How to Price Your Decorating Services: The Full Breakdown

Pricing your holiday decorating services is one of the most common questions new designers ask — and one of the most expensive mistakes they make when they get it wrong.In Episode 9 of the Holiday Pros Podcast, Lindsay Sutherland and Heather Lundervold pull back the curtain on exactly how to price your services as an interior holiday designer: from the initial phone call all the way through installation, takedown, and everything in between.Heather has spent 26 years learning this the hard way — undercharging, forgetting to bill for takedown, giving away consultations for free — so you don't have to. She walks through her complete process step by step, including what she charges, why she charges it, and how she handles clients who push back.Lindsay brings her sales and business consulting expertise to the conversation, unpacking the psychology behind pricing with confidence, how to position your value in the luxury space, and why the mindset shift of "they want this" changes everything when it comes to closing a client.In this episode you'll learn:How to decide what services to offer before you price a single thingThe step-by-step client process: phone call → in-home consult → mood board → proposal → depositWhat Heather charges for consultations ($200) — and when she waives the feeWhy you should never email a proposal before getting paid for the design workThe #1 mistake designers make when building proposals (and how to pad for it)Why forgetting takedown can cost you an entire day's payHow to handle clients who say "I'm already paying you $12,000 — why is there a consultation fee?"The key difference between pricing for residential luxury clients vs. resort and commercial bidsHow Biz in a Box Solutions takes the guesswork out of the entire process with pre-built templates, stages, and proposal verbiageWhy shopping services are one of the most fun (and profitable) offerings in the business Whether you're just setting your rates for the first time or you're ready to stop undercharging, this episode gives you the full picture.The Christmas Design Institute was founded by Heather Lundervold to help you become an interior Holiday Designer.Choose Your Path:Path 1: Become a certified decorator and join the designer-for-hire programPath 2: Launch your own Christmas Business.Explore both at ChristmasDesignInstitute.comChristmas Callers was founded to solve one problem - Helping Holiday Professionals land commercial contracts. We pull lists, enrich data, and baby sit leads all to help you be in the right place at the right time.Book your consultation with us now at ChristmasCallers.com