As professional home stagers, it’s a great freedom being able to work from home. Since we visit our clients in their homes for consultations and staging projects, there’s never any reason why a client would need to visit you at your office.
For this reason, there’s no need for you to advertise the location of your business – your home address. Besides, would you really want anyone and everyone knowing exactly where you live? Because that’s the case when you use your home mailing address on your website, business cards and other marketing materials.
There isn’t any need for you to publish your home address, but on your home staging website it’s a good idea to have some sort of mailing address there if for no other reason than to help homeowners determine whether or not you’re operating a legitimate business. One of the best indicators of an online scam is the lack of a mailing address. That’s why if you’re sending out mass emails (for example a monthly newsletter) you’re required by law to include your mailing address.
This being said, you don’t have to use your real address. I recommend you get a post office box or rent a mailbox from a local company that provides such a service.
That way, you’re not only shielding your privacy a bit better but a PO Box or Suite number looks and sounds more professional on your marketing materials than the average home address does anyway.
Home stagers, have you considered this point when creating your marketing materials? Please share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.
Debra Gould, The Staging Diva®
President, Six Elements Inc. Home Staging
Debra Gould knows how to make money as a home stager and she developed the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program to teach others how to earn a living doing something they love while helping others at the same time.
[tags]home stagers, home stager, home staging marketing, professional home stager, home staging marketing, home based business, staging diva[/tags]
Debra, You think of so many things to help stagers with their business. This is definitely a safety feature. Thanks!
I absolutely agree with you, Debra. Unless you have a “showroom”, for many reasons – especially privacy and safety! – I would never use my physical address for business. My office is in a separate building from my home on my property and I have no signage on the building for those reasons.
Staging To Sell
Home Staging for Sellers . Interior Design & reDesign
231.690.0398
Jill R. Monczunski
President/Designer
http://www.staging2sell.com
jill@staging2sell.com
Michigan USA
When I was just in the beginning stages of starting my company, I had a meeting with a painter who wanted us to refer business to each other. He told me that he had only ever had one client who didn’t like the work he had done. The gentleman had actually come to the painter’s family home and banged on the door wanting to talk to him. The painter had his home address listed on all of his business cards and marketing materials.
Shortly thereafter I went out and rented a post office box. The cost was quite inexpensive, only about $100 per year. My box is listed as a suite, and I have had many clients think my mailing address is actually an office building somewhere…which is fine.
It’s funny though, I know where all of my local competition live simply based on the addresses they have listed on their websites, yellow page ads, etc. With having young children, I do not need all of my clients, suppliers, and business associates knowing where I live.
Great article Debra!
Yes Debra, I agree that you think of everything to help pave our way and make our lives easier. Since the beginning of my business, I have always used a P O Box for my business adresss. This appears on my business cards, business license and is used for all vendor contact. One of the bonuses of our business is that we don’t need a store front or added start up fees other new businesses experience.
Gary Baugher , An Eye 4 Change Home Staging Nashville, TN.