What is Houzz? Why you MUST participate & How to Set up your Profile
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Everybody knows about Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter, but did you know that there are also a number of special interest social networks? After noticing that Richie DeMarco is active on Houzz, I asked him to stop by and explain what it is and why you may want to check it out if you offer residential organizing services.
Houzz is a social media platform that brings together architects, builders, contractors, designers and the people that are interested in their services… Anyone that works with homeowners MUST have a complete and active profile!
Humor me for a second while I bore you with the statistics –
According to Houzz-
- There are over 190 million monthly page views and 6 million unique users.
- Users are upper middle class and actively looking to remodel or rebuild.
- 57% of users plan to hire a contractor in the next two years.
- 68% of homeowners go to Houzz when planning a new project.
Is it just me or can you hear the cash register ringing??
Personally I have been using Houzz for the last two years… I sell B2B so you might be wondering why would I waste time with Houzz…
My profile generates 5 – 10 leads per month and I pass those leads along to my customers…
The leads alone score me major brownie points and the response that I receive when one of those leads turns into a job is AWESOME…
The customer loyalty it creates is huge!!
Still not convinced you need a profile?
My clients that track their click thru rates and average length of visit, saw increases in both when they were found with Houzz vs a search engine.
Are you beginning to see the value? Maybe you’re concerned that you won’t have time for another platform…
The good news is that once your profile is set up – spending as little as an hour per week will generate leads.
Setting up your profile is easy. Fill out as much information as possible, think about searchable content when filling out your bio. Use industry keywords – storage, organizer, NAPO etc… Be sure to include links to your website and other social media platforms. If someone finds you here, you want to give them an opportunity to “hang out” with you in other places – this helps build your relationship!
One thing that I would like to mention when you set up your profile – you must select a category – this category best describes your business… Currently there isn’t a choice for Professional Organizer – I suggest using either “Specialty Contractor”, “Interior Designer & Decorator” or “Closet & Home Storage Designers.” Don’t worry if you’re not happy with your choice, you can change it later…
Once your profile is setup now it’s time to upload photos. Photos can be uploaded to either projects or ideabooks.
Projects are job specific – an example is “Organizing Mrs. Smith’s Closet.” This project folder might contain before and after photos and obstacles that had to be overcome.
Ideabooks on the other hand are more general – “Tips for Organizing your Closet.” This ideabook might contain photos of belt & tie racks or different types of bins used for storage.
After your photos are uploaded and sorted – Houzz gives you the ability to tag your photo. Tagging is a way for you to highlight items in your picture. These tags are searchable and can include links back to your site – this is another way to drive traffic…
Only two more steps and your profile is complete…
Houzz wants you to include a Houzz Badge on your site… I know what you’re thinking… I’m not a computer tech – what’s this going to cost me?
Houzz makes this really easy, especially if you’re using WordPress. All you have to do is cut and paste the HTML code, I was shocked that it only took me 5 minutes and I love the way that it looks on my blog…
The last step may take you a couple of days to accomplish… Your profile needs three recommendations to be viewed as complete. I found the easiest way to accomplish this is review a few of your professional partners – most will return the favor. It’s really easy to do – click on a their profile and click write a review. You can have three done in 15 minutes.
Get started with your profile today and – take advantage of this niche platform… Make sure to follow me The Mayor of Hardware and I’ll follow you back…
Are you already on Houzz? What has your experience been like?
Photo © aihumnoi – Fotolia.com
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There is a lot of great information here. I never considered the Houzz platform as an option for connecting with potential clients, even though I’ve seen other organizers posting articles there. You make a compelling case for considering it. Thank you for all of the great and detailed information about the pros for creating a profile and the process for going about it.
Hi Linda, Thank you so much for reading and taking the time to comment!
I’ve dappled in Houzz, but not really invested the proper time in it. Thanks for the tips! One caution when selecting your category: there are potential tax implications for the category you select, so think it through before making a selection.
Thx for commenting Seana. Great advice, I have never heard that before. Thx for sharing.
Thanks for reminding me to check this out. Many years ago, I spent a lot of time on my personal account in Houzz with all the tips you recommended in the post. But, my business account wasn’t as thorough, and I didn’t want to recreate the wheel, so I stopped with my business account. I just logged in, and I can convert my personal account to a professional one. Yay. I will have to do that sometime soon.
That’s great, Sabrina – you’ll be able to take advantage without spending a ton of time on it!
That’s a great time saver. Thx Sabrina!
I’ve heard a lot of Houzz and even hard an account for a while, but I never used it. Thanks for the lesson.