Stagers Should Picture What They Preach

Without a doubt the end result of a home’s staging should be a great visual impression. Because this is so, home staging has come to be viewed as an “image” industry. But as a relatively new industry, home stagers have much to learn from their counterparts in other more established image industries such as advertising, interior design, and landscaping. Professionals in these fields know that to sell and grow their own businesses; they must first present a good visual image of themselves. This impression starts with the logos, business cards, and websites they use to market their products and services.

Be leary of staging hypocrits. If home stagers are going to pitch the need and importance of investing money to ready properties (which is a home seller's "product") for market, then the stager needs to invest money to do the same for what they sell... their staging services. To be fair and judged credible, a home stager needs to invest in their business image. But more than just spending money. A stager's image, communicated through business cards, brochures, and websites, must demonstrate knowledge of and skill to apply basic design principals. Why? Well, basic design principals are universal and govern all visual creativity, including the skill and ability to properly stage a home.

Picture what they preach. Another area, where real estate stagers need to practice what they preach, is in the portfolios they use to sell their ability. First and foremost, the work they show MUST ONLY be theirs... and it better look good. If stagers are going advise sellers and Realtors as to the importance of using good photography to capture and present a home, then again, a stager needs to do the same with photography they show of the their work. A stager's portfolio is a key, yet often overlooked tool that communicates quality, skill and ability.

Seller’s looking to hire a stager can use a stager’s online portfolio to pre-screen and judge a stager's talent and ability. The best portfolios address the following 3 points.

• Versatility & Proficiency - Every market is different and examples of the work a stager shows should represent the types of homes being sold in the markets they serve. However the more depth and diversity a stager can show the better. The most compelling portfolios will show staging work that was done in both big and small homes, vacant and occupied homes, low to high end homes, and the ability in to work with a variety of design styles.
• Same View Point - Proof of a stager's skill and ability is often shown in Before & After photographs. But quite often the Before photo is taken from a totally different position in a room, from the After photo. The best sales testament that shows a stager’s ability and talent come from having Before & After photographs taken from the EXACT same angle.
• Quality Photos - While it may not be possible to take the perfect Before, the After image needs to be well photographed. Stagers that invest the time and money to take quality photos visually communicate their commitment to their profession.

Just as a home that is for sale is being judged by how it looks, sellers can use the business images a stagers shows of themselves to judge skill and ability. The best home stagers will picture what they preach.

Stage It Forward...
Me

Not All Staging Bananas Are Ripe & Ready

So my home selling pets, would you like to pick a house stager but are not sure which in the bunch to hire? Plus does the fact that when you think about it, it seems like there are more and more people becoming Home Stagers almost overnight?

Well, you are right; it can be a tough to know which stager you should work with, especially since staging is still relatively new in most parts of the USA. You are also right if you noticed that there are many new bananas rapidly joining the staging bunch.

To make a wise and informed pick, you need to understand that unfortunately a “professional stager” may just be an average green Jane or Joe who just fell out of a training tree. Many are transformed into “professionals” because they sat through a one, two or three day foundation training workshop. That's it, as little as one day, and WA LA a new staging banana with a title tacked on.

So be wise, home staging credentials that hype “trained,” “certified” or “accredited” can be a bit deceiving… especially considering that it can take as little as one day to be trained and graduated from foundation training programs. This is not to say that there are well qualified real estate stagers who have been professional trained. But remember, above everything, the ripeness of EXPERIENCE trumps all else... even “credentials."

Unfortunately, the home staging industry is an unregulated wild bunch. Because this so... sellers are at risk, especially in this tough selling market. Actually, picking a green stager could cost you some green. So while staging looks mighty tasty, to those of you who are looking for some hope and help, don’t blindly accept the fact that a stager, with a horde of initials after their name, is experienced and fully yet knows what to do to maximize your homes staged appeal.

So how can you pick out a ripe experienced stager? Well, it is not the difficult, if you keep in mind that home staging is an “image” industry.

Considering it is a stager’s job is to create a good first visual impression of home seller’s property, then a good stager needs to do the same for themselves. A good stager knows the importance of and how to present a good visual first impression of their company and their work.

To start to weed out amateurs from the experienced, first consider looking closely at the stager's portfolio for examples of their work. Also, make sure that you ask the stager if they ACTUALLY staged the properties they show in their portfolio... believe it or not there are some foundation training programs that give green stagers a set of “starter” portfolio photos. Finally if you have any doubts, you can always ask the stager for testimonials from past clients and/or references.

So that’s it, considering its a jungle out there, this is pretty easy. That is all you need to know and do to be a good home selling monkey and pick the ripe stager.

Staging It Forward...
Me


POST SCRIPT of THANKS: Thank you to Rich at the "The Official Active Rain Blog" for seeing the merit in this post and selecting it as a WINNER in the Carnival of Real Estate. CLICK HERE: To read "The Top 10 Rides" in the 89th Carnival of Real Estate.

Industry VP Connected the Dot... Now I'm Gonna Paint the Picture

Recently I read an interesting post by Jennie Norris, a Vice President at stagedhomes.com. In her blog Jennie “connected” with what I see as one of the important yet troublesome industry "dots" that other stagers in others markets have experienced.

Jennie wrote an expose' on what she felt were wrongful pricing strategies taking place. Her (members only) post on Stage It Forward, entitled, “Get off your back and on your feet - and walk out of the red-light district!” describes her frustrations with the low ball fees other stagers are charging for their services. Jennie writes "When are we going to stop giving it away - and realize the VALUE of what we bring to the table? And if you are out there undercharging because you think it's the only way you can get business - for shame! Take another look at what your market will bear - and don't leave money on the table!"

While low ball pricing may be a new issue for Jennie in Sacramento, it is NOT new to other stagers in other markets across the country... including me. AND you might be surprised to know that I believe that while lowball pricing is occurring, it is NOT the biggest issue facing us. WHY lowball pricing is occurring is a bigger issue that I want to address here in this post.

So the BIGGER picture and facts as I see them are…

• FACT: It is very EASY and FAST for someone to become a home stager. NO formal training is required. (I happen to be this type of stager.)
• FACT: Because foundation training programs have made it SO easy and fast (from 1 day to 1 month) to become a trained certified/accredited stager, there is NOW and continues to be a glut of graduates empowered as a "professional" stagers entering the market place. In some markets there are more then it can bare. Of course the larger the market the greater the probability a stager WILL compete with a fellow graduate from the same foundation course they took, as well as a graduate some other training courses.
• FACT: The home seller/consumer has NO idea what good staging is or is NOT. Our industry has created NO way do differentiate/compare common types of service or FEES for those services we provide. (Even the auto industry has common TYPES of cars: Compact, Economy, Midsize, SUV etc...)
• FACT: When starting a new staging business there are those who are hungry for business and WILL undercut the "going" rates in order to get some work under their belts. A new stager's "pay" could be the opportunity to capture amazing after photos for their portfolio. (Heck, I did this when I started.)
• FACT: The home seller/consumer market has NO idea what staging costs. What a home seller believes staging costs is often based on a unrealistic understanding... that comes directly from TV shows like Designed to Sell. Shows like this NEVER take into account the LABOR fees to pay the host, Lisa LaPorte. or her team of staging laborers.
• FACT: The real estate market is extremely slow... and in some markets totally stalled. Because it is so slow, sellers are VERY cautious about spending their hard earned money on staging as for MANY, staging is an unproven risky venture. So for them the cheaper the better.

So, where this industry is at is the result of MANY players and circumstances working in tandem and unfolding over time. Companies, organizations and individuals must step up and work together and do their parts to create solutions… instead of trying to undo and undermine any attempt at building this industry. BUT, while some are not doing all they can, we still are making progress… one fine example of a company working to improve the home staging industry is Brook Furniture Rental. Brook's sponsorship of 2 of 27 national Stage It Forward RoundTables and their formation of a Home Staging Advisory Panel is a HUGE step and huge commitment to all in this industry.

Getting back to what can be done... First, all members of the home staging industry must realize this industry is no longer made up of 1,2 or 3 players... it is made up of 1000's... stagers, vendors, and trainers. The Stage It Forward (SIF) Group on AR and now SIF RoundTables are a START in the breaking down of the barriers between those individuals and companies that for whatever reason try/wanted to operate in a protectionist bubble.

RESA has been trying, (with limited success) to get foundation training programs to work together. The public needs a way to KNOW what a TRAINED STAGER is and how the consumer can differentiate a formally trained stager from a "yesterday I aren’t one today I is one" stager.

The 27 Stage It Forward RoundTables taking place across North America are tackling bigger issues that touch all stagers regardless of where they were trained, what market they are in, who there competition is, or how big/little old/new their staging company is. Those that try to ban, thwart or scare people away from the possibilities the meetings hold only help to keeps us all stuck.

The SIF Quartley Qwick Staging Stats (QSTAT's) WILL help to begin to address some of the issues above. Stagers who get jobs will know what average rate for staging is for a DEFINED type of staging in that market. Currently, how a stager ultimately chooses to PRICE their services is totally up to them. BUT with QSTAT's bench mark price ranges could be communicated. The competing stager's who presented THEIR solutions would have NATIONAL, STATE and LOCAL data that can be presented to the consumer to EDUCATE them to make an informed decision. You might say the staging playing field would be level.

There is so much more I can write about that will help begin to paint the masterpiece of a industry so many of us see and believe in. But for now... this seems to be enough.

Sorry this was so lengthy...
Me

ROCK & ROLL: "Where It's At" for the Home Staging Industry

During a cold winter's drive over this past holiday weekend I had a chance to reflect on all that I see going on (or NOT going on) in the home staging industry. As I look at WHO we are and WHERE we are... the more I am sure the real estate staging industry is not quite YET ready to handle the BIGGER vision of unity so many in this industry say they want. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a BAD thing; this is just an "IS" thing.

I recently commented in another stager's blog that I thought home stagers could learn from the Realtor community who benefit from working together and learning together as a unified group in the association known as the National Association of Realtors.

Having as an END GOAL within industry to have own NAR like organization/association is an AWESOME goal... which I embrace 100%. But, with the “results” and lack of response we are getting to the idea so far, I wonder if maybe we are trying to hard to make this end goal happen. If this IS the case, what can we do? Well, without loosing site of the END GOAL, maybe what is more important is that we define smaller goals and take smaller steps that start moving us to that big "associated" END GOAL.

Right now there are many thoughts, ideas, concepts and strategies being discussed by a VERY vocal minority. But are the stagers that comprise the industry actions REALLY equal to what the vocal minority are shouting for as the BIG picture? I am not sure sure it is. But, if you think it is, then why does it feel like we are still stuck?

Why isn't there this vast tidal force of stagers joining together as a unified association?

Well, I believe part of the reason we are a bit “stuck” is the fact that our industry is riddled with misunderstanding, distrust, conflicting philosophies, and big egos. Plus, it doesn't help that real estate market is the worst it has been in decades. But even though we are obviously not experiencing ideal conditions, this should NOT stop those of us who are committed to creating something more for ALL in this industry.

So as a "loose" industry what can we do to get ourselves tightened up and unstuck? Well, maybe, without realizing it we are getting ourselves out of this rut by starting with a rock and roll motion... kind of like what one does to get a car unstuck out of a snow bank. I have come to notice an interesting phenomena that happens when someone tries to “rock” this industry forward with an idea or concept. Immediately following a rock forward there tends to be a counter “roll” back by someone else.

Case in point... the group of stagers organized under the banner called Stage It Forward (SIF) currently have scheduled over 25 industry RoundTable discussion meetings planned for all over the USA and Canada. Even though SIF has "rocked" forward there are some who feels it is necessary to roll with their own independent roundtable gatherings. This is the rock & roll I am talking about that takes place daily in this industry. So while different interpretations of a similar thing will happen, what is more important is who we are as individuals and how we respond to these differences... respectful professionalism is essential!
For those on the outside looking in the "rock" a with a "roll" response can seem a little negative. But like the motion necessary to get a car unstuck out of a snowbank, I am beginning to see how this forward and back (counter) motion is necessary to create the momentum that will get us unstuck so that we can trust in and fully embrace bigger united goals... like creating an NAR for home staging.

So while I have hoped we would already be traveling along in unity... I’ve come to see that the rock & and roll motion is not all that bad. What is most important is that the home staging industry is in motion and soon to be more unstuck.

Just my thoughts as I rock and roll...
Me

Will Home Stager's Statistics Bust Your NUTS?

By now you have all read the glowing stories and/or watched the captivating HGTV shows that triumphantly boast: "SOLD in one day after home staging!" "Multiple offerings after home staging!" "SOLD at first open house right after staging!" Yet even after all these great staging experiences have been reported in mainstream media, there still is apprehension by Home Sellers and the Realtor community to tap in to and use staging solutions that help sell homes… especially in this slower market.

Now don't get me wrong, there are those of you who have been "early adaptors" of home staging services. But in general, Stagers still experience quite a bit of resistance and reluctance by both Realtors and Sellers alike. Stagers have learned that their nut of concern, which needs be busted into, is the fact that there are no national, independent and verifiable statistics that back up claims of staging effectiveness.

While some individual stagers do keep their own personal statistic, there are NO comprehensive and consistently tracked national data to back stagers up. So, unfortunately. all we end up having too offer, are the tales of all the wonderful experience our clients have had… but this never seems to be enough. Our clients are asking for and need more data.

Up until now, the primary reason there are no NATIONAL real estate staging statistics is due to the fact that within the home staging industry there has been no autonomous body independent of the competitive foundation training organizations to capture statistical data . But this is all going to change... thanks in part to a group of stagers of Stage It Forward and their new Quarterly Qwik Staging Stats program.

Stage It Forward (SIF), an independent group of over 1200 stagers, are now going to regularly track staging stats. Once gathered and tabulated, the home staging industry will finally and continually collect the data needed to convince home sellers and Realtors that staging is an effective marketing strategy on both the national and state levels.

Besides finally having statistics, there is another benefit to SIF stagers joining together… that benefit is it starts industry standardization! Just as there are different types of automobiles (sub-compact, economy, intermediate etc...), most Realtors and Home Sellers do not realize that there are actually 5 different “types” of home staging. Being able to track statistical effectiveness about each staging type will help Realtors and sellers understand and choose from the best staging solution.

Additional benefits from standardizing staging industry data include:

• Real estate market fluctuations as they relate to staging will be captured and reported.
• State and national statistics will be compiled.
• Standard fee ranges for standardized service types will be reported.
• SIF’s Data gathering process will create an audit trail.

SIF realize there is MORE that needs to be done, but this definitely is a good start. SIF has stated over and over that it is best that our industry CRAWLS before it walks applying slow and steady pressure will surly help the industry bust open the statistic nut.

Staging It Forward...
Me

Clearing Churned Up Waters

Recently I posted two similar blogs entitled: "Inconvenient Truths about Home Staging". One, which was shorter edited version, was posted on Active Rain while a more complete and comprehensive version was posted here on this site. The post created quite a ruckus with a foundation training company whose website I quoted directly from and linked to, to prove that I was not making an unsubstantiated point. Agitated with what I said, they contacted me with Cease & Desist email and comment. I honored their request and removed all references to them in my posts and all links I had placed on both my blogs to their site.

Obviously, I now know they view my words as direct attack on their program, which was not the point. This staging foundation training organization is/was NOT doing anything that most other training organizations within the staging industry are doing or have done. Heck, for all I know this training organization my offer one of the most compressive and in-expensive training programs available in the industry today.

It is no secret that foundation training programs are a big part of the home staging industry. The point I was making had to do with the industry's foundation training programs as a whole. Being that I am one of the LEAST formally trained stagers in home staging industry (I happen to be self trained) I am in a unique position that allows me to be neutral about training. Staying neutral, yet believing in the benefits of training, I tried to be a trusted resource to those that seek out my advice on foundation training program. To make it easy for those who are interested in home staging training, I have compiled a FREE reference list (in alphabetical order) of 33 different training programs I currently know of here for all to access. (This list is being used. How do I know? Well, for one thing Goggle Analytics lets me know.)

But I digress… the point I was making in the original "Inconvenient Truths" blog was that I see the staging INDUSTRY being partially responsible for the bashing the staging industry got in the report on staging by the National Association of Exclusive Buyers Agents (NAEBA). While I felt much of what the NAEBA said was wrong and a bit sensationalized, I still don't believe it was all wrong. The report got me thinking about the Home Staging Industry... and the collective "who and how" we have been and how there was some truth to what the NAEBA reported.

So with the home staging industry in my sites, I started to re-examine and write what I refereed to as a "Frankenstein" of a problem in our industry... Credentials. I have found at least 34 different foundation staging training programs in North America. I have no idea how good or bad any of these courses are. I can tell you that I have spoken to MANY stagers from all over the USA & Canada... some have raved about their training others were not impressed. I’ve heard all opinions. But, in general I believe people are pretty happy that they received formal training... even if only for the fact that training was a springboard for them in the industry.

However, with no industry "board of staging education" overseeing what is actually being taught... there is no way of knowing how truly good or bad the training these organizations are offering is, or how compressive and complete it is.

Currently how the industry is set up, to be a staging trainer all one needs to do is open their doors.... and say they are a staging training school. Plus, on top of that the fact anyone can easily open up a training school, many of these organizations then offer quick "Accredited Certifications" for their graduates to add to their names in the hopes to legitimize their graduates as "stagers" to the eyes of the consumer, I believe this further compromises the whole industry. Who decides what is good? Who decides what is bad? Who decides what is right? Who decides what is wrong? Who knows!

For the most part the consuming public has no understanding of all this backstory. Historically the consuming public views and relies on credentials as proof of ability. The consuming pubic believes the person who has been "Accredited/Certified" by an organization has gone through a process were they have been trained, tested and PASSED thru a testing process. Even baby sitters can now be certified, but only after being tested. TESTING is TYPICAL and expected in an ACCREDITATION PROCESS. As the staging industry stands today, what it takes to be a stager is more about credentials and less about the combination of talent, experience, & education. So much emphasis is being placed on Accrediting Credentials.

I am not the first to broach this topic, for it has been in the industry's conversation and has been a point contention for awhile.

I believe the industry's allowance of and reliance on unregulated certification and accreditation can exposes the consumer to less then good and qualified staging. I believe it can and will ultimately dilute what staging can make available. With no regulation on training, training schools, curriculum, testing, or certification this will a problem that will continue to get bigger. Having no standards will ultimately mean there will be consumers that use stagers that do substandard work and give organizations ammunition to continue to write negative reports on staging as the NAEBA did.

In my opinion, because of the way the home staging industry is, the consumer is currently becoming more and more venerable and exposed to substandard staging... and because this is so our industry will ultimately loose face and legitimacy.

THIS IS ONE OF MY TRUTHS in Inconvenient Truths about Home Staging.

Stage It Forward...
Me

DING DONG, Stage It Forward Calling... with a FREE Member Button for YOU!

As a member of both Active Rain and Stage It Forward, I LOVE the fact that it is open to all… And because it is so, many home stagers have joined over the past year to shared tales of their experiences and their wisdom. But, I am most proud of the fact that since joining Active Rain its group Stage It Forward... has become one of the most active and THRIVING sub-communities on this HUGLY popular real estate industry networking site.

WOW do Home Stagers have a lot to say and WOW do they ever say it.

Home Stagers and the Home Staging Industry are lucky that Active Rain came along when it did.

Since November 2006 over 600 members have joined and have posted over 2,400 articles about home staging in the group. Because of this fact the group has rapidly become a nation-wide noted resource for home staging information. What makes it so special the fact that collectively the group created itself… which is something each member should take pride in. The collective home staging voice is being spoken hear AND is being heard.

A few months back a special "staged" doorway into the group was created. And while it was GREAT to have the doorway... getting to the "door" became an issue. You see, you still need a "door bell button" that “rings” into this amazing industry resource and community.

So here you go... I have been asked for a link that a stager can use to display their involvement. Here is a button of a working "doorbell" that can be FREELY added to websites or blogsites. All you need to do is copy and paste the HTML CODE that I can email to you. (Image shown below is an actual working sample.)

Clicking on the button will take people visiting your site on to the Stage It Forward Gateway site. At the Gateway they will read a quick overview of the group you are a part of and committed to. Then they can move on into Active Rain’s Stage It Forward group.

So if you would like to show your affiliation to the group... just click on the link. The HTML code that you can insert on your website and/or your blogsite that will create this linking button can be found on the Stage It Forward Gateway.

I, like many of the home stagers that visit this blog, know that home staging works. But I also know that getting the general public and real estate community to understand and believe in what we do has been a bit of a challenge at times. However now, because of Stage It Forward, our voice speaking as one helps tell our story... that's for sure. This membership button is just another subtle "less is more" way to SHOW people we do have a collective voice as an industry.

More good Stage It Forward things are to come... I promise.
Me

Success in Home Staging Business is NOT Just "Pretty" Hocus Pocus Magic!

A few blogs back I wrote of the upcoming publication of a book by Barb Schwarz of StagedHomes.com called: "Building a Successful Home Staging Business."

Well, it has been published and I have read it and here is my promised "Book Review".

First, while I don’t agree with everything Barb and her co-author Mary Goodbody wrote of... I have to admit, overall I was pleasantly surprised. I found this book to be MUCH better than I expected!

Yes, this book is a little schmaltzy. Yes, Barb repeatedly states throughout the book that she “invented” home staging to the point that it feels annoyingly boastful at times. But Barb does masterfully "walk the line" I spoke of back in my original post. I think readers of this book will find it to be better written and NOT the "self serving big ego dump" and not a "fluffy disguised piece of advertising" for StagedHome.com seminars... which were some of the complaints she received for her last book entitled: "Home Staging: The Winning Way to Sell Your House for More Money."

However, unlike what the back cover claims… this book is still not so much a "How To" operate a home staging business as it is a "How About" the business. So, while it is a nice overview for anyone interested in getting into the business, if you have owned and operated a home staging business, you will find much of what Barb reveals is no great new news.

But, for the budding stager this book is a nice summary of the tribulations, trials and necessities involved with the start up of a home staging business. The authors make it clear this business requires NOT just having the creative talent to "redecorating a room". I totally agree with this key point, as I think many people are first attracted into this business because they hope it is a way to utilize, tap into and apply their creative skills and desire to decorate.

Unfortunately, dealing with the cold hard reality of STARTING, OPERATING, and MAINTAINING a business is often the after-thought for people who get into a home staging (or any) business. From this book, readers will surely see that a "glamorous staging career" is REALLY about being an entrepreneur that has to work hard at growing their staging business.

So while I was glad Barb writes and says it takes work to own and operate a home staging business, I have to say the book still is a little too simplistic and idealizes what it actually does take to run a staging business. Some of what Barb wrote of is incomplete advice and a little glossed over (ie Chapter 3 "Your Business Plan" - only 8 pages long) and some of what she shares would be GREAT guidance if we operated in a perfect world and a perfect marketplace where there was NO competition. But in spite of her somtimes over simplistic view, I was glad to see that Barb was clear about the fact that starting and running a home staging business is not hocus pocus magic. Ultimately she communicates to the reader that what it takes is a combination of talent, a lot of hard work, positive perseverance and a little bit of luck.

So in closing I have to say… Barb Schwarz's new book is a nice OVERVIEW for those considering opening a home staging businesses, but for those of you already in the industry just know that this book is NOT the promised “practical guide that will show you exactly how to” do “what it takes to make it in the Home Staging Industry”. There is so much more that can, needs and will be said to move your businesses and this industry to higher levels. Luckily, much of what needs to be shared and said can be found over in Active Rain’s Stage It Forward group.

Me

Good Photography Helped National Media Tell our Staging Story

I know that at times I sound like a broken record. But this is a story that is worth repeating. In the past I have blogged about how important good photography is to tell your own staging story… but now I have proof how important is it and can do more and help you tell a BIGGER story.
National print media uses the web to search out and find good photos to use in conjunction with the feature stories they are publishing on the home staging and interior re-design.

A Few months back, Home Magazine found our the our Real Estaging website gallery and contacted us, asking if they could use photos of our home staging work for an upcoming feature story they were going to be publishing (June 2007 issue). Of course we were more than happy to help them out.

Well I gotta admit Real Estaging has come a long way. To have a ½ page photo spread as the main work featured in a national magazine for an an article on Home Staging that also quotes Donna Freeman of HGTV’s Secrets that Sell and Barb Schwarz, president of StagedHomes.com (and lets face it the grand-dame’ of home staging)… well this is quite an honor. We surely must be doing something right.

But more importantly the point I really want to make is... we shoot ALL of our home staging jobs. Right from the start, we made a commitment to INVEST in the time to completely and thoroughly photograph each and every one of our home staging project.

Over the years, with each home staging we completed and photographed, we got better and better at capturing the essence of our work. Yes, it took us awhile to learn how to use our 3 different cameras... but we have gotten pretty good at it. And we are proud to say we are ALL self taught. (Yes we read manuals!)

IN the future, there may be a time when we will have to hire a professional photographer to take our photos to the next level... but we happy to report that investing in the time to learn and do the best we can has paid off now.

Thank you Home Magazine... all of us at Real Estaging we are thrilled and honored!

This article really helps to Stage It Forward...
Me

PS: REALTORS, if you have not replied to the Real Estaging Poll on home staging, we would appreciate if you would go to our blog an do so. Just quickly select a button on the right colomn on our blog and then hit "VOTE" >>>>>.

Will Barb Schwarz's Home Staging Biz Book, Soon to Hit the Shelves, Hit the Target?

Well, I even if I wanted to I couldn’t have planned this better. Considering my last post spoke of the difficulties of owning and operating a home staging business, the fact that this week Barb Schwarz of StagedHomes.com is to release a new book entitled "Building a Successful Home Staging Business" is timed perfectly. Just what will Barb Schwarz reveal in her business book? Well, I do not know… but I will SURELY read it and share my thoughts about it here in a future book review.

However, a quote taken from the inside front cover (quote taken from Amazon) shares this insight of what the book is to offer the home staging industry: "Whether you are thinking about starting a Home Staging business or want to improve upon an existing one, this timely guide can help you master the essential elements of a successful Home Staging business." So, considering and understanding what start up business owners in the home staging industry are hungering for... the promise sounds mighty good.

But I have to admit, Barb's book puts her and the company she started, StagedHomes.com, in an odd quandary.

If her book should reveal too much it could jeopardize future students from enrolling and buying into her expensive classes in home staging… for they might think they now only need to "buy the book".

On the other side, if Barb's book reveals too little it can STILL jeopardize her home staging training seminars. For if people who are interested in a career in home staging buy her book, believing in its promises to provide "various strategies and techniques needed to achieve unparalleled success in this field" (inside cover quote) but end up thinking it is "useless fluf and hype," then the book might backfire with potential students… thinking that her training seminars too might also be “fluffy” and not worth it.

Further complicating the issue is the fact that if Barb reveals too much in the book she might end up alienating past graduates who already paid thousands of dollars to be trained as ASP’s in her home staging training seminars. Buying a book for a mere $16.47 (today's price on Amazon) might be seen by past graduates as now selling off the ASP secrets. PLUS, if the book is good, then other non-ASP stagers will surely benefit from the ASP leader's wisdom, but this may be seen as directly helping the “competition". Barb’s “sharing” could back fire and leave those who for years have helped her build up and are committed to StagedHomes.com and the ASP network feeling betrayed.

(OY! I gotta admit as I write this I see what a pickled predicament this one book puts Barb in!)

So that leaves me with just one more scenario to examine. How will not revealing enough, in a book so desperately needed by her graduates and other home stagers, be looked upon? Well, as for graduates of her ASP seminars, Barb has built up a following amongst them and they tend to be her biggest fans. I would not be surprised if they are content and cheer the new book along as they did with her previous one.

On the other hand, those stagers outside StagedHomes.com, who make up the fastest growing segment of the home staging industry, if after they buy and read Barb’s book think it is just a "puffed up fluffy infomercial," they will then rip it to shreds. She will be seen as shrewd, but as an opportunist. (This has happened before so don’t be surprised to see it again.)

Just in writing this article I now have come to a conclusion as to just how much good information on how to run a truly successful home staging business I think Barb Schwartz will reveal (or not) in this book. I look forward to reading it, and when done I will surely let you know in my review if it hit or misses the target. In the mean time, if you do read it let me know what YOU think.

Stage It Forward...
Me

5/23/07 Post Script: The release of this book must have been delayed. Amazon HAD been pre-selling and stated it would be available on May 18. Amazon now says its availability is anywhere from 2 to 4 weeks out. It is Amazons policy to tag books that ARE in-stock as "In Stock".

THANKS! ABC 2 Atlanta for picking up this Post on Barb's Schwarz'z book on running a Home Staging businness.

Stone Cold Reality: Dying Dreams and Limited Opportunities

With each passing week I seem to receive more and more emails with questions from budding stagers asking me how to approach and solve a myriad of challenges and issues facing staging business. Some of what I am asked are QUITE complex concerns and take MORE than just a quick email response. Unfortunately, as I work on growing my own business, I simply do not have the time to reply. I've tried to help as many of you as I can, but I literally could have a career JUST answering the questions and solving the problems that new stagers are asking.

Dealing with all that I have been in my own business and looking at the types of questions other stagers look to me for advice on, got me to thinking that it is a stone cold reality that starting, owning and operating a successful home staging business is tough.

I have concluded that in order for individual home staging businesses to succeed, the home staging industry needs to look at itself and examine itself and correct that which it is doing wrong if it is to grow to its fullest and experience its greatest possibility.

This post (the first of a series) takes a tough look at one of the realities and dynamics many people who are entering into this industry do not take into consideration. These realities and dynamics compromise the possibility of owning and operating a successful staging business.

First, let me say I am NOT anti-education. However, as a whole, since the home staging education industry is not regulated in any manner, it makes it extremely easy for anyone to open their doors and start a home staging training program… and MANY have. With home staging training classes fetching anywhere from $2,500 to $3,000 per student for ONLY one week’s worth of training, it is not surprising to see why trainers and courses in home staging are popping up all over. The home staging training industry is a gold mine.

To keep the gold coming in, the home staging foundation training company’s have a vested interest and are quite successful at advertising to and enticing people to take their courses. Just go to any company’s website (Refer to featured list on the right hand column of this blog) and you will see courses on home staging being offered all over the USA and Canada. Plus to make it even easier some companies are offering training in the comfort of the student’s home… via the web.

Starry eyed students are buying into the dream that you can take a class in one week… and be a “professional” stager the next. The home staging training industry is a resounding success.

Unfortunately, while home staging education companies have done a GREAT job at selling the dream being a stager, they have not done an equally effective job educating the real estate community and the home seller so that they want to invest in the services of their graduates... and they have the gold to do it.

There is a huge disconnect in the market… the consumer market is not educated enough to absorb the glutton of stagers that graduate weekly from the multitude of home staging foundation courses offered nationwide.

People who invested their time, money and hearts into these courses to learn how to be a home stager are finding themselves spending a considerable amount of time and money trying to convince and educate Realtors and home sellers on the virtues of home staging. While home staging does work and is a GREAT service to offer and provide... it is NOT an easy sell.

This is not to say all hope is lost, but this is a reality. There are those who will train for a home staging career will go on to be quite successful. But, it is important for people interested in becoming home stagers to know the realities and dynamics they face. It would be great if the market for staging services was accepted and growing as fast as the market for training. However, these markets are mutually exclusive of the other. So please, do not make the mistake in believing they are one in the same.

Stage It Forward,
Me


THANKS! ABC Orlando News 9 for picking up this important post on the Home Staging Industry.

Don't Be Seen as a Shifty Seller that Stages to Bamboozle Potential Home Buyers

Home sellers, if you choose to use a home stager's service, here is a question to ponder...

Once staged, should your occupied property be ADVERTISED as such?

I bring this question up as I feel an educated Seller is an empowered Seller.

First, keep in mind, Home Staging is NOT just decorating. Staging IS a complex marketing tool, that relies a variety of skills, talents and knowledge. So while a basic undertaking of a Stager is to visually prepare a home so that it appeals to a buyer, it is also a Stager's responsibility is to teach home seller and Realtor how to best utilize the “tool” so that it has NO opportunity to work against the sale of the home.

So, getting back to the question at hand… Should your staged property be ADVERTISED as such? Well consider this, while we could benefit from such advertising exposure, those of us here in Chicago at Real Estaging believe that the home seller and the listing Realtor need to discuss the possible implications and then responsibly decide If, When, Where and How to reveal the fact that your home has been staged. In your discussion with your Realtor consider these 3 points:

1. With more and more people understanding what staging is and how it can actually INCREASE the asking price of a home (*See Post Script below for explanation), some buyers, may use that fact that they know a home has been staged AGAINST the seller and try to negotiate a lower price they "feel" is more appropriate.


2. Some buyers who learn a home has been staged might feel as though just the surface has been "touched-up" and they are being bamboozled into buying a house that is less than what they are seeing.


3. With staging still a relatively new service, buyers might find their attention drawn at the staging and NOT at to house and its features. As I have said time and time again… the home should be the star, not the stuff.

Now I doubt every buyer would turn their knowledge about your home’s staging against you. However, why risk it? So, my advice is… it's OK that a Realtor advertises the fact that a home has been staged within the industry and to fellow Realtors (such as within the MLS, or at a brokers open house). Advertising in this manner allows the BUYER'S Realtor, who has a much better read on their client's "sensitivity and quirks," decide if they want to reveal the staging fact to THEIR clients.

Finally, if you have not yet hired a Stager, before you do ask them a simple question: "Should your property, once staged, be advertised as such?" Then… wait for their reply. If they are quick to answer "YES" or say "It really doesn't matter." then I fear that if they don't fully understand a key basic subtlety to staging. And if they don't get this point, then what else about the "Staging Tool" might they not fully comprehend or incorrectly apply that will ultimately give you a LESS than the marketing result you were hoping for?

Stage It Forward...
Me

*POST SCRIPT: A home's listing price is based on 3 key elements: 1.) Location 2.) Market and 3.) Condition. The combination of these 3 Key elements... determines a home's possible price range (Low to High). Stagers go to work on CONDITION... improving the CONDITION of a home can raise the price to a higher price point. The better the condition... the more one can ask. This is a BASIC to ANY real estate transaction.

THANKS Pittsburgh WPIX -TV 11. I am glad you like this blog on home staging. Check out my featured link here.

Home Stager's Controversy is Activated in the Rain

While it was NOT the intent to create controversy with my initial blog post on Active Rain entitled "Was Barb Schwarz the 'INVENTOR' of Home Staging", somehow it did cause issues to swirl to the surface. And in all this there lies a lesson for ANYONE who writes a blog.

First let me be clear as to MY PERSONAL REASON for writing what I did.

I use Active Rain as a place for me to write a "first draft" and see what "works" with what I write. Member’s comments give me a clue as to how well I conveyed my message and if I need to tweak or alter it before putting it up on here my "Pretty" Home Staging blog. In this case, it’s an ironic fact, I KNOW that the words I selected in the initial Active Rain post missed some of the mark and I needed to go back and do some editing.

That post was to be about CHOOSING WORDS, USING WORDS, and ASSIGNING WORDS to the ideas, thoughts, plans, theories, programs, methodologies, wishes, concepts, etc... we write of in life. I don't care if you are writing a note to you kid's teacher at school or a book that eventually makes the New York Times Best-Seller's List. Words Matter!

WORDS have power to convey (or wrongfully convey) a message. We need to CHOOSE them carefully. Ironically in my own post I saw that the words I chose did not fully convey the message I INTENDED to communicate. So when I rewrote it and posted it here on my "Pretty Blog" I added this entire line:

"Anyway... getting back to words, the use of the words ‘invent’ and ‘staging’ demonstrate how the use of the one right word can help to effectively communicate a message. So while Barb's word ‘staging’ is masterfully on target, on the flip side, the word ‘invent’ falls short."

Did I "TARGET" Barb Schwarz?

While I have been accused of that I must respond by saying... "Absolutely NOT!" I chose to use BARB SCHWARZ as a subject to write about because she is a recognized personality within the Home Staging Industry. Whether you personally have good, bad or indifferent feelings for Barb, it is a fact she plays a role in the industry that I write about. Every writer knows that it helps to develop a point and convey messages if your audience can RELATE to that which you write.

As more and more people become my audience and read my words... it sets me up to be a target for scrutiny. I know it, I expect it, I don't LIKE it... but that is the way that it is. PERIOD. So my words need to be CAREFULLY selected. As do Barb Schwarz’s words or ANYONE ELSE who writes PUBLICLY! PERIOD. Whether you write about the Home Staging Industry, Real Estate Industry or any other industry. PERIOD. As a writer you put your words out there to BE dissected. PERIOD. If you don't like the fact that people MAY just challenge what you say, then DON'T write blogs, DON'T write articles, DON'T give interviews, DON'T do videos, DON'T write books, DON'T teach seminars. Just LIVE in a friggin bubble!

But more importantly PLEASE reader, viewer, listener know that JUST because it is printed, televised, spoken that DOESN'T make it God's Truth. Please, don't be that ignorant or naive. However if you choose to be THAT naive, then here… Craig Schiller created the World. Now wait two days and print this post. Then you’ll have the printed PROOF that it is so. For you read it here and it is now in print! Really, what ever happened to the saying... "Question Authority”?

As for all the controversy, that surfaced in the comment section of my Active Rain post, that surrounds Barb Schwarz of StagedHomes.com…

I am truly sorry it is so. But there is obviously something VERY REAL between Barb and the the people upset with her. Likewise, there is something VERY REAL between Barb and those people that like her.

It is a well know fact that people LOVE bad news MORE then good news. Unfortunately, the BAD will TRUMP the good. The BAD will grow and spread FASTER than the good, and the bad will be harder to clean up.

Once the BAD is out there it will stick to the hearts of those who feel it and they will judge, condemn and criticize Barb no matter what she does. Even if Barb Schwarz would now create a "scout troop for orphans that walks old ladies and puppies across street corners..." and she will be a target. The hurt these people feel, to me, seems way too real and goes way too deep. Who am I, or who are you to say it is not so for those that are hurting?

Stage It Forward…
Me

See this post on NBC - LOS ANGELES website.

Did Barb Schwarz "INVENT" Home Staging?

Any writer will tell you that it's inevitable that as a writer you WILL come to a point where you search for that one "right word" that clearly conveys exactly what you are trying to say. Finding right words is critical to communicating an accurate message... and ultimately establishing one's credibility. Your words are a reflection of you.

So recently, as I was surfing the web, I noticed that some home staging blogs and websites cite Barb Schwarz of StagedHomes.com as the "inventor" of home staging. The more I read this the more I have to admit I thought that it was a mighty bold statement to claim that Barb "invented" the idea of a home seller proactively preparing their home to help maximize its appeal to potential buyers. This infers that prior to Barb’s 1972 "invention" no Realtor EVER had advised nor did any home seller EVER do anything to prepare or improve their home's appeal that would influence a potential home buyer's interest in a home that would cause them to then buy it.

Since I work in the Home Staging Industry and since I love words, I constantly seek out the right ones to accurately communicate what I want to write about in this industry. Seeing how this word was being applied, this got me to thinking. To help in my own understanding, I first looked up the word “invent”... wondering, what actually does it really mean? The American Heritage Dictionary's definition for "invent" is: "To produce or contrive (something previously unknown) by the use of ingenuity or imagination."

When you consider the dictionary's description of the word “invent” it makes it easy to see why it is said that Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone... because before Bell's invention, there was NO such thing as a phone. Likewise, it is easy to say that Thomas Edison invented the electric light bulb... because before Edison's light bulb, there was NO such thing.

Speaking of electric...what about it? Did anyone really invent electricity? Well actually… NO. Ben Franklin is recognized for discovering electricity, but he did not invent it… for electricity had been in existence forever, just not harnessed by man.

Which brings me back to staging… did Barb Schwarz "invent" home staging? Well, if I apply the definition, I guess I would have to say NO. But if Barb did not “invent” staging… what did she do? Well, I believe she "coined" a term. She gave a name to a process. Barb brilliantly assigned the “right word” to a process that savvy home-sellers had already been doing all along. "Staging" is the perfect word that clearly described the process. Barb found the the one 'right word' that easily captured and communicated a message.

Ever since Barb had her bright idea to call the process "staging", she has been a tireless champion for it... developing one of the many staging methodologies and sharing the message of the benefits of what can be gained when home-sellers proactively take steps to ready their home for it's sale. Barb is now joined by so many others stagers through out the world who continue to perfect the staging process and contribute what they know in the hope that sellers benefit and the home staging industry grows and improves.

Anyway… getting back to words, the use of the words “invent” and “staging” demonstrate how the use of the one right word can help to effectively communicate a message. So while Barb's word "staging" is masterfully on target, on the flip side, the word "invent" falls short.

Think about it… if Barb Schwarz had not come up the term "staging" who knows, I might not be doing what I do and blogging on what I blog on. Which then makes me wonder... who came up with the word "blog"?

Part 2: Click HERE for the follow up post on the controversy this post created.

Word It Forward...
Me

See this post on NBC - NEW YORK's website.

Are Model Homes Dying Design Dinosaurs?

(For a clearer larger version, click on the image above)

Every year large builder/developers all across the country invest millions of dollars to construct, design and install lovely & lush model homes. Why? It is pretty simple… models sell homes. As one would expect, a model is a great tool to help a potential buyer figure out just how to arrange and fit furniture within a prospective home. However, and more importantly, builders know a beautiful model does something else, it connects emotionally with the buyer... inviting them to a new possible "lifestyle" the might enjoyed if they bought the home.

Until recently, only larger builder/developers could justify, afford and benefit from investing significant sums of money required to create a model. But now, because of the unique approach to design that home staging offers, more and more smaller "boutique" builders have learned that experienced Home Stagers can inexpensively design and quickly install beautifully staged models that rival the über-expensive models of their larger counter parts.

However, a good thing will only stay a secret for so long, it was only a matter of time before a savvy larger builder would discover the cost effective model resource smaller builders were using... and that builder is one of the nation's largest builders, Toll Brothers. Recently we here at Real Estaging were contracted to stage a quick delivery spec home within Toll Brother’s upscale community Hawthorn Woods Country Club, located in Chicago’s far northwest suburbs.

What makes this staging story even more extraordinary is the fact that Toll Brothers ALREADY HAD a lovely & lush model for the same home we staged. Pictured above are interior photographs, taken from much the same reference point, of the both the original lovely & lush model and the staged model we designed and installed. (I am not going to tell you which is which quite yet.) While I don't know how much time it took to plan and install or how many thousands and thousands of dollars were spent on the lovely & lush model... I do know we, planned, designed and installed our staged model in ONLY 3 ½ days and all for less than $5,000. (Which also happens to include the rental fee for furniture provided by Brook Furniture Rental.)

Developers need to know that traditional designers often struggle with the staging approach, for they get caught up in trying to make too much of a design statement. The ability to create and deliver a beautiful model in a short amount of time is one of skills that makes a stager different than traditional model designers. How do we know this? We have seen it first hand observing the desingers in our sister design company (Craig Interior Design) attempt to stage. And as we all know... design time is money.

So, how will the use of home staging as an alternative to models play out in the long run? Will developers explore and take advantage of this new approach and allow their lovely & lush models go the way of the dinosaur? Well, that is yet to be determined. However, I applaud both the sales manager, Julie Tarsio, and property manager, Dan Miekina of Toll Brothers for having the foresight and innovative thinking to look at new possibilities and try new approaches, when it comes to using design as marketing tool. In the future, one wonders that if because of creative thinking like this, the vast amount of moneys builders had spent on models will be redirected into staging multiple spec homes that dot their communities, and in doing so give more homes within a development their own unique yet enticing model lifestyle image.

Stage It Forward... with ideas and information
Me

PS: Click on the image above to see a clearer larger version of the images… oh and the image in the lower left is the real-estaged model.

Transforming the Doorway into the nation's only FREE Home Staging Information Resource Site

Ask any Realtor and they’ll tell you… first impressions matter. But besides home sales there are other times where first impressions count. So to demonstrate the importance and result of home staging, I thought I would do some staging in one of those “other places.” Considering that the home page of a website is like its “front door”… those of us at Real Estaging thought we would apply the same creative magic we use to stage a home and do a little cyber staging. For this staging our “client” is going to be Active Rain, the hugely popular on-line real estate network. Why them? Well, from the time I joined Active Rain, something has bugged me about it. Let’s face it Active Rain's front door is Boring.

Yes, Yes I know what they have right now is fully "functional" door, and Yes, I know that search engines have no problem finding it. But let's face it... its just plain old BORING. It has NO PIZZAZ, NO WOW! NO… DANG, I gotta go in and check this site out. You might say it suffers from the lack of cyber curb appeal.

So off to work we went… to see the result of our work just click here and you will see what Michelle Tsioles, an AMAZINGLY creative designer (interior and graphic) on staff here at Real Estaging, created. This gateway site is fully functional and is up and running and ready to be linked to. So for my peers in the Home Staging Industry, who have been working together as a group to share our story, you now have a more attractive and less confusing way to gain access to all the great free information being shared about home staging in Active Rain’s Stage It Forward group.

Now, don't get me wrong, this is NOT going to replace the MAIN door into Active Rain. However, the Chief Community Builder of Active Rain, Caleb Mardini was quite pleased with the result saying "I have to say YOU'VE GOT IT! Craig this is great. This really helps. Thank you for putting this together." Since that note, the developers of Active Rain have revealed some images of a newly “staged” home page that they have planned for the future... which does look MUCH better. But with Active Rain getting so big… it still be nice for home stagers and other’s interested in home staging to have a simple access directly to all the great information and dialogue taking place on the internets largest and most comprehensive FREE informational resource… Stage It Forward.

Me

FAKING Your Home's Staging is Fine, Just Don't be CONTRIVED

While home staging does entail some visual creativity, in actuality it also requires a bit of merchandising and a few marketing "tricks" to get the job done. Unlike the practices of interior decorating, re-design, or even traditional interior design, much of what home staging is that it is the creation of an illusion of a possible lifestyle within a particular house so that it appeals to the largest home buying segment possible.

But it is important to note that in order to create REAL appeal, a home stager might have to resort to some "fakeness". One basic known industry practice (like decluttering or depersonalizing) every good stager relies on is to bring the outside in.

However, while some in our industry suggests that bringing the outside in is as a simple stroll out to one’s garden to cut something fresh and green, in reality this option just might be realistic. While, for some, this might SOUND like great advice to bring the outside in, for others the facts that either it’s freaking freezing and everything is dead in the garden or, oh ya you don't HAVE a garden, you live in a high-rise condo quite often IS reality.

So what can one do to bring the outside in? Well, this is where fake plants can help. Today's silk plants are so "perfect" and so widely accepted that they just blend into the background and, even MORE IMPORTANLY, do not draw the attention of a buyer's eye. Fake fruit works well too.

Also, using fake FOOD as props is a BIG No-No! For some reason, fake food captivates people’s attention… for they love to go up to and look and touch fake food to see just how "real" it looks. A good stager knows, and will advise their client, that anything that distracts a buyers so that they are looking at something other than the house steals precious selling attention.

For homes that are vacant, it is quite acceptable to use fake TV's. Because TV watching is a big part of our culture fake flat screens help a buyer understand how a room can be configured.

That with all that being said, I want to stress the importance that while sometimes "Fake" is fine... it is NEVER OK to resort to contrived trickery. Contrived and “cutesy” staging (Upper Picture ) is staging that just tries to hard. Resorting to gimmicks such as laying out silk gloves, with a single red rose (fake); setting a tray on a bed with a tea cup, a book of sonnets and the word "Love" configured with sticks from your garden; or setting out two champagne glasses wrapped with cute raffia bows on a tub’s edge is just NOT real and not the way most people live.

Because this is typically NOT the way people live, it becomes a contrived distraction to home buyers touring the house. So always remember, the best staging allows the HOUSE to be the star, not the stuff in it. The best and most talented stagers know and easily master the principal that "less is more" and their work is always tastefully understated.

The picture (Right >) of a staged property (staged and photographed this week by Marci Toliver of Fresh Eye Designs) is a perfect and pure example of how to apply an understated "less is more" approach to staging. As you can see, it is a beautifully appealing breakfast nook that is not contrived.

Oh ya, and one more thing, Marci just happened to make that floral arrangement herself…. using fake tulips.

Stage It Forward...
Me


PS: THANKS MARCI... for allowing me to feature this picture of your beautiful work. This is STUNNING staging!

PSS: My company, Real Estaging, happens to use proptronics.com as our supplier for these props. I recently spoke with Darlene, the owner of Proptronics… she graciously offered to give a discount to any stager who mentions this post. Please just ask for Darlene or Michael. HOW COOL IS THAT?

Growing Membership of Stage It Forward... Creates a United Voice for the Staging Industry

Just what kind of power and impact Active Rain, the online real estate network, is capable of is definitely been proven. Almost daily, one can log on and read great posts crediting it in countless ways for helping create success in so many ways for some many professional that are employed in the Real Estate Industry. But what really is mind boggling is Active Rain is ONLY in its infancy (less than 1year old), so it is hard to comprehend all that is possible in its future.

So while the "big" Active Rain has been so revolutionary, when it comes to the Home Staging Industry, I can personally attest to just what impact Active Rain has had to legitimize and catapult that industry forward. It so happens that the day Active Rain added the "Group" functionality to its site... the Stage It Forward group was born. This past Saturday, that small group hit its own small milestone... the 300th member joined the group. And while that might not seem like that big of a deal to most... for the Home Staging Industry it is quite an achievement.

Active Rain’s Stage It Forward group is one of the Top 10 (out of over 600 groups) most lively and active groups on the site. It has become a gateway resource for GREAT staging information. Members respectfully and FREELY pass along knowledge to both Home Stagers and Realtors alike. Each day anyone can go and read well articulated stories written by Home Stagers from all across the USA and Canada.

Realtors, if you never considered using a Stager, go on in. You will be bombarded with visually stunning examples of what we do… you will find that the Stagers are relentless to make sure you and your sellers understand the power of our craft. This group is quick to share stories that speak of success, after success, after success.

But what is most amazing, and what I am most proud to be a part of, is to see how Stagers enthusiastically help and contribute to the success of their colleagues.

Unfortunately, I have been in the Home Staging Industry long enough to know that there was an underlying negativity that was keeping our industry small. Margaret Ann Innis, a stager that studied at BOTH stagedhomes.com and the Interior Redesign Industry Specialists, described the industry perfectly when she recently commented, “…our industry was fragmented by personalities, training schools, etc. Now there is a level playing field for all the voices of Stagers to be heard. We all bring many talents to this passion."

When Active Rain created the Group functionality... an opportunity to mimic what was already taking place in the "bigger" Active Rain became possible. Stage It Forward created the ONLY free and accessible forum where any and ALL Home Stagers, regardless of where they received foundation training, can go and ongoingly learn and discuss the “ins and outs” of staging.

This just goes to show the power that sincere sharing and respect for diversity can do… for it is moving the entire Home Staging Industry forward into the future.

Stage It Forward...
Me

I confess... We Use the UGLY "R" Word!

(This is Part 4 of a 4 Part Series on Home Staging Transformations. Links to posts 1-3 are below.)

I happen to know among clients, builders & developers, home selling professionals, and even stagers that there are polarizing opinions on a controversial topic in our industry. When asked… everybody is quick to chime in and share their thoughts about one side or the other, some even surprisingly have very strong opinions against the subject. However, these negative opinions, I feel, are quite prejudiced. I believe these people are misinformed and it is their ignorance that keeps the myth and controversy that surrounds the "R" word alive.

Quite recently, we here at Real Estaging lost a client because we began using the ugly "R" word. NOW… this really got my blood boiling. So I am on a campaign to... stamp out the ignorance and prejudice! This crusade will end, once and for all, what is been wrongfully labeled as "BORING" and "UGLY"... and what the “R” word is is Rental Furniture!

To finally end to the Rental furniture myth I have posted a few photos (NOT slick studio production shots) from ACTUAL staged homes we did for sellers all over the metro Chicago region. In each we used rental furniture and then added beautiful BLING from our own extensive prop library. We started our company, having our own furniture in our prop library helped us get started and differentiated us from others in the market. But, as we looked at what we had invested in the furniture and the return on the investment we were attaining from THAT portion of our prop inventory... and we made a strategic decision. If we can not carry it (physically) we won't carry it (in our prop inventory)... instead we would rent it and roll that expense into the fee we charge the client.

For us this strategy is the right decision for 2 reasons: 1.) It was getting WAY to expensive to first PURCHASE and then continuously transport to, move in, move out, clean, repair, store and insure the hundreds and hundreds of furniture pieces we now are placing in staged homes. 2.) We found that Brook Furniture Rental, based here in Chicago with locations in CA, GA NV, TX, and DC, had diverse and MULTIPLE furniture lines, and a strong willingness to work with us.

So, a few months ago, we began working with Brook Furniture Rental and using their furniture in our stagings. I have to admit I have been delighted, for MANY reasons, but the first and foremost reason is they share with us a common commitment to provide the best level of staging creativity and service to our shared clients.

So the next time we have a client that says anything anti-rental furniture... we here at Real Estaging will hold our heads high with RENTAL PRIDE!

Stage It Forward...
Me

POST SCRIPT: This is the 4th and Final blog in a series were rental furniture was "secretly" used. The other 3 blogs featuring rental furniture can reached by clicking on the links below.

• Part 1: Stunning $1.8 Million Home staged in Winnetka Illinois
• Part 2: Staging it Wright in the Architecturally Historic Oak Park / River Forest Areas of Illinois
• Part 3: WOW! This Town-House in Chicago's Bucktown is SOLD just 2 days after Home Staging

Wanting to Share the "GREEN"... I'm Gonna Recycle a Full-Circle Moment in My Own Life

This past November I took a business trip to China. I traveled there because the professional designer side of "me" was required; however to my surprise the personal side of "me" was profoundly impacted.

It just so happens that when I was in China, I visited both Hong Kong and a city called on the mainland called Shenzhen (which is 45 minutes away from Hong Kong via water taxi). During this trip something became quite apparent to me… Hong Kong was all about consuming, and Shenzhen was all about manufacturing. Shimmering and sparkling, yet stuffed and cluttered in EVERY nook and cranny of the streets of Hong Kong, were stores, shops and boutiques offering for sale every conceivable thing we stuff into our lives.

Oddly, in contrast, was Shenzhen, a city where pollution constantly spewed out of the thousands and thousands of factories located there. The pollution was so bad that I could literally and easily look directly into the sun in the middle of the day. Sadly, at one point we drove over a river that was so polluted it was thick and black as tar. (I am NOT exaggerating.) It is also important to note that Shenzhen is just one of the multitude of manufacturing/industrial cites throughout the world that makes the material goods we think we "need" in our consumer society.

Upon returning to the states, I started to reflect on all I had experienced and thinking about how it affects my job as a home stager… and I came to a “full circle moment” in my life.
I came to realize that in this age of consumption, it’s kind of odd that my job as a stager is to "transition" a home back to simpler view. Basic to what we do is de-cluttering the mass amount of consumer "stuff" that has built up in a seller’s house. In fact, if a stager’s work is done properly, completely and timed right, the seller can actually PROFIT from the sale of their home. It is scary to think that these “profits” then COULD then be used to go out and buy more "stuff".

But now, because of this trip to 2 cities in China… if I have it my way, people that use our home staging services will begin to look at their lives and their desire for stuff in a new way. I hope and want to show people, whose homes we transform, that a beautiful home NEVER needs to be STUFFED full of useless consumer crap. I hope to share with all our clients the fundamental lesson EVERY interior designer is thought early on in their design education... the fact that "Less is More."

For now, because of my trip to 2 cities in China, I come to realize our planet's life truly depends on less being MORE.

Green It Forward...
Me