Ten Steps To Mastering Houzz

Ten Steps To Mastering Houzz

 

Co-founders Adi Tatarko started Houzz as a side project in the midst of their troubled remodeling project. Today the social media remodeling platform, Founded in 2009 Houzz has over 25 million unique visitors per month, 40 million users, 1.5 million professionals with an organic listing or paid listing, 11 million photos posted on the site and over 6 million products listed. 72% of all users are between the age of 25 and 54. Homeowners make up 90% of houzz users. As of July 2017 Houzz has an estimated value of 4 billion dollars.

As an Architect, Interior Designer, Landscape Architect and Builder Houzz offers a tremendous opportunity to reach potential clients through a social media platform dedicated to all things design related. Houzz first and foremost is a platform for homeowners looking for ideas in their remodeling adventures or the design of their new home. Businesses involved in all things design/build may have a listing on Houzz’s professional only directory. If you are in the commercial design arena Houzz will not work for your business. There are several important steps you must take to complete your listing on Houzz.

1. Start by completing your profile: It is imperative to complete this first step. Failure to do so will lead to less traffic visiting your listing.
2. Add contact information: It seems simple enough, however nothing will turn me away faster from a website, a listing on a social media site that does not have complete contact information. You can’t grow a business if potential clients are unable to reach you.
3. Describe your business: This is an opportunity to sell yourself to Houzz users. I have a friend who is a landscape architect with a listing on Houzz. Under the description of his business he describes how he builds “beautiful outdoor living spaces to bring the whole family together” Sounds much better than someone who plants trees and shrubs.
4. Upload five plus photos of completed projects: The more photos you have the better. However, they need to be high quality images. Not images with poor lighting or low resolution. The minimum size that Houzz recommends is 2400 pixels wide. Your iphone or android snapshot will not work here. Eric Reinholdt of 30×40 Design Workshop https://thirtybyforty.com/  and author of the unofficial guide to Houzz recommends “ this is the place to have a professional photographer create images for you” Architectural Photographer fess can cost up to five thousand per day in some markets but are worth the investment. The goal is to get your beautifully created images of your finished design/built projects showcased into Houzz’s Ideabooks.
5. Add descriptions to Each Image: For every image you upload to your profile you will need to add a description. You will want key word rich descriptive text. Think about the keywords your potential client might use, not the fancy architect language. If you are having trouble use Google Keyword Planner. It is a free tool that is great for beginners. Or try Moz keyword explorer. It is a more advanced keyword finder and therefore a paid service. You can use their service once per day free
6. Reviews: Solicit reviews from clients and professionals. You can write reviews as well for other professional’s .In order to solicit reviews go to your profile page and click on the request reviews button. More positive reviews the better. According to Houzz homeowners rank reviews as “very important.” Asking and writing reviews should be on your monthly marketing to do list.
7. IdeaBooks: Are essentially digital folders to hold all of your ideas for projects. Homeowners and pros may start ideabooks. Eric Reinholdt writes in his book the Unofficial Guide to Houzz:“When users add photographs to their ideabooks they are casting a vote for work that resonates with clients. Because they are your photographs they link back to your profile and signal to Houzz that people like what you do.” In a way your images saved in ideabooks are post cards of your best work.
8. Linking your website to Houzz: A necessary step in completing your profile is to create a back link from your homepage to Houzz.
9. Licensing: If you are a licensed Architect, Interior Designer, Landscape Architect add this info to your profile. In fact Houzz has started an Alliance program where members can enroll into Houzz’s Trade program with access to discounts and referral bonuses. Houzz will also host seminars for example ASID members can receive CEU credits.
10. Houzz is a Social Media Site: social media sites are two way streets that encourage interaction in a global community. To grow your ranking organically on Houzz you will need to participate in forums, answer questions, create polls, and write articles. Having an incomplete portfolio, and not participating will bury you in the rankings. Never to be seen by potential clients. Houzz takes time and energy to work for your design practice.