Phyllis Harbinger Talks about PR and Marketing

On this episode of The Lounge, Nick talks to Phyllis about PR and whether or not you should ‘pay to play.’ Later, he chats with Alyssa Rosenheck and Nicole Davis who will both be at Las Vegas Market on the Best of the West panel on Monday, July 31st from 1:30-3:00 pm. Learn more here.

Pay to Play? Here’s What Phyllis Thinks

Some magazines offer deals where you can pay to get into them, is this something designers should do? Phyllis believes that press and exposure are always at the forefront of a designer’s mind. Also, it is important to have a mix of different kinds of marketing and advertising strategies, some that you pay for! As long as you budget, there is NOTHING wrong with paying for an advertorial. They work regionally, don’t look salesy, AND give a lot of information about you and your company. Sometimes paying for exposure and publicity can make people uneasy, but Phyllis thinks it’s terrific. It improves your visibility and helps you get noticed.

Phyllis has even done it herself for an ASID campaign, where she and six others received a half of a page to themselves. Afterward, she received three phone calls from being in the magazine- a lot of value that otherwise wouldn’t have come to her. The exposure brought her to the top of people’s minds. The more you do in different channels to reach multiple audiences of potential clients, the better you are advertising. Phyllis stresses to make sure you have a strategic plan though- she plans her budget for each target strategy at the beginning of the year and does her best to stick to it.

True or False?

The only way to get published in today’s market is to be an advertiser in a magazine.

Phyllis says that this is not completely true… there are some publications that rely completely on advertising and designers taking ads. When you do submit a project to a magazine you’ve advertised in, they will know your name already so you have a better chance of getting looked at. Though, from talking to sales people Phyllis has learned that a lot of editors try really hard not to be judgemental about whether or not someone has submitted advertising money to them and in addition, to the scope of work that they have. She doesn’t think it’s untrue that designers are looking for advertising because they are. If you’re more well known, you might get asked to advertise but feel less pressure to do so, compared to someone brand new who is wanting to expose their work to the public.

How do you determine the amount to budget for marketing each year?

For Phyllis, budgeting depends on her needs and what she wants to accomplish. If her goals differ from a previous year than she’ll move money from one bucket to another. Strategizing is not something she can do on her own. She’ll ask her team about their thoughts on Facebook ads and analytics in order to make better decisions. She has a social media person, a social media strategist who does consulting and PR, and an SEO person. It’s all about checks and balances, not a one stop shop. 

Marketing isn’t free – it takes time and money. Phyllis advises thinking about what your unique brilliance is and to ask yourself if you are the best person to a job? Then ask, is there someone else out who will do it better, smarter, and quicker than you? In truth, it’s worth paying for someone who can. Allowing this person to fulfill their unique value proposition leaves you time to do what YOU need to do and likely do best. Today we have access to global freelancers and virtual assistants… so it’s easier to hire people across the world for less.

If you want to sign up for Phyllis’ monthly new letter that gives business advice or if you have a question for her, email info@harbingerdesignconsulting.com. You can also follow her on Twitter or Facebook.

Message The Chaise Lounge using our ‘Question?’ tab if there is a topic you’d like Phyllis and Nick to talk about next time.

Alyssa Rosenheck: Interior Design and Architecture Photographer and Stylist

Joining us from Nashville, Tennessee, is Alyssa Rosenheck. Alyssa’s favorite fashion accessory is confidence. She’s not a fashionista but more of a back to the basics kinda gal. Her favorite weekend outfit is boyfriend jeans and an oxford shirt. Her camera of choice is a Canon.

Alyssa wasn’t always a photographer, she actually had a big career shift. Originally, she was consulting for a medical device company which laid out the foundation for the business skills she needed and was an incredible corporate career. Alyssa has always loved photography, and even before she ever had a camera in her hand, she felt like she had a visual acuity and sensitivity to her surroundings. She told her self “you’ve done the corporate gig… it’s time to pursue your passion.”

At Las Vegas Market, you can find Alyssa on the Best of the West panel talking about what West Coast style means to her. She works with designers from all over the country and has a very extensive business and branding background. Alyssa is able to offer clients a huge bonus with helping them market their business, so she’s gonna talk about social media tips, marketing designers’ businesses, what to look for when hiring a photographer, how to find your brand, tips on what makes a good picture for Instagram, and answer any questions designers might ask.

She was recently featured on the cover of Traditional Home with Chad James. Chad found Alyssa through a mutual friend two and a half years ago when he was looking to expand his portfolio. Alyssa works hard to come up with intentionally and artfully composed images that embody a home and the designer’s work. In the end, the styling is for the image and her client, not the homeowner. When she begins working with a designer she is very collaborative and asks them to send scouting pictures. Designers create very intentional designs to propel their visions, while still staying true to the family’s needs. Alyssa’s job is to come in and add a layer of creative fantasy.

Alyssa believes every designer has their own voice and personal brand so it’s her goal to style for the frame in order to touch on and promote that brand. She receives so much joy from creating and styling images in order to hone in on the designer.

Find Alyssa on Instagram and at www.allyssarosenheck.com

Meet Nicole Davis

Nicole Davis will also be on the Best of the West panel with Alyssa at Las Vegas Market AND is one of Alyssa’s clients!

For her first time on a podcast, Nicole joins us from her office in Southern California. Her favorite fashion accessory is jewelry but specifically rings.. she simplifies her style to the basics BUT with lots of rings. Her favorite movie she’s seen within the last 3 months is About Time and her favorite place to go out to dinner is… well, all things Mexican. Nicole enjoys a great mocktail and between coffee, juice or tea, it’s tea.

Nicole’s been interested in interior design since a young age. Her dad is a homebuilder so she grew up seeing homesites, visiting model homes and hearing about the industry. She always knew she wanted to something with homes, but her original dream was to own a home interior decorating and furniture store. She never thought of interior design as a career path until after she had her daughter. Nicole went to school in LA at FIDM, where she studied visual design/communications. Here she learned how to set up displays and have her own store, so not the traditional interior design schooling background.

Later, Nicole worked for an interior designer out of state, who had a very different aesthetic than she did, but she learned a lot. This is when she realized she could do design. Today she mainly does residential, typically renovations or new builds. Her goal is to maintain 1 or 2 projects at a time as to not overwork herself.

Nicole’s describes her design style as California-eclectic-modern. She loves clean lines and strong simplicity, not over designed or over decorated spaces. She prefers laid back, comfortable but serene and timeless environments, liveable decor that are still interesting and pretty.

Nicole has gone to Vegas Market for the past few years. She was introduced to Tiffany Harris through mutual friends a few years back, who offered her an extra ticket. Nicole decided to go and together, they go to forage the Market and conquer Las Vegas ever since.

The Las Vegas Market LIVE Chaise Lounge show is coming soon at a different showroom location each day of Market at 4 pm PT. Nick is meeting with  Barrie Livingstone,  Dann Foley,  Kelli Ellis, and Christopher Kennedy. Also, at Market, Nick will be interviewed by Lauren Paske and Linley Pasqualone to talk about the podcast and how it all started on July 30th. You can still sign up for Vegas Market at the very last minute so meet Nick there! He’d love to meet you and hear about your interior design journey and business.

Nick will also be a style spotter at Market so follow us Instagram to follow along.

If you are a student and need to do an internship for school, we have created an internship program just for you! Connect with us using the ‘Question?’ tab and we will tell you all about it.

• Upcoming Events

Las Vegas Market – July 30 – Aug 2

BDNY 2017 – Nov 12 – 13

KBIS – Jan 9 – 11

ICFF Miami– Oct 3 – 4

• Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes or on our website at TheChaiseLoungePodcast.com. Lastly, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter or post a review on iTunes, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. With that said keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!