How to present yourself with polish is in the Business by Design spotlight this month, as is a letter from a designer who dared to double her fees.

THIS MONTH:
+ First -- and Lasting -- Impressions
+ Twice Her Price

First -- and Lasting -- Impressions
How do you come across in your first meeting with a key prospect? Do you give the impression you're a striver, or an arriver? A wannabe, or a winner?

Prepare for your meeting by sending your prospect materials ahead of time about yourself and your design services and products. Include information about your clients, your design specialty, awards you’ve won, recognition you’ve received, etc.

Come to the meeting equipped with a killer "commercial." Here’s mine: "I help design professionals double their sales and income by promoting themselves more effectively."

When you meet with the prospect, plant your feet shoulder width apart, lean forward slightly and gesture naturally. Initiate a firm, web-to-web handshake.

Make the most of the approximately 25 seconds you have to catch a prospect’s attention. After that, chances are you’ve lost that attention forever.

Twice Her Price
Worried about what might happen to your business should you try to double your fees? So was Robin Siegerman, a Toronto designer.

She raised her rates, anyway. Like most every design professionals who take the leap, she landed safely and now she's flying high.

Here's her story, as she emailed it to me:

Dear Fred;

I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know that I took the advice that you gave me at our meeting during IIDEX in Toronto last September.

I increased my hourly rate (kicking and screaming all the way, I might add) and announced it in the letter which I prepared with your help.

I sent the letter to EVERYONE on my contact list, regardless of whether I’ve ever done work for them before. I felt that perhaps they might be in a position to refer someone to me.

I even sent it to the clients with whom I was in the middle of a project. I decided that I was not going to have a "double standard" i.e. one rate for newbies and one rate for exisitings.

I’m delighted to tell you that you were right. It was one of the most difficult things I’ve done in my business, but I didn’t hear a peep of protest from any of my clients.

And once I had committed to it, I found it wonderfully liberating! Any new prospects who didn’t want to pay my fee weren’t able to waste my time. And I’m booked solid for the next several months. In concert with some new marketing initiatives, I get half a dozen calls every week from qualified prospects.

Thanks for being such a great salesman! I’m sold!

Robin Siegerman, CKD, ARIDO
SIEGUZI INTERIOR DESIGNS INC.