We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ashley Blaesing. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ashley below.

Ashley, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s jump right into how you came up with the idea?

For years we had been in a mastermind program for marketing agencies. One of the many things they preached was to pick a niche. Having not been through that process, we thought we had made the best decision for us, which was the solar industry. At the time, that industry was booming, and there was a lot of opportunity through our research of companies that needed better branding, websites, etc. We had a good deal of success and helped many clients improve their branding and online marketing, but we weren’t fulfilled and as time went on, had a more and more difficult time with a service market fit. The industry was able to purchase leads and reach out to leads directly so we were met with “why would I need a website” over and over again. Both Debra and I (Ashley) had started out as graphic designers – so have deep values rooted in design. It was hard for us to work with clients who didn’t share those same values.

After deciding to shut down that niche, we were back at square one, trying to market to everyone as a generalized agency – which doesn’t work!

At a mastermind event, we were hit questions of what fulfills us, why do we want to do what we do, and who do we want to do it for? After writing notes, crossing things out, circling, etc…I focused on the who. I wanted to work with people who value design as much as we do. People we can nerd out with about typefaces, colors, and whitespace. People who understand the importance of these things and the gut feelings they provide. This is where I landed on interior designers.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Ashley – Went to school for graphic design, had a love for it through high school and established it as a path while working with a local agency for years during high school. Once I graduated, I got an opportunity to work with Debra through a family friend which was now over 10 years ago. Has grown in her role from a designer to Integrator and Operations Manager.

Debra – Also went to school for graphic design. Has won multiple design awards including projects for Apple and Intel. Has owned the business for over 35 years. Started on a drawing board. Taught herself how to use a computer and eventually how to code websites.

Home Designer Marketing is a full service marketing agency for interior designers. Our Brand Transformation Process begins with a deep dive strategy that allows us to truly understand our clients services and their story. We then go through a branding process where we create a new logo and color scheme to tell their story. Content writing and website design and development with SEO are the biggest pieces to our transformation projects where we have the opportunity to dig even deeper and create a true representation of our clients and their work. It’s much like how our clients dig deep to create dream homes for their own clients.

Additionally, we help implement systems, processes and automation so that they not only look good, but function well.

To support them on an ongoing basis, we offer social media, online ads, email marketing, and more.

It is our ultimate goal to tell our client’s story clearly online so that they attract more dream projects and are able to charge more.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

We started Home Designer Marketing 2 weeks before the COVID lockdown. Despite that, we pushed forward. We knew that companies were going to struggle, so we approached it with a help-first attitude. We joined industry associations and offered to do webinars that would help interior designers stay afloat. Normally, a webinar offer is a paid service. In our case, we knew this would be tough so we offered a pro-bono service. It was simple for us to offer, provided value, but most important of all, it allowed us to get to know the people in the industry. We had our first niche client within a couple of months.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

Culture first. Besides Debra and Ashley who live within 15 minutes of each other, our team is entirely virtual. Our core team totals 6 people, and it is of utmost importance to us that we stay connected. We are all connected due to work, but at the end of the day, we’re people! We all have lives and we love sharing with one another.
4 of our team members, Katie, Natalie, Whitney, and Taylor, live in Alabama and it’s been so fulfilling to see pictures of them meeting each other for a quick lunch or hangout. We’ve created more than a good team – we’ve created new friendships. And we’re really proud of that.

Besides a team Slack channel where we share what we did over the weekend, a fun new recipe we made, or kids sporting events, we hold regular team zoom meetings where we can check in personally with each other and continue building relationships.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.homedesignermarketing.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/homedesignermarketing/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/homedesignermarketing/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/homedesignermarketing
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPgP_O6V1C_mBPRS1gSmslw