140: Caroline Turner Confesses Why She Doesn’t Like Referrals — Hot Young Designers Club | Interior Design Business Podcast

In this episode, we're sitting down with Caroline Turner of Caroline Turner Interiors and Confessions of an Interior Designer to talk about running a design business, building a waitlist, handling referrals (or not), and using social media for client growth. Caroline shares her unfiltered thoughts on why she’s not a fan of referrals, how she sets project minimums, and the major shifts she’s made in her business to improve workflow. Plus, we get into her viral TikToks, the future of AI in design, and her juicy behind-the-scenes confessions from working in the industry. If you’ve ever had to tell a contractor to “suck your dick” (or wanted to), this episode is for you!

In this episode, we discuss:

How Caroline built her business and team structure
The benefits of creating a waitlist for projects
Why she doesn’t love getting referrals—and how they can cause problems
Setting minimum project investment amounts and how that changed her business
Learning to fire clients (and how some refused to be fired!)
The role TikTok has played in her business growth
The impact of AI on the design industry and why designers need to be cautious
Her experience taking over a project after another designer was let go
The challenges of working with contractors and standing firm on budget conversations
How she launched Confessions of an Interior Designer and what it’s really like running a podcast

Supporting Resources

Caroline Turner Interiors

https://carolineturner.co/

Follow Caroline Turner Interiors on Instagram and TikTok

https://www.instagram.com/carolineturnerinteriors/?hl=en

Confessions of an Interior Designer Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/confessions-of-an-interior-designer/id1777908471

Rebecca's Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/studioplumb/?hl=en

Shaun's Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/wrenstedinteriors/?hl=en

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