In this post, I'm going to share with you what I wrote in my latest National Association of Realtors blog post AND give you a FREE Vacant Sales Sheet PDF, so you can use it to educate sellers and agents on the importance of staging a vacant home...

When I started my HSR Certification training company over 14 years ago my mission was to "make hiring a professional home stager an industry standard similar to home inspections"...

I've always been actively involved in educating people on the benefits of home staging and good home design in order to achieve that mission.  When I started...no one even knew what home staging was.  I'm so proud of how far we've come!

As part of that mission, I blog for the National Association of Realtors on a regular basis to help promote my AWESOME HSR members and directory, as well as educate, educate, educate agents and home sellers on how to use a home stager, how to choose a home stager and most importantly...why staging is so important to their bottom line.​

On the NAR Blog this week, I wrote an article on the "4 Reasons Why Staging a Vacant Home is Critical".

In that article I featured some INCREDIBLE before-and-after photos of Stephanie White's work that helps to visually show the changes in an empty  space when it's staged correctly.   I also used the analogy of me and my bikini...yikes!

After I wrote that article for NAR, I thought to myself...wouldn't it be great if that was made into a gorgeous, PDF for agents to give sellers and stagers to give agents?  So, here you go...

There's been a lot of chatter in the staging and real estate community about "virtual staging" so I thought I would give my two cents on the matter.  While virtual staging has been around for several years, it's making a bit of a comeback with the popularity of e-design and there is confusion between these two terms.

Before I jump in, let's be clear on WHAT virtual staging is and what it isn't...

Definition of Virtual Staging - ​Virtual staging is when photos of rooms in a home are altered and/or digitally edited to add/remove furnishings, features or paint color, for the benefit of online marketing in the multiple listing service (MLS) so that home buyers will be inclined to come to the home.

Some real estate agents are turning to virtual staging to save a buck and get "digitally staged photos" even though the rooms themselves are not staged.​  The photos are altered.

Virtual staging is VERY different than e-design in that e-design images are not meant to go on the ​MLS but used to show clients a design plan or mood board in a space before they commit to design purchases.

In fact, I'm doing a free, live webinar on "How to Make Money with E-Design" that I would love for you to join me on...​

Do you see the difference there?  

Virtual staging on the other hand is about staging the rooms DIGITALLY, so the photos online look good and buyers will be attracted to the space.

I see people confuse e-design and Virtual Staging, so I want to be very clear that when I talk and train on e-design, I'm not advocating virtual staging but teaching a wonderful way for designers and stagers to use technology to provide a visual to clients for their design plan (not MLS photos).  

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So...now that you are clear on that, let's talk about why virtual staging is probably NOT a good idea for agents or stagers to use or advocate.

Here are 5 reasons why virtual staging is a bad idea...​

Technology has come a long way in this regard BUT by in large, even the BEST virtually staged photos have a bit of a cartoony or out-of-scale feel.  Watch my Facebook Live video below to see the example photos I compare to real life staged photos.

Let's be honest...buyers don't make offers based on MLS photos alone.  In fact, they view on average around 12 homes before making that coveted offer.  Do you think the buyer will be happy to walk into a home that was virtual staged only to find it looks completely different?  I like to describe virtual staging as the ultimate, in-person, buyer let down...

Like I said, virtual staging is not new to our industry.  When we discussed the pros and cons of virtual staging in Stagers Connect (our private, social network for HSR grads), there were several negative stories told how buyers felt deceived and lied to when entering the home.  Buyers had an expectation and felt betrayed by the agent when the rooms were clearly digitally mastered to appear better than in real life.

One stager who was a real estate agent commented that if it's not completely disclosed in the MLS commentary, an agent who uses virtually staged photos could be in violation of Article 12 of the Realtor Code of Ethics which speaks to this practice.

Okay, I can't just stop at 4 reasons since this one is a doozy...​

A well staged space is meant to evoke strong emotions in the home buyer.  Staging is more about merchandising the space for that emotional connection that comes when the buyer wants to make an offer.  While digitally altered photos could appeal online to the buyer, when they go to the space in person...that emotion is completely lacking due to the fact that the space is bare.  

If you're a home stager trying to have a discussion with your agent partners on why virtual staging could hurt their business, I hope this post helped out a bit.  I hate to bash anything or be negative about a service but this is my opinion on the matter based on years of experience with that service. 

While it could be more affordable to an agent to virtually stage rather than pay for ​actual staging...the actual cost to their business and reputation is probably not worth it.  I would recommend leaving the space bare before putting up photos that create a false hope in the buyers personally...

I recently did a Facebook Live on this subject, so here's the video of that event...

Having company over for Christmas?  Here are my favorite, downloadable, Christmas decoration "hacks" that are super easy to create, look beautiful and fit the budget...

We used our E-Design Boards to create visual examples of easy ways you can decorate for Christmas on a budget.  Feel free to download these Guides and use the shopping links (or visit your local stores that are listed) to get these essentials.

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7 Quick Christmas Decoration Hacks You Will Love

As you can see from the image above, it's not hard to repurpose a lot of what you already own to create a more festive space.  It's the little details in these quick projects that bring a smile to my face.  Click on the image below to download the full Guide with Shopping links...

Want to get more inspired with some vintage, trending, holiday updates?  Here's 5 more holiday decorating updates that  are oh so festive...

Buffalo plaid is trending this holiday and you saw it in my last post in pillow covers and a stuffed reindeer but why not as a table runner centerpiece too?  Vintage items are also trending, so the printables, red truck and wooden ladder decor will fit right in with this year's nostalgic Christmas...

Maybe you just need some guidance on how to make your dining room table sparkle.  Here's some curated dining table centerpiece ideas to inspire you...

Enjoy these free downloads and enjoy your holiday season!

Have you ever opened up your holiday decor boxes and wondered where the heck do those items go in your home OR why you even bought them in the first place?   

Or maybe you're like me and you have three bins of holiday decor that you have no idea how to use but can't bring yourself to throw away?  

All three of these things went through my head​ as I opened my holiday decor bins with high hopes...only to find some really crappy, Christmas decor...ugh.   It was definitely time for an update!

That's why I'm so excited to share with you my incredibly talented Expert E-Designer's wonderfully easy holiday decor updates on a budget with shopping links in the form of TWO FREE DOWNLOADS!​  

Gina is our staff e-designer who curates most all of our boards and is the go-to person for shopping on a budget.  She got very carried away curating holiday design ideas and boards for our Expert E-Designer training that I thought were too cool not to share.

Here's a list of some "Must-Have" Christmas Decor that quickly updates your look and is easy on the pocket book...

All of these holiday decor items are extremely versatile, classic and budget friendly.  In this post and in my next post I'm going to show you how to use these items to create vignettes, update your tablescapes, create gorgeous centerpieces and more. 

Do you have some empty spaces in your home that can use holiday cheer?  Make these 3 holiday vignettes on the fly using some of the items in your guide above...

Enjoy these free downloads and stay tuned for more holiday design hot tips!  

Did you know that by using certain paint colors in specific rooms of the home you can statistically increase it's value by almost $10,000 alone?! We have a "Paint Color Cheat Sheet" that shows you exactly how much...

I know this seems incredible but according to Zillow's Paint Color Analysis which looked at more than 32,000 photos from sold homes around the country...it's true.  "Homes with blue bathrooms alone typically sold for $5,440 more than expected" in this study!  We created a "Paint Color Cheat Sheet" according to this study, so your clients know which specific Benjamin Moore colors in each room of the home will garnish them them the most....

Paint color has a tremendous influence on the way a buyer views a home according to the Zillow study which calculated the increase in potential value per room depending on which "buyer preferred" paint color was used. 

"Color can be a powerful tool for attracting buyers to a home, especially in listing photos and videos," says Svenja Gudell, Zillow chief economist.  "Painting walls in fresh, natural looking colors, particularly in shades of blue and pale gray not only make a home feel larger, but also are neutral enough to help future buyers envision themselves living in the space.  Incorporating light blue in kitchens and bathrooms may pay off especially well as the color complements white counter-tops and cabinets, a growing trend in both rooms."

Personally, I think they are miscalculating in the sense that homes that usually have these gray and blue colors usually have white cabinets and marble counter tops which are REALLY HOT right now.  I never get tired of seeing photos like the one above which was done by HSR Grad Leia Ward of LTW Design a Greenwich, CT home stager.

Color evokes such a visceral response that I created a Certified Color Expert program, so people can navigate choosing color schemes for clients in the right way.  Color is not just about paint but about all the colors in the space, so it's important to work with what we cannot change in the space to find the perfect, complimentary color.

Do You Want to Know Something Crazy?

Most home stagers have no idea how easy it is to market their new business and waste a TON of time on outdated marketing practices that don't get their phone to ring.   I hate to see anyone get frustrated with this industry because it is such a fantastic business model and staging is SUPER HOT right now!  There is a lot to know for a home staging business to get started, so I'm revealing my number one secret for stagers to get noticed right away.

Do You Want to Know My BIGGEST Marketing Secret?  I Can't Believe I'm Sharing This But...

I just put together a 30-minute video on how to get your phone to ring and stay busy as a home staging business that I think you are going to LOVE! If you are super busy and don't need any more business, then this video is not for you...BUT if you want your phone to continue to ring with new business...then this FREE video will do that for you!

This FREE video will forever change the way you market  your home staging business!

I've gotten four emails in the past few days from dismayed people who invested in a Staging Training Company and what they thought was a "Staging Certification" course but got very little, REAL training! 

In fact, there is an increasing number of "staging training" companies out there aggressively marketing their business, so it's VERY hard to research which staging training company is right for you.  While some staging training companies are good quality...most do not fully prepare you for all you would need to know in this industry nor do they support you!

That's why I created a 50-Point "Staging Training Company Checklist" so you can simply go down the list and make sure the training you choose to invest in can meet your "Certification" criteria:

Go ahead and click on the image above to download this helpful PDF.  Use the checklist as you shop for the staging training company you want to partner your business with.  Make no mistake, this is a BIG Partnership, so do the research and choose your staging training company wisely! 

When I saw what the HSR training program was offering, I could have kicked myself that I didn’t find them sooner, never mind all the money I wasted prior! The HSR Certification program is the complete package.

Paula Frankline
HSR Certified Stager

Here's an email I received from Pauline who just signed up for the HSR Home Staging Certification training that I thought was really interesting...

Now Pauline is staging like crazy and has a beautiful website from HSR that she is customizing to her heart's content...great job Pauline!  Here is a link to her new website:  www.simplyputstaging.com.

The number one reason home stagers fail is because their website was slow, dated and not personal... 

In essence, their website doesn't "WORC" for them.  This is why at the Home Staging Resource we provide wholesale websites for stagers in our Premium Website package and are always updating this product!  Here's a quick video about our new amazing website technology that checks all the boxes in our "Website Checklist for Stagers":

If you're not sure what a website that "WORC"s looks like, here's a handy checklist you can use to make sure your website is not killing your business...

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Here are more things to consider to get your website working for you...​

Website Image Must ROCK!

Do you upgrade your cell phone every couple years?  Then why don't you upgrade your business website?!  Website styles and technology have evolved and what looked good a few years back, appears busy and dated today. 

At the end of the day, your website is the most critical marketing tool you own.  Taking the time to update and understand it will be key to your success!

I love creating things to help home stagers communicate the "art" of what they do better!  I had so much fun creating this new PowerPoint presentation to put in the HSR Certification Training that I had to share a video of it!  The video is about what can happen when a seller or agent picks a home stager based on price.  Staging a home based on price alone can be disastrous...

In the HSR training, I have quite a few different powerpoint presentations for stagers to customize and present to real estate agents or seller.  This particular presentation is meant to be humorous and given to sellers or agents who are seeking a stager for a vacant home project.

Staging a Home Based on Price Slideshow

Why You Usually Always Get What You Pay For...

The slide that shows the example price differences between IKEA furnishings and Pottery Barn is a good reminder that you can't pay like IKEA and expect Restoration Hardware.  You always have to consider the luxury level, style and scale of the home before thinking about furnishings.