It isn't often that I'm confronted with marketing advice that is just SO wrong that it's hilarious. And I am immediately sobered by the fact that I have seen my own clients' businesses harmed by following such advice.

"I was paying this coach thousands of dollars, so I thought she knew what she was talking about," is a statement my returning clients have made a little too often.

Let me be clear, business coaches are not marketing professionals. And marketing pros are NOT business coaches. I've been asked to provide coaching numerous times. I will always continue to say no.

Why? Because merely running one or two successful businesses doesn't qualify me - or anyone else - to be a coach. And being a business or branding coach doesn't mean they know anything about marketing.

This topic is pretty personal to me. I've read too many sad emails from my clients who were given advice that resulted in one of their worst, least profitable years in business.

Harmful advice such as...

"Stop blogging and email marketing. That is just for newbies." (No one is above marketing or consistent client communication.)

"You need to sound more elevated." (No, you just need to align with your ICA better, be personable, and talk to them consistently. See the first point.)

"Rebranding would solve your revenue problems." (This is a bandaid approach that costs YOU time and money without addressing the actual financial problem.)

Resources You'll Love

👉 Why I'm deleting my business social media: https://www.katethesocialite.com/just-kate

👉 Get a marketing plan for your home industry business: https://www.katethesocialite.com/marketing-calendar

👉 Get a complimentary 1:1 marketing audit LIVE with Kate: https://calendly.com/socialite/socialite-vault-inquiry

Timestamps:

(0:00) Introduction: Laughable Marketing Tips and Their Impact

(4:01) Marketing Tips That Will Keep You Pointed in the Wrong Direction

(18:20) Marketing Mindset and Positioning

(23:15) 4 Principles of Building Brand Trust

As the owner of an interior design, staging, organizing, or window treatment business, you've likely had a few thoughts about your SEO. You might have even hired someone to work on it. But what if you haven't been getting increased website traffic after months of paying for that work? Or what if you WERE getting traffic and it suddenly dropped off the face of the earth?

If that describes your situation, your website might be using black hat SEO, and as the owner of the business, you need to get that fixed as soon as possible.

Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing the difference between black hat and white hat SEO, the dangers of using black hat tactics, and how to know if those tactics were used on your website. Plus, I'll share what you can do to fix or improve your SEO the right way going forward.

Stream this episode wherever you get your podcasts or watch it on YouTube and Spotify.

Resources You'll Love

• Why I'm deleting my business social media: https://www.katethesocialite.com/just-kate
• Get a marketing plan for your home industry business: https://www.katethesocialite.com/marketing-calendar
• Get a complimentary 1:1 marketing audit LIVE with Kate: https://calendly.com/socialite/socialite-vault-inquiry

Timestamps:

(0:00) Introduction to Black Hat vs. White Hat SEO

(5:00) The Basics of SEO and Its Importance

(8:07) What Is Black Hat SEO and Its Examples Tactics

(14:16) What Is White Hat SEO and Ethical Practices

(16:49) How to Fix Your SEO and Use White Hat Tactics Exclusively

(19:38) Warnings and Final Advice

You open Instagram and start scrolling, realizing with more than a little guilt that you haven't posted anything for your own business in AGES.

"No wonder I don't have more clients," you think glumly to yourself. "I just really don't enjoy creating posts or reels."

Is this you? Keep reading.

Many of my new clients experience some or all of these fears:

What a hard place to be in, somewhere between dread and obligation. I often find that every single one of these marketing fears can be alleviated by looking at statistics rather than focusing on your own emotions or on what your colleagues are supposedly doing successfully.

Today, we're diving into the numbers to determine whether social media has changed enough that it actually constitutes a good place for you, as a home pro, to market your business. When I dove into the research studies and stats to prep for this episode, I was both shocked and validated.

You will be, too.

Listen to The Kate Show wherever you get your podcasts or watch it on YouTube and Spotify.

Timestamps:

(0:00) Introduction: Social Media's Impact on Business Owners

(4:11) Social Media Statistics and Trends From Social Media Examiner

(8:55) Effectiveness of User-Generated Content

(9:42) Word of Mouth Marketing vs. Social Media

(15:10) The Importance and Effectiveness of User-Generated Content in SEO vs Influencer Content

(17:30) Marketing in the High-End Home Industry: Email Marketing vs Social Media

(18:16) Final Thoughts on Social Media Marketing for the Home Industry

The biggest question I get asked by new clients to my agency is, "Which newsletter topic should I send first?" While there is no singular right answer, often a good place to start is with an official welcome email.

But if you're new to the realm of marketing, you might first be asking, "Why even bother with email? Isn't email archaic? I don't even read my own emails!"

That's a great question, so we are going to start the discussion by going over some stats so that you can make an informed decision on whether to use email marketing to grow your business. After that, we'll go over best email marketing practices, and I'll share some amazing stories of my clients who raked in 6 and 7 figures, just from sending email newsletters. Lastly, I'll share a month-by-month breakdown of the topics or types of newsletters you should be sending throughout the year as a home professional.

Let's get started!

Stream this episode wherever you get your podcasts or watch it on YouTube and Spotify.

Timestamps:

(0:00) Introduction to Effective Email Marketing Strategies and Industry Insights

(4:23) Email Marketing Statistics and Trends for 2024

(10:51) Best Practices for Email Marketing

(15:55) Client Success Stories that Prove Email Marketing has Big ROI

(19:50) Ideal Email Marketing Topics and Examples

The most painful part about marketing (aside from wondering, "Is this EVER going to work?") is talking about yourself. Or, as my clients sometimes phrase it, "Putting myself out there."

Let's talk about that idea for a minute. Putting yourself out there, as though you are an object on the shelf for anyone to look at and snatch up, is awkward, and rightfully so. Good marketing has NOTHING to do with putting yourself out there and EVERYTHING to do with finding common ground with your ideal client.

If you work with homeowners who are one or two income brackets above yourself, you might think that finding common ground is a joke. You don't own three homes - but you're sure glad they do!

But finding common ground doesn't look like that. Common ground looks like you specializing in a certain type of client or project, and that client or someone with that project being attracted to you for that reason. Your common ground is something YOU CREATE - your desire matches their desire, but you actually have a way to reach their goal...and they don't.

One of the best ways to illustrate your common ground is to integrate it into your about page page AND your home page / media bio. Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing outlines for both of these bios so that you can more effectively establish common ground with your affluent ideal client and start earning their trust sooner.

Stream The Kate Show Podcast wherever you get your podcasts or watch it on YouTube and Spotify.

Without fail, the start of a new year makes many business owners (especially in the home industry) feel like they need to start over with their business management or marketing in some way.

As a marketer with over a decade of experience in marketing design, staging, etc., businesses...I call bull crap.

The most successful home industry businesses are those that have simple marketing strategies and focus only a few key areas...and are consistent with that SAME PLAN year over year.

Should you assess last year's marketing efforts? Absolutely, but sometimes even a year isn't long enough to properly test or assess a marketing strategy.

For example, all the blog posts you published last year could gain even more traction NEXT YEAR. All the email marketing you did last year has been priming the amazing lead who is about to contact you with her new project....6 months from now.

Marketing in the home industry is a long game because the projects tend to be bigger, take longer, and require significant investment. If you go into marketing with this perspective, rather than expecting fast results with minimal effort, your business is going to stick around.

Today on The Kate Show, I'm sharing the key ways that established and profitable businesses in the home industry market themselves. Get your notes app ready - this is going to cut through the noise and give you a solid action plan for 2025.

Stream the Kate Show anywhere you get your podcasts or watch it on YouTube and Spotify.

Timestamps:

(0:00) Introduction: How Established Home Industry Business Market Themselves

(6:46) The Role of Email Marketing: Client Relationships & Generating Leads

(8:47) Delegating Marketing Responsibilities

(9:17) Setting Routines and Deadlines for Marketing Tasks

(10:35) Focusing on the Right Marketing Channels

(12:04) Effective Referral Strategies

(16:32) Leveraging Past Clients

(21:43) Limiting Service Offerings

(23:18) Using Websites to Connect With the Ideal Client and Highlight the Business’s Unique Value

(25:32) Building Offline Relationships With Other Trade Professionals and Industry Leaders

I have three of my favorite guests EVER on the podcast today: My two-year-old son, Salen, my five-year-old daughter, Sadie, and my husband, Matt.

If you'd like to watch a heartwarming Christmas message and (finally) meet the three people who are the reason I do what I do, now is the time!

Listen to this episode on Spotify and YouTube or stream it wherever you get your podcasts. To protect the privacy of my family, this is not a video episode. Enjoy!

Online courses are all the rage this season because they promise passive income and the ability to serve people who can't afford your in-person rates.

But there's a catch: Building and maintaining a course isn't passive. Those who approach digital courses as passive income strategies end up being the least profitable.

If you've been considering adding a course to your interior design, staging, window treatment, or organizing business, there IS a way to do it. In today's episode, you'll learn what you need to do to create and sell a viable online course.

Stream this episode on YouTube, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Emotions were meant to season our decisions, not dictate them. "Follow your heart," has got to be one of the most damaging pieces of business / life advice....like, ever.

Frustratingly, many entrepreneurs are led into a negative emotional spiral when marketing their businesses, especially in the home industry - largely due to longer lead conversion cycles and higher project costs.

Today on The Kate Show Podcast, I'm diving into the key phrases you need to REMOVE from every facet of your marketing - stat - to better equate your brand with high value, high trust, and high positivity. Consider it an end-of-year deep cleaning routine for your brand. This will help you start the new year so fresh and clean, letting your ideal clients develop the right impression about your brand, one that doesn't lead them down a path of negativity.

Why does this matter? Because positive emotions will elicit trust, and trust will lead to more confident clients, and confident clients will be happy to invest with you.

Resources:

You've just spent all year marketing your business - or trying to - and before you dive into a new year, you're probably wanting to know if you've been on the right track. I know I would!

Today on The Kate Show Podcast, I'm sharing the 5 things you should be looking at to appropriately grade your marketing over the last year:

If you answered "no" to any of these, you have your marketing plan for 2025.

Resources:

Stay top-of-mind with high-end clients in the way they prefer - direct email correspondence that feels brilliantly personal. We create luxury email marketing campaigns for interior design, home staging, organizing, and window treatment businesses. View our plans now: www.socialitevault.com