We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Laura Burke a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Laura, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Taking care of customers isn’t just good business – it is often one of the main reasons folks went into business in the first place. So, we’d love to get a conversation going around how to best help clients feel appreciated – maybe you can share something you’ve done or seen someone do that’s been really effective at helping a customer feel valued?

I professionally photograph 80 percent of all the jobs. Sometimes it involves a just a room or potentially a few rooms. I show customers that I appreciate them when staging their job with some personal items from their home like an interesting pair of shoes, a quirky teapot, or maybe grandma’s reading glasses on a writing desk. For example…one of my customers is a college professor and has three children. I staged her office with print of an owl symbolizing her as the wise one or teacher with identical pieces of pottery that symbolize her three children on a shelf over her desk. When shooting a customer’s space, there are always many symbolic reminders in the photos of the people that live there. It could even be an antique mirror that we have decided to salvage and re-use again. I make it a point that the photos taken of these rooms bring not only new good feelings but fond memories. Placing a customer’s personal item in a room adds warmth to a space. It personalizes their home on many levels and transforms a house into a home. When pulling a home together, it should feel like it is collected and not just bought. I also ask the client if they would like to have their pet photographed in their favorite room that I have created for them. After the photo shoot, I offer all the photos to them to keep and with the possibly of using them as a framed memory in their new room. Customers are very excited that I have incorporated their furry friends into a photo shoot and of course that I have chosen to include some wonderful family mementos. Homes are to be enjoyed and loved by everyone in their family.

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.

I grew up near NYC and knew I wanted to be an interior designer when I was 17 years old in high school. I got a little sidetracked and become an event planner with a large corporation. It
afforded me some very good skills in speaking with the public, putting out fires, and being able to communicate easily with new people. This is a skill learned in the real world and not in the classroom. In NYC I enrolled in a few classes at the Parsons school of design and the light bulb finally went off. The corporation I was working for offered a transfer to Raleigh and subsequently decided to enroll full time in design school and give up being an event planner. Getting a B.S. in interior design after all these years would probably be a great idea considering I was frequently asked “Does this go together?” At that point, I knew I should probably get some formal education and in order to explain why things actually work. My design classes were the hardest most fun thing I ever did in my life. Something, I would never look back and regret. In fact, two years ago I went with my design professors to the college’s campus in Italy for a mini study abroad program for designers on products made in Italy. It had been twenty years since I graduated from design school. I was thrilled to be a part of such a interesting trip.

As an interior designer you have a process to follow when beginning to work with a new customer. An important skill as a designer is to be a good listener and pay attention to what your clients really want not necessarily want you want to give them. I always get asked “what’s my style”. I tell my clients that my style is your style and their home needs to reflect where they’re been (travel adventures possibly), who they are (ethnic background) and what they like (general preferences). In the nutshell, I ask a lot of upfront questions that seem kind of redundant but the end product needs to feel comfortable, functional, and enjoyable. Three very important details in everyone’s home which will ensure it feel like their sanctuary. Here’s another important part when choosing products or materials,
you need to inform your clients all the details on how the product will perform or last a year from now so that your clients still like you. Advising your customers how to take care of new things or informing them not to purchase certain things is paramount. The maintenance on those items is something a designer is also responsible for. In the end, you want your customers to enjoy their home and with low maintain products.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

It’s important to find out in your initial conversation with a customer on how and when they like to be communciated with. It is not good to assume everyone likes phone calls or emails, or texts. Finding this out ahead time, alleviates simple communcation issues and makes your customer appreciate this level of detail. Calling a customer at the wrong time might get you the answer you were looking for. Timing is everything. For example, natural and rustic materials were not a great choice as I had learned in the past for an engineering type of client. My choice should have been more linear and crisp given the nature of this kind of personality. A lesson I learned hard way.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

Everyone has a budget. It’s just good to have patience with people. If you do a good job, it will come back to you. If a customer hires you to renovate their kitchen, then it’s just the kitchen for now. Make it the best kitchen it can be. Even though the powder room might need updating as well. The customer hired you for the kitchen. In our industry, it’s the domino effect, the powder room will look even more “tired” next to the kitchen so when the timing is right the customer will contact you because they’re ready.
I never push my customers. I would rather them go on a trip and then be rested and ready to start something again especially renovations. Renovations are taxing and hard on everyone with contractors in your house. I have worked with the same clients for numerous years because life happens and needs and desires of people change too. Ninty percent of my works comes from referrals. People are happy with the end product and the service they have received. When they are ready to take on a new project, everyone involved is on board.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://burke-designs.com/