The best way to build your portfolio as a new home stager is by doing work in the field… but how do you get the real-world work when you’re starting out? Here are 10 tips!
As you read these, keep this in mind: All stagers started out without experience, meaning someone had to give them their first paid gig.
Here are 10 tips to get your portfolio started as a newbie:
- Find a local stager who will let you intern with them in return for photos. You will be able to use them in your portfolio, not on your website. You must have your own insurance when working as a contract intern.
The challenge is that you will most likely find it difficult to secure such a position, if you live in an under-developed staging area. - Offer to do some work for family members, in return for photos.
Consider hiring a professional photographer, to ensure you have quality shots. Have them also take close-up of vignettes for your website too. - Mess a few rooms up in your own place and transform them, this tends to make new stagers feel a tad duplicitous. If you do this, be sure to have the same position for the before and after. Turn on all of the lights in connecting rooms. Doing the living room, a bathroom and a master bedroom are more than enough. This can be very effective if you purchase new bedding/art and accessories. Remember, you are staging for sale. You are not decorating for living.
- Research a charity organization where people have residential status -perhaps volunteer to re-work their main living area or a few of the residents’ bedrooms.
- On your Facebook profile, ask friends and family this: “Who wants to give a gift of a refreshed redesign of a room?”
- Develop and practice a great answer when people ask to see samples of your work.
- Google “bad real estate photos” and use those with three points beside it, of what needs to change.
- Activate a fabulous marketing plan, and stage for money.
- Even though you watch all the staging shows and think you can do better, never ever consider using stock photography. That truly defeats the purpose of a portfolio of your work.
- Take a serious staging business training, where you are taken out to stage a property. This way, you can kick start your own portfolio and really learn the difference between staging and decorating.
Www.StagingTraining.com 1 888 STAGING 905 984 6955
Founder and President at CSP®
Christine Rae, is known as the leading expert, trendsetter and powerhouse authority on shaping the future through real estate staging industry vision, innovation and focused intensity.
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