certification

Teri: We have not encountered this in our area-Most of the local agents are aware that there is no standard certification for stagers. We always take our portfolio of our work to use as examples. Maybe we are lucky that we have degrees (not in design) but we don't use our credentials. Hope this helps

Teri,

This has become somewhat of an argumentum ad nauseaum here on the Rain. I shall not commit to the labors of Sisyphus to rehash everything that has been said here. You will find a wide variety of opinions. For myself, although I am "certified" by one of the training groups, I value what they gave me in the way of a business package more than any additional spagetti to put behind my name. Do your research and then call some people on the Rain, I am sure you will find some folks who will be happy to share with you their experience with the training and certification or lack thereof. Lately, several people are actually dropping their certification (see the group Staging in the Nude ).

I also suggest you check out RESA-the founder is on the Rain  http://activerain.com/shellbrodnax

We actually found a book that was helpful when we were ready to incorporate: Building a Successsful Home Staging Business by Barb Schwarz. I am not endorsing her and have not taken her certification course but she really is good at the business part. We use some of her suggestions.

I would suggest you do some research on the Rain and talk to others before you decide. As far as your Google and yahoo rating, they do not look at your credentials so leave them off your blog title (per an excellent A/R member who helped me).

Teri, I got certified for two reasons, to learn about proper staging and get advice on marketing, contracts, etc.  AND so I would have some letters to put behind my name.  Those letters mean absolutely nothing, but they look good.  Check out Sheron Cardin, she provides staging courses and she's an AR member.

Oh Yea-I second the nomination for Sheron. I have been reading her blog-she's awesome!

Teri - I have been staging "naked" for a while now and I haven't had a single person ask me for "certification." I think it depends greatly on the area in which you are from. If you desire help in the "buisiness" side of things, it may be a good idea to go with one of the courses. Alot of those things are very hard to figure out on your own. I think for me, that was the major set back intitially - and I think having that backing is good in situations like that. But the truth to share with your clients until you make that decision is that there is no standard in the staging industry inwhich you are required to have. I agree that you should take a portfolio and have real stats based on what experience you have when meeting people...it helps. People are just so visual - heck that's why we're in the staging biz!!! :) 

Teri- I just noticed that on my last comment I make it sound like we don't have high standards. :) I meant to say "there is no certification standard in the staging industry inwhich you are required to have."Ha. That's funny. 

Heck-This field is growing so fast that we all remain "newbies".  I have seen pricing structures done all kinds of ways. We have a different pricing structure for vacants and use rental furniture than we have for occupieds. There have been several good blogs written about how to price your services. Make sure youn  develop a tight contract and several blogs have been written on this as well. I have been inquiring about RESA but there are others out there as well. Let us know if you have other questions.

Teri, check out prices before you jump in.  As we've all said, the letters behind your name are just that.  Totally meaningless in the industry because there are no standards.  Unless you have a lot of spare cash laying around, I'd go for the least expensive that will still give you insight into proper staging and the business end of it.  You will need a lot of money for props and furniture to get started, so spend your money wisely.

Terry - great point. You know probably the biggest reason I didn't get a certification initially was because of the expense. 

I wouldn't say most of them are bogus, since a lot of stagers here in AR have some sort of certifications. I invested good money on education, frankly I don't see them as bogus. I did learn things from my staging education. But that's beside the point and everyone is different.

But truly, consumers don't really care how many letters are behind your name. They care about results. Instead of arguing about certification, show them your results! It's like those life-long debates about if chefs should have official training... There are lots of famous chefs are classically trained and there are many who are self taught. Bottom line is talent.

Cheers,

Cindy 

Me again Teri.  I didn't mention I never use the letters from my certification on my marketing materials, because as I said they mean nothing to the average person.  But I do use the word "certified" and I think that lends a little more credibility.

Teri, the main thing that cerfication or proof that you took a home staging course does is lets your clients know that you have had some formal training.  The very best way to convince them that you are qualified to stage their listings and/or homes is to have a good portfolio of before and after pictures (of work done by you--no stock photos) to show them....both in hard copy and online.  Posting before and afters on your AR profile page is a wonderful place to start.