Marketing for Interior Designers: The Insider Guide

Most marketing advice for interior designers was written for other industries.

You can tell. It sounds like someone took a generic small-business marketing guide, replaced "business owner" with "interior designer," and called it done. Post on Instagram three times a week. Start a blog. Run Facebook ads. Build a funnel.

None of that is wrong, exactly. But it misses what makes this industry different — the long sales cycles, the relationship-driven referrals, the specification chain, the shelter press ecosystem, the trade events that shape reputations more than any social media post ever will.

This guide is different. It is written from 15 years inside the design industry — working with interior designers, architects, and trade suppliers across the UK, USA, Europe, and the Middle East. Not advising from the outside. Doing the work.

If you run a luxury or premium interior design practice and want your marketing to reflect the standard of your work, this is what actually matters.

Why the Standard Playbook Does Not Work Here

Interior design is not a standard service business. The marketing that works for an accountant, a personal trainer, or a SaaS company does not transfer cleanly. Here is why.

The sales cycle is long. A residential project can take months from first conversation to signed contract. The marketing that reaches someone today may not convert for six months — or two years. Most marketing advice assumes a short path from awareness to purchase. In design, the path is longer and more personal.

Referrals carry disproportionate weight. In luxury interiors, a recommendation from a trusted architect, developer, or past client is worth more than any advertisement. Your marketing needs to support these relationships, not replace them.

The wrong visibility is expensive. This is the part most agencies miss. At the premium level, attracting the wrong clients — people who cannot afford your fees, who want a different style, who found you through a discount marketplace — costs you more than obscurity. Every wrong enquiry is time you could have spent on the right one.

Visual standards are non-negotiable. Your marketing has to match the quality of your work. A poorly designed website, a low-resolution portfolio, or a social media presence that looks like every other designer's undermines your positioning before a prospect even makes contact.

The industry has its own ecosystem. Shelter press (Homes & Gardens, AD, Elle Decoration), trade events (Decorex, Maison et Objet, Design Centre Chelsea Harbour), trade supplier relationships, specification selling — these are the channels and dynamics that shape how design practices actually grow. Generic digital marketing advice rarely accounts for any of them.

Understanding these differences is the starting point. Everything that follows is built on them.

The Marketing Channels That Actually Drive Enquiries

Not all channels are equal. After working with 50+ design practices, here is where the enquiries actually come from — ranked by impact at the premium level.

1. Your Website and SEO — The Quiet Pipeline

This is the most undervalued channel in interior design marketing.

When someone searches "interior designer London" or "luxury residential design," the practices that appear are receiving enquiries from people who are actively looking. These are not casual browsers. They have a project, a property, and a budget.

SEO will not replace referrals. It builds a parallel pipeline that does not depend on who you know or who happens to mention your name at a dinner party.

What makes SEO work for interior designers:

• Project-type pages. Not just a homepage — individual pages for the types of work you do. Residential. Hospitality. Listed buildings. Super-prime. Each page targets a different search.
• Location relevance. If you work in London, your site needs to make that clear in ways search engines can read — not just in a footer address.
• Portfolio with context. Beautiful images are not enough for SEO. Each project needs a written narrative: the brief, the approach, the result. This is what search engines index.
• Content that demonstrates expertise. Blog posts and guides that address the questions your potential clients actually ask. Not content for content's sake — content that proves you know what you are doing.

2. A Referral System — Engineered, Not Accidental

Every designer knows referrals matter. The difference between a practice that grows consistently and one that experiences feast-or-famine cycles is usually this: one has a system, the other hopes for the best.

A referral system is not complicated. It is deliberate.

Past clients. Stay in touch. Not with a sales pitch — with genuine contact. A project anniversary note. A relevant article. An invitation to an event. The goal is to be the first name that comes to mind when someone asks them for a recommendation.

Architects and developers. These are the professionals most likely to refer residential design work at the premium level. The relationship has to be reciprocal — what value do you offer them? Supplier introductions, project collaboration, joint press opportunities.

Trade suppliers. This is the angle most designers overlook. The suppliers whose products you specify are working with dozens of other practices and their clients. They see projects early. They hear about briefs before they become public. A strong relationship with the right suppliers is a marketing channel in itself.

Property professionals. Estate agents, property developers, property managers — particularly at the high end. They are regularly asked "do you know a good designer?" and will recommend whoever they trust.

The point is not to network aimlessly. It is to identify the 20 to 30 people who are most likely to send you work — and invest in those relationships consistently. Marketing supports this by making you easy to recommend: a website that looks the part, a portfolio they can point people to, a reputation that precedes you.

3. Strategic PR and Shelter Press

Editorial coverage in design publications matters. A feature in Homes & Gardens, AD, or Elle Decoration validates your work in a way that advertising cannot.

But PR only works as a marketing channel if it feeds the pipeline.

The mistake many designers make is treating press coverage as the end goal. A beautiful spread in a magazine feels wonderful — and it may do nothing for your enquiries if there is no system to capture the attention it generates.

What makes PR convert:

• Your website needs to be ready. When someone sees your work in a magazine and searches your name, the site they find has to match the quality of what they just saw. If it does not, the press coverage is wasted.
• Case studies, not just images. A portfolio page for the published project — with the story behind the design, not just the photographs — gives the impressed reader something to engage with.
• A clear path to contact. It sounds obvious. It is not. Many design practice websites make it surprisingly difficult to get in touch.

We have covered the relationship between PR and pipeline in more detail in our guide to interior design PR. The short version: PR is a reputation accelerator, not a lead generation channel. It works best when paired with the systems described above.

4. LinkedIn — The Underused Professional Channel

Most interior designers think of LinkedIn as corporate and irrelevant. They are wrong.

LinkedIn is where architects, developers, property professionals, and other referral sources spend their professional time. It is also where a growing number of high-net-worth clients research the people they are about to hire.

You do not need to post every day. You do not need to become a LinkedIn influencer. What works:

• A complete, well-written profile that positions you clearly.
• Occasional posts that share a perspective, a project insight, or a professional observation. One to two per week is sufficient.
• Engagement with the people in your referral network — commenting on their work, sharing their milestones.

The goal is professional credibility and visibility. Not viral content.

5. Trade Events and Industry Presence

Decorex, Maison et Objet, Design Centre Chelsea Harbour, London Design Festival — these events shape reputations in the design world more than most digital channels.

But showing up is not enough.

The marketing happens before, during, and after:

• Before: Announce your attendance, set up meetings with contacts, prepare materials.
• During: Be present, have conversations, document what you see for content later.
• After: Follow up with the people you met, share your observations, create content from the experience.

We have covered trade show marketing for the design industry in a separate guide. The principle is simple: an event is a marketing opportunity, not just a calendar entry.

6. Instagram — With Caveats

Instagram is part of the marketing mix for most interior designers. It should be.

But it is rarely the enquiry driver that agencies claim it is. At the luxury level, Instagram functions primarily as a credibility check. A potential client hears your name, looks you up, sees your work. If the feed looks the part, it confirms what they already suspected. If it does not, they move on.

What Instagram does well: visual portfolio, brand building, showing the personality behind the practice, staying visible to existing contacts.

What it does not do well at the premium level: generating direct enquiries from strangers. The algorithm favours volume and entertainment. Design practices that try to compete on those terms end up creating content that does not reflect their work.

Use it. But do not depend on it.

How Much Should You Invest in Marketing?

This is one of the most common questions we hear, and the honest answer is: it depends.

A general benchmark is 5 to 10 per cent of revenue. But that number shifts depending on your stage and goals.

An established practice maintaining its position may invest £1,500 to £3,000 per month. This covers website maintenance, content production, PR support, and ongoing visibility work.

A practice actively growing or repositioning may need £3,000 to £6,000 per month. This includes agency fees for strategic work, content production, digital advertising, event presence, and potentially a rebrand or website rebuild.

A practice doing it internally may spend less in fees but more in time. The trade-off is speed and expertise. Marketing done inconsistently — a blog post here, a social update there — rarely builds momentum.

The more important question than "how much" is "what is it producing?" If your marketing investment is not generating qualified enquiries, it does not matter what you spend. And if it is, it is not a cost — it is an investment in your pipeline.

Building a Marketing Plan for a Luxury Interior Design Practice

Marketing is not a series of tactics. It is a system.

The practices that market consistently — not just when the pipeline feels thin — are the ones that maintain a steady flow of enquiries. Here is a simple framework for thinking about your marketing year.

The Foundation (Do This First)

Before any campaigns or content, get the basics right:

• Positioning. Can you articulate what you do, who you do it for, and why you are the right choice — in two sentences? If not, start here. Everything else is built on this.
• Website. Does it reflect the standard of your work? Does it explain what you do clearly? Does it appear when someone searches for what you offer? If the answer to any of these is no, fix it before spending money on anything else.
• Portfolio. Not just beautiful images — contextualised projects with narratives that demonstrate your thinking, not just your aesthetic.

The Rhythm (Monthly)

Marketing works through consistency, not campaigns. A sustainable monthly rhythm might include:

• One piece of written content (blog post, case study, guide)
• Two to four LinkedIn posts
• Regular Instagram updates (portfolio, process, perspective)
• One referral touchpoint (a coffee, a note, a shared article)
• Monitoring enquiry sources (where are people finding you?)

This is not a heavy workload. It is a cadence. The practices that maintain it outperform those that do sporadic bursts of activity followed by months of silence.

The Campaigns (Quarterly)

Layered on top of the rhythm, plan two to four focused efforts per year:

• A PR push around a completed project
• Presence at a trade event with pre and post marketing
• A refreshed portfolio section or new case study series
• A targeted outreach to a specific referral segment

The Review (Quarterly)

Every three months, look at what is working and what is not:

• Where are your enquiries coming from?
• Which channels produced the most qualified prospects?
• What content resonated?
• Which relationships generated referrals?

This is not complex analytics. It is paying attention.

What Most Agencies Get Wrong

We work exclusively with interior designers and trade suppliers, so we see the patterns clearly.

The most common mistake agencies make when working with design practices:

They apply a generic playbook. The same strategy they would use for a law firm or a tech startup. Paid ads, social funnels, content calendars full of keyword-stuffed blog posts that say nothing. It produces activity without results.

They do not understand the specification chain. In interior design, the relationship between designer and supplier is a marketing channel. An agency that does not understand how specification works — how products get specified, how designers choose suppliers, how trade relationships drive both sides of the industry — is missing half the picture.

They optimise for metrics, not enquiries. Followers, impressions, engagement rates. None of these pay your rent. The only metric that matters for a design practice is qualified enquiries from the right people. Everything else is a vanity number.

They work from the outside. They study the industry. They research the market. But they have never been in the room at Decorex. They have never sat in on a client presentation. They do not know what a finish schedule looks like or why a supplier relationship matters. This gap shows up in every piece of content they produce — it sounds generic because it is.

Where to Start

If you have read this far, you probably recognise some of these patterns. The question is where to begin.

If your website is not generating any organic enquiries, start there. SEO is the highest-return investment for most design practices that have not touched it.

If you have enquiries but they are the wrong kind — too small, wrong style, wrong budget — your positioning needs work. The issue is not volume. It is clarity about who you are for.

If your pipeline is inconsistent — busy periods followed by silence — build a referral system. Identify the 20 people most likely to send you work, and invest in those relationships with intention.

If your marketing looks generic — the same as every other designer's Instagram, the same as every other agency website — the problem is not execution. It is strategy. You need to know what makes your practice different before you can communicate it.

And if all of this feels like too much to manage on top of running a design practice — that is normal. Marketing is a discipline. Doing it well takes time, expertise, and consistency. Whether you handle it internally, hire an agency, or find a hybrid approach, the principles in this guide remain the same.

The designers who are consistently busy are not always the most talented. They are the most visible — to the right people, in the right places, with the right message.

That is what marketing for interior designers actually means.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best marketing strategy for interior designers?

The best strategy combines a well-positioned website, a referral system built on trade and professional relationships, strategic editorial PR, and consistent content that demonstrates expertise. The exact mix depends on your tier of practice. A designer working on super-prime residential projects needs a different approach than one focused on mid-market renovations. The common thread: visibility with the right people matters more than visibility with everyone.

How do interior designers get clients?

Most interior design enquiries come through four channels: referrals from past clients, referrals from professional contacts (architects, developers, suppliers), organic search, and editorial coverage in shelter press or design media. At the luxury level, referral and reputation drive the majority of new work. Marketing supports these channels by making you findable, credible, and easy to recommend.

How do you market a luxury interior design business?

With restraint. Broad visibility can damage a premium practice — the wrong clients waste your time and dilute your positioning. Focus on being visible in the places your ideal clients and referral sources already look: quality editorial coverage, a website that reflects the standard of your work, LinkedIn for professional credibility, and a referral system that keeps you top of mind with architects, developers, and past clients.

Is social media important for interior designers?

Yes, but not in the way most agencies suggest. Instagram is useful as a portfolio and credibility signal — potential clients will check it before making contact. But it rarely generates direct enquiries for luxury practices. LinkedIn is underused by most designers and is often more effective for building professional referral relationships. Use social media to support your pipeline, not as your entire strategy.

How much should an interior designer spend on marketing?

A common benchmark is 5 to 10 per cent of revenue, but this varies significantly by practice stage and growth goals. An established practice maintaining its position may invest £1,500 to £3,000 per month. A practice actively growing or repositioning may need £3,000 to £6,000 per month. The more important question is whether your marketing investment is generating qualified enquiries — not just visibility.

Do interior designers need SEO?

Yes. SEO is the channel most interior designers underestimate. When someone searches for a designer in your area or specialism, the practices that appear are receiving enquiries from people who are actively looking for help. These are high-intent prospects. SEO will not replace referrals, but it builds a parallel pipeline that does not depend on who you know.

What marketing channels work best for interior designers?

For luxury and premium practices, the highest-performing channels are: a well-optimised website (the quiet pipeline), a structured referral system, strategic PR in shelter titles, LinkedIn for professional visibility, and trade events for relationship building. Instagram supports credibility but rarely drives direct enquiries at the premium level.