to wrap it up. But...finishing STRONG is the key to staying in business and being a sought-after designer. We've got to be on top of our game and in it to WIN it at the end of the project, even more than we are when we're wooing that client in the first place!! I know how exhausting it can be and how we want to complete our checklist and move on. But here are 3 reasons for WHY you need to stay strong, with a few tips for HOW you can do that!

1. Future Clients 

I have had a few designers tell me that they are burned out at the end of a project. They have been back and forth on the budget and they just don't have the energy to argue anymore. And often, their clients are done spending money, so any accessories packages are not going to be approved. The first mistake they're making is that they don't present everything (including the budget!) as a full package at the very beginning. If you do that, it's much harder for your clients to decide they don't want to pay for the final round of products you're proposing! When you aren't able to finish the rooms the way you wanted, that project will never look as amazing as it could! Which means that you're going to have photos of interiors that are not your best work. Ugh. Your photos are what SELL your business, so if they aren't fab, then you aren't going to attract the clients that you REALLY want to work with in the future. Big mistake.

2. Great Customer Service

I totally understand how the burnout happens. And I also know that when we're at the end of one project, we're usually also in the honeymoon stage on one or two NEW projects. We can get so caught up in the excitement of the new that we forget that we still need to tie up loose end on the older project that's almost done. DO NOT let that happen to you! Keep that momentum going from beginning to end. You never want to let your client down and rush through what is the VERY best part of this whole process for them! They've been waiting a LOOOONG time to have a gorgeous home, and they can tell when your attention is really on them and their home. They deserve the layered and completed rooms that you promised them! And here's another really important point - they are going to tell their friends and family HOW you finished their project. Word of mouth is still how most of us get business, so don't let a bad review from an unhappy client impact your future!

Design: Kathleen DiPaolo Designs

3. Better Press

It's an EASY formula - great design + lovely photos = more press! And that means layered rooms that have a lot of visual interest. If your work isn't finished, polished, and amazing, then editors are going to pass on publishing your projects! But how do you stay in the game all the way to the end? I have a can't-fail process that keeps my projects running strong till installation day. My team and I always schedule a meeting just before that final phase. We go over EVERY single detail, from shipping to inspections to installation day timelines. We talk about each room and strategize about how to keep our energy up. And we revisit the design to be sure we're giving our clients the VERY best looks. This meeting really helps us stay upbeat about each project and to cover every detail so nothing is missed. 

It's so easy to burnout on a project, especially if it's a tough one or one that's taken years. But you can see how critical it is to keep pushing with a lot of energy and creativity!! To help you do that, download my FREE Guide to Overcoming Design Fatigue! And stay STRONG!!

 Ps. Check out the Vlog on YouTube!