Your Space Is Always Talking ... Even Now

Robin Pasley is an interior designer who emphasizes using design as a strategic tool to help businesses grow. She believes interior spaces should cohesively communicate a business's brand and story to customers. Pasley conducts in-depth discovery meetings with clients to understand their values and long-term goals. This informs designs that consider how the physical space can support a business's future growth plans. Her approach sets her apart by helping owners strategically use design over just aesthetics.

Transcript

Your Space Is Always Talking, Episode 1

Randy Lynn Johnson  

Welcome to design to help your business grow. I'm your host, Randi Lynn Johnson. Each episode will bring tips and insight into how to make sure your interiors are working for you and growing your business.

So, Robin, you're all about brand cohesion in a business, and you incorporate that into all of your projects. Can you tell me more about what that means? And maybe a little bit of what it looks like?

Robin Pasley  00:32

Yes. So you know, a lot of people, when I talk to them, and ask them, you know, tell me more about your brand, your brand collateral, the first thing they want to do is go, yeah, we've got that logo, and which is definitely part of the brand package. But it helps me know that they have not spent very much time maybe even writing their own story, their company story or their personal story, if they're a small business that has a principle, owner, and operator. So many of those have a story behind how they got into that business, why they're there, what makes them tick, what gets them out of bed in the morning. This is the kind of stuff that I love to hear about. And so to branding agents, that's how they're going to build a brand for them. And when that hasn't happened yet, but by the time they get to me, that's one of the first things I want to help them with is connect them to a great branding agent so that their story can come out and be expressed in some collateral, you know, visual collateral and data that can be used for marketing and that kind of stuff. That's the stuff that I then take into the design, and it informs the design for me. Yeah,

Randy Lynn Johnson  01:44

So somebody's brand is more than just a sleek website, or a memorable digital ad campaign.

Robin Pasley  01:51

Yes, those are definitely necessary pieces to their puzzle. That's how they're going to be introduced. when they're not around. You know, that's, that's what marketing is right? How people learn about us when we're not there talking about ourselves, telling you about our own business. But for me, the space that people come into, is always talking. So whatever space it is, if you have clients or you have customers or selling products or services doesn't matter, if you have a physical space when people come in that space is communicating. And if you haven't paid attention to what it's saying it can be saying the wrong thing. And that's the way that I see branding, and storytelling coming into the interior design is that we want to make sure we're telling the right story, we're communicating who you are. In other words, if you haven't, if you just thought I have great product or had great service, but you never thought about your space, your space could be saying, I haven't spent any time or money on this, I'm kind of cheap. And that may not be true at all. But because you haven't spent any attempt to put any attention into it, or made sure that it was communicating who you are, it could also be communicating something opposite of what you want to do. I've seen this happen before go into an office and the lighting is harsh. But what they're trying to do is sell a product that is based on care and relational connection. And if if the lighting is harsh, it immediately makes me want to back out and go home. Because I feel like I might be in for a root canal or something.

Randy Lynn Johnson  03:30

Yeah, that's great. I've heard you mentioned, you know, just with design, it's more than you know, carpet and art on the wall, like you almost make it like an art installation where you step in, and you just feel everything right? Yes.

Robin Pasley  03:46

So interior designers that are licensed, we are not actually Junior architects, but we are trained in life safety, ADA compliance, space planning, obviously, that's some of the basics. But in doing so we can come into the interior of a space and determine what's going to actually fit here how to squeeze every square inch for profitability out of a space. This is one of the things I work on with clients, business owners is asking them, what's your five year plan? What's your 10 year plan? How long are we going to be in this space? How much do you plan to grow in the next five to 10 years, let's make sure that we put that in the space planning now. So that we don't have to disrupt the flow of your income potential in the future by having to do construction again, when you grow. Let's think ahead and make sure that this space is going to really fit your future.

Randy Lynn Johnson  04:43

Do you really give business owners a lot to think about oh, it's probably more than they even bargained for. They think I need an interior designer to come in and talk about Yep, carpet and paint but you're really helping them think about how to grow their business. I think that's amazing. I'm never heard of anything like it. And it really sets you apart.

Robin Pasley  05:03

Oh, well, thank you. I appreciate that we do think a little differently. And like I said, you know, in the beginning, I think it's because of the way I'm wired. I think about business all the time. And one of the things that I have people, business owners say, is we do a very in depth discovery meeting to learn about them. And what we learned then becomes their design. And in that meeting, I asked lots and lots of questions that sometimes you know, it's about an hour, maybe sometimes hour and a half, depending. And I've had people at the end go, can you give me those questions? I don't think I've ever asked those to my, my team. I don't think we've considered some of those things before. And I think it's because we know from you know, past commercial interiors that to really establish a true narrative design that tells their story, we have to dig deep and understand what makes them tick what makes them great what makes them set themselves apart from their competitors.

Randy Lynn Johnson  06:02

In an increasingly competitive market, the merits of using interior design as a strategic growth tool can make all the difference in not just surviving, but thriving,

Robin Pasley  06:12

Pasley Commercial Interiors. Design to help your business grow.