Connie Tebyani, Platinum Home Staging Los Angeles to Santa Barbara

I blogged this almost 1 year ago, but felt it was a great time to re-post it as reminder. As we are fast approaching the Summer Season (for some of us it's already here!) more and more requests are going to be asked for Staging of outdoor areas. Front porches, tea gardens, pool areas or cabanas (lanai's=), BBQ areas or outdoor dining to name just a few.

Being in SoCal, there is NO downtime for this request, as our lifestyle revolves around the sun and our never ending "worship" of it and the beautiful outdoor areas and vistas the landscape provides. HOWEVER, as a Stager this can (or SHOULD) add an additional clause to your Staging contract. For those of you in areas where it is just beginning to warm up, this applies to you as well.

PROTECT YOUR INVENTORY if you are going to be Staging outdoor areas!

I don't mean by putting slip covers on your furniture, but by including a clause in your contract to TAKE CARE of your merchandise. For example:

I had a request if we Staged outdoor seating areas, when I said "Yes, of course" the immediate reply was, "Great! Because my cushions are all being reupholstered since my dogs chewed them up". EXCUSE ME?!?! You bet the next thing I said was, "Well, we do have a clause in our contract that states...." about pet damage and the cost of replacement.

We also recently Staged a home which had a roof top deck. We brought some furniture for this area, however it was Santa Anna, gail force winds that day and I basically told the home owner that I would NOT be placing my furniture in this area due to the high winds. (If ANY piece were to blow off the rooftop deck and God forbid hit anyone or anything WE would be LIABLE) When they insisted that we place the furniture anyway I had a quick 1 page "Hold Harmless" addition to the contract where they had to initial and sign each paragraph that they read it and understood what they were reading. A copy of this was also faxed to the listing Realtor.

Best example of coulda-shoulda-woulda and a good lesson learned: was when we Staged a home last summer with a beautiful table setting just outside the kitchen. Telling him (the home owner) that he should bring it in periodically between showings wasn't enough. When we came to de-Stage 3 months later after the home sold - he had left everything exactly where we had placed it 3 months before, not moving an inch! The place mats were bleached and frayed, napkins were faded, etc..... We now have a "care" clause in our contract for outdoor dining areas if home owners wish to them have Staged.

When purchasing accessories for outdoors - make sure that they ARE MADE FOR DIRECT SUNLIGHT! This includes area rugs, pillows, cushions, throws, etc. Even when you think that they might be in a shaded area, indirect UV sunlight can still wreak havoc on the coloring.

Just thought I'd share my thoughts, so at the end of the summer we aren't all weeping over lost inventory.

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Platinum Home Staging, Inc is your Professional Home Stager serving the greater Los Angeles and Ventura County areas. From Los Angeles to Santa Barbara, and everything in between, call Platinum Home Staging, Inc. today for your FREE Home Staging Bid! (805) 553-9952

Have you ever walked into a home and had something hit you as just off, not right or just didn't fit in with the rest of the home? All of us have, and this home was no exception. I was called in on a Home Staging in Santa Barbara, CA which had been almost totally renovated. New floors, new skim coat and paint, new recessed lighting - then I saw "it". "It" was brass, and crystal, dull and dusty. "It" was already the replacement of what was previously there because the family had run out of money to finish the home before it went on the market. I even offered to REPLACE "It" out of my own money. "It" just wasn't working with the rest of the house... But "It" was a non-negotiable item, it had to stay...

So I EMBRACED "It", and I must say it was one the more difficult Home Staging jobs trying to plan décor around a 20 year old crystal and brass chandelier to make it work. But I think we did a FINE job. Adding a little glitz and glamour, it now looks right at "home".

We added the great beveled mirror to add some drama and brighten the room, added crystal decanters and glasses to the buffet table, and brought that attention into the Living room with glass ball table lamps and candlesticks.

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Platinum Home Staging, Inc. has been recognized and grown into a tremendous success built on customer service, integrity and best of all, customer referrals. Specializing in Home Staging, Interior Decorating and Model Home Interiors. Serving the greater Los Angeles & Ventura County areas. A home's first impression is the most important one. A home should be inviting and memorable; to stand out among the hundreds of homes that Buyer's may be looking at. Selling a home, is in fact, selling a product. Market the product, "package" it to appeal to as many potential buyers as possible. After all, ...How you live in your home, and how you sell your home, are two completely different things. Call us today at (805) 553-9952

Do you know where it is all coming from? Your bussiness I mean; do you know? Is it coming from referrals, your website, your mailers? Are you sure? Have you ever bothered to ASK new clients how it is that they found you?

Answering a couple of these questions could save you hundreds of dollars in advertising if you just ASK, or do a little research. This post is also a follow up to, "If You Can't Toot Your Own Horn, Then You're Just Blowing It!". When it comes to marketing, you need to know if you're hitting the right notes to play your tune. Mailer marketing is a little harder to track it's effectiveness unless someone says, "I received your postcard / coupon" (or you ASK) But I'm here to share a few things I've learned and I'm interested to see what is working for others. (this is a long read, but well worth t!)

Emails: I routinely send out emails or newsletters to realtors and potential clients through an email database with a direct link to my website. I know that this has worked because I ASKED, "If you don't mind, can I ask how you heard of Platinum Home Staging, Inc. so that I may thank the referral?" Many times the response has been, "You've been sending me emails for months, you convinced me..."

Mailers / Postcards: I have also been sending out postcards on a regular basis (about every 6-8 weeks) to Realtors clouting successes, services, specials: mix it up. This is another way to get your name out in front of the consumer, especially if they "scan" their emails and don't open them. Again, I know that this marketing has worked as well because I have ASKED, and Relators have said, "I needed a Home Stager and another Agent in the office gave me your postcard" (Two for the price of one! Woo-hoo!)

Website & Internet marketing: Most smart busniesses realize that internet and virtual marketing is the way of the future. Our comapny is posted on (almost) every professional contact, professional and business database on the internet we could possibly find. We have also found it to be the most cost effective. But to ensure we are not wasting our time (and it takes a LOT of time to update all these data-bases) we need to know WHERE all our business is coming from!

If you don't have a website analytics program for your website, you need to get one, TODAY! Although we already have one provided for through our website hosting company, special thanks goes out to Annie Pinsker-Brown for her blog on website traffic research as we found having a second website tool to be key. We'll uncover our discoveries on that in a later blog - for now, go find out where your customers are coming from!

Platinum Home Staging,Inc.

Based on statistics of my company, we have injected OVER $100,000 into the economy and we didn't need the President, Senate or the House of Representatives to do it! How? Simple mathematics and smart partnerships.

Despite the fact that there is over a 10 month inventory of homes for sale in Southern California, our smart partnerships with Realtors, Home Owners and Developers, our homes are still selling within an average of 8 weeks (although some in just days) So for example purposes, today I'm going to use an average of 3 months.

*Assisting a Developer get his remodeled, multi-million dollar home SOLD in 5 days, saved him over $20,000 in carrying costs.

*A Home Owner first started with a Consultation, then decided to have us oversee the entire project of updating him home to be ready for sale. SOLD within 3 weeks for full price, saved him OVER $13,000 in carrying costs.

*A Realtor enlisted our services on two of her listings for a TOTAL OUT OF POCKET COST OF JUST $300. One home went into multiple offers and closed escrow for $20,000 OVER ASKING PRICE, and saving the Home Owner $5,000 in carrying costs! The second home opened escrow in just 10 days for full price saved the home owner over $7,000 in carrying costs. The Realtor also told me she saved almost $3,000 between the two listing in adverting and marketing because the homes sold so quickly. For a total revenue injection of over $ 35,000 for the bargain basement price of $300!!!

*Another Realtor enlisted our services on a vacant condo. The exact same floor plan was also for sale 2 doors down and also vacant (same asking price) After Staging the condo it SOLD in 1 month, while the vacant condo is STILL on the market to this day! This saved the Home Owner over $6,000 if it were to still be on the market today as the other unit is.

*Another Home Owner did a Consultation on his multi-million dollar home for the bargain price of $550, and opened escrow in 6 weeks, saving him over $30,000 in carrying costs of the property had it been on the market for just 3 more months.

Consider it a Home Selling Stimulus Package courtesy of Platinum Home Staging, Inc.

Call us today to receive YOUR portion of our stimulus package! (805) 553-9952

When you see those beautiful bedding ensembles in model homes, at furniture stores or in magazines, almost 80% of those are made from the umbrella company of Eastern Accents which also manufactures Feathersound, de' Medici Fine Linens, Studio 773 and so much more. However, Eastern Accents and its affiliates only deal directly with wholesalers and Industry Trade and Retailers.

Platinum Home Staging, Inc. is now a proud Independent Distributor of Eastern Accents. What this means to the consumer is that you can custom make your bedding with any of the HUNDREDS of fabrics, trims, buttons and baubles you can possibly imagine from the comfort of your own home! You don't have to be constrained by what the store has on display or "in stock", we will bring the entire line to YOU, to touch see and feel these luxurious fabrics for yourself and mix and match whatever fabrics YOU desire - not what is predetermined by someone else. AND, we can give you a complete quote for your selections right there on the spot so there is no back-n-forth negotiations with 3^rd party upholstery and fabric shops.

Eastern Accents also makes custom made upholstered headboards!

Whether you want Traditional, Contemporary, Hotel Chic, Tropical, Rustic, Safari or Children's bedding that's to-die for, or just want to freshen the look of your home with beautiful hand panted throw pillows or table runners, we will fulfill all your decorating needs.

AND you can complete the look with custom made DRAPERIES, rods and hardware, vanity stools and so much more! Call Platinum Home Staging, Inc. and schedule your Custom Bedding Consultation TODAY (805) 553-9952

Platinum Home Staging, Inc. does Home Staging, and SO much more! Even if you're not selling your house, why not make it look like a model home? Call Platinum Home Staging, Inc. for an Interior Design Consultation at (805) 553-9952 Our Staging and Interior Designs are Platinum!

Serving Ventura County and Greater Los Angeles Areas: Los Angeles, Los Feliz, Hollywood, Hancock Park, Sherman Oaks, Encino, Canoga Park, Van Nuys, West Hills, Northridge, Simi Valley, Moorpark, Wood Ranch, Thousand Oaks, Calabasas, Oak Park, Agoura Hills, Westlake Village, Newbury Park, Camarillo, Oxnard, Ventura