If you’re an interior designer in 2024, an online presence for your business is a must. People are always searching for interior design inspiration and someone trustworthy to work with when they’re ready to invest in changes.
But, there are a lot of interior designers on the internet. So, how will you get found and stand out from the sea of competition? SEO – specifically, SEO for interior designers.
One of our past Launch Week clients recently reached out to tell us that she had a call with a client who booked with her because not only did her company’s website show up in his research…but in every single search he did, she was a top result!
That’s the goal of SEO for interior designers: to show up where and how your clients are searching, and provide them with value and helpful answers to their questions at every turn along the way.
In this post, we’ll cover SEO for interior designers, so YOU can be the business showing up in your ideal clients’ search results. SEO can transform your interior design business – all it takes is some targeted tweaks and implementing strategic choices in the right places. Let’s dive in!
Why SEO for interior designers matters
The truth is that SEO matters for every business website. It’s how people who are looking for the types of products and services that your business offers find you on the internet.
However, there are a few factors that make SEO for interior designers especially important.
First, interior design projects represent a significant investment for many clients. Spending the amount of money and time that goes into a project takes trust. Interior designers with a strong search presence, glowing Google reviews, and a gorgeous portfolio get found more often and look more trustworthy to potential clients.
Another reason SEO for interior designers is so important is that people need to find your website before they can see your work. So many interior designers have a website full of gorgeous images of their work. Images of your work are fabulous for showing clients what you can do. But good SEO has more to do with building a user-friendly website, using keywords wisely, and creating consistent content made up of words and images. w
SEO for interior designers can also help you get super-niche-specific and target the exact type of client you’d like to work with.
Keyword Research
SEO can transform your interior design business, and keyword research is the first step. Here’s how it works.
When people search for something on Google, they type in words and phrases that describe the information they’re looking for. These are called keywords.
Google constantly crawls all the websites on the internet to understand their content so it can deliver search results that help users get the information they want. By using the same keywords that people are typing into Google, you can increase your chances of showing up higher and higher in search results.
Interior design keyword ideas
The best place to start with keywords is with your ideal audience. Thinking about what information your clients want to know helps you understand their point of view and what they might be searching for.
Questions to ask about your client
- Who is my ideal client?
- What are their interior design goals?
- What’s their style?
- What questions do they have about interior design?
- What questions and doubts do they have about working with an interior designer?
- Which types of projects are they doing?
- What does their dream home look like?
- What bothers them about their current design/style?
- What do they want to DIY?
The key to SEO for interior designers is to think about words and phrases your clients would use to describe their situation. Don’t worry about proper design industry terms (unless those are the words your clients would use)!
Feeling stuck about which questions or phrases your clients would use? They’re already giving you the answers! Here are a few places to spot customer language that leads to keyword ideas:
- Client intake forms & testimonials (see if you notice any words or phrases showing up on repeat.)
- Quora, Facebook, and Pinterest (type what you do into the search bar and see what else pops up.)
- Competitor websites (Do you notice any trends or topics? What keywords are they ranking for?)
How to do keyword research
After you’ve made a list of potential topics and keywords, head to a keyword research tool. My favorite two to use are Answer the Public and Ubersuggest.
Start by typing a few topics into Ubersuggest to get keyword ideas. Once you’ve found target keywords with a high search volume and low competition score, type those words into Answer the Public or a search engine to get a better idea of which questions people have on the topic and which types of content are already ranking for those keywords. Then, you can create relevant content based on the same keywords.
Ready to dive into keyword research? Read our step-by-step guide on how to do it!
Choosing the best keywords for interior design
You want to find the keywords that have a higher search volume with low competition. That means there’s less competition to rank, so you can make your way onto the first page of Google results sooner.
Focus on long-tail keywords over short-tail keywords. Short-tail keywords are shorter, broad words and phrases related to design. Long-tail keywords are longer, specific words and phrases that focus on one design element.
Here’s an example of a good SEO for interior designers: instead of “hallyways decor ideas,” try ranking for “long narrow hallways decorating ideas.”
On-page SEO best practices for Interior Designers
On-page SEO for interior designers is a mix of strategic design and using your keywords throughout your website.
Improve website structure
Did you know that 94% of potential clients’ first impressions of your brand relate directly to your website? Plus, a well-structured website helps your Google ranking!
You want a clear and strategic website that matches users’ search intent, clearly tells potential clients who you are and what you do, and shows them how to take the next steps with you.
The end result is that more people will find your website and book with you once they’ve gotten there. That’s a win-win!
Looking for a strategy-driven website? We can help! Book a time to chat with us now.
Create consistent, compelling content
The more helpful content there is on your website, the more chances you have to rank on Google. So, how do you consistently create helpful content? Turn your keyword research into blogs or resources on your website.
Each blog becomes a new page on your website that can rank for one or more focus keywords. For example, good SEO for interior designers would mean that instead of writing a blog about “best paint for living room” you’d write one about “best white paint colors for living room” or (even better) “best Sherwin Williams white for living room.”
More Competitive Keyword Example, “Paint color for living room”
Less Competitive Keyword Example, “Best Sherwin Williams White for living room”
The key is to be specific and helpful! Remember, choosing a specific long-tail keyword with higher search volume and lower competition increases your chances of being found by your ideal client.
If you want help incorporating your keywords into on-page content, try out my favorite SEO plugin, RankMath. You’ll get real-time tips on what to improve to give each page the best chance at ranking on Google.
Pro tip! Remember to post new content consistently. It doesn’t matter if you post daily, weekly, or a couple of times a month – the key here is consistency The point is to build up a library of content that’s relevant to your ideal customer. Over time, all those search results and traffic add up!
Use header tags correctly
Organizing information in a way that makes sense to humans and search engines is a vital piece of the on-page SEO puzzle. When used correctly, header tags act like a roadmap that details exactly what’s on the page. A good way to know if you’re using header tags correctly is if you can skim through them and get a good idea of the information on the page.
Here’s a quick cheat-sheet:
- H1 tags are for the headline or title of a page (aka the “main idea” of the page)
- H2 tags are for supporting ideas
- H3 tags are for details to the H2
- H4 is for anything you need to add beneath the H3
Want to learn all about how to optimize header tags? I explain all the details in this post!
Optimize the details
These four items aren’t technically on the page with other content, but they are part of on-page optimization.
Meta descriptions
Meta descriptions are a summary of the content users will find on your page. While they don’t appear on the page, they could show up in the description when your page shows up in seach results. They should be catchy and make people want to click through to your website. Be sure to include your main target keyword and keep it to 160 characters, maximum.
Example of a Meta Description
Looking to give your living room a fresh look? We are revealing the best Sherwin Williams white paints for your living room to refresh your home’s look.
Title tags
Title tags are usually the same as the H1, but that’s not always the case. For example, if you’re writing a blog post, the title tag should be the same as your H1 or blog post title. But on your homepage, the title tag might be something that isn’t displayed directly on the page, like “Jane Smith | Modern Classic Interior Design in Denver.”
Whatever you put in the title tag field is what will show up as the clickable headline on Google. A title tag should be 50-60 characters long.
Example of a Title Tag with Company Name
The Best Sherwin Williams White Paint | Smith Design Co.
Image names and alt text
Image names and alt text don’t appear on the page, but they do describe what’s on it. Include your keywords in the file name and alt text to optimize them for search engines.
For file names, separate each word with dashes. (Ex: “sherwin-williams-white-living-room-wall”). For alt text, write a short description, but don’t use dashes (Ex: “image of living room with Sherwin Williams white paint)
Want to know more? Read the post on naming photos on your WordPress website!
Use proper URL structure
By default, new blog pages are assigned a post number. However, that’s not the best for SEO, because it doesn’t help search engines understand what content is on the page. Instead, choose a URL name that is the same as (or close to) the main keyword, separated by dashes – like this:
www.yourwebsite.com/white-paint-for-living-room
Make the most of internal links
As you create more and more content, start linking from one blog to another to guide people to other helpful content on your site. This is called internal linking, and it has two main benefits.
First, it helps people navigate your website, so they can easily find (and binge!) helpful content. It also helps search engines understand your authority and which kinds of users will find your website helpful, which directly translates to higher search engine rankings!
Off-page SEO for interior designers
There are also some off-page and technical items to optimize on your website. I’ve listed three of the most helpful and impactful strategies for off-page SEO for interior designers below.
Check your website speed
Fast page loading times can impact everything from visitor engagement to Google rankings.
Website page speed refers to how long it takes for a specific page on your website to load. And page speed is a direct Google ranking factor. Yep, Google is keeping tabs on your website load times just as much as it’s paying attention to your keywords!
Want my best website speed tips for SEO? Read all about it here.
Optimize for mobile
As of 2023, 63% of organic search traffic in the U.S. happens on mobile devices. That’s more than half of all search traffic, friends! Make sure your site is mobile-optimized, so people who Google you from their phones can quickly and easily navigate your website.
Building quality backlinks
Backlinks are links from other trustworthy websites and blogs to your website. They drive traffic directly to your website and build your website’s authority for search engine rankings.
Pro Tip! Don’t pay for backlinks from scammy services (that’s a big SEO no-no and will actually hurt your ranking in the long run). Instead, collaborate with other luxury home service providers to share your expertise with design tips, respond to media inquiries to become a valued (and backlinked) source, and network with adjacent service providers to write featured blogs. For example, an interior designer could partner with a home painting service to share how paint color contributes to the overall interior look & feel of rooms. Don’t forget to share your own content on social media and reply to DMs to connect with other business owners who are looking for guest experts on their blogs, podcasts, and YouTube channels.
Boost traffic through social media
Once you’ve created a library of helpful content on your website, drive traffic to your website by posting about it on social media. SEO for interior designers and getting found online is like growing roots. You have to plant lots of little seeds of information around the internet that will eventually grow into huge leads for your business.
Three key places to show up:
Psst! Pinterest is one of my favorite ways to drive fresh traffic to your website. Read all about it here.
Local SEO for interior designers
Local SEO is important for any business owner. But it’s even more important when it comes to SEO for interior designers, because they work with clients in person. Local SEO attracts business from people who are looking for businesses in your area.
Set up your Google My Business profile
Google My Business (aka Google Business Profile) is a free business listing tool you can use to promote your business on Google Search and Google Maps. Whenever someone is looking for interior design services in your area, your name will pop up in the results.
However, you will need to set it up. First, officially register or claim your business on Google, then list useful information about your business. Every time you wrap up a client project, send them the link to review you on Google.
Now, whenever people search for interior designers in your area, they’ll find a helpful profile with glowing reviews!
Find out how to set up your Google My Business in this post.
Target location-based keywords
Somewhere on your website, list the geographic area or city you’re based in and that you serve. This is another small but mighty detail for driving website traffic from locals who are looking for an interior designer!
Measure and tweak over time
SEO for interior designers isn’t a one-and-done process. Getting great results takes time! Check in on your metrics and keyword rankings monthly to get the full picture of how well SEO is working for you. Then, make adjustments to lean into what’s working and tweak what’s not working.
Wondering which SEO metrics to track? Right this way!
Now you know how to do SEO for interior designers!
SEO for interior designers can transform your business. I hope this post has been helpful for showing you show SEO for interior designers can become a super-powered boost for your business. Using a mix of on-page, off-page, and local SEO for interior designes ultimately adds up to more website traffic and more bookings with your dream clients.
Want a step-by-step guide to SEO?
Download our free SEO Checklist to get started. We’ll walk you through setting your website up for SEO searchability!
