Amanda Donnelly, owner of the Western Australian business, Staging-to-Sell has been renovating and decorating the homes of her friends and family since 1997. Staging-to-Sell offers personalised styling strategies for homes in preparation for sale and what initially began as a hobby, sparked into a career when Amanda finally decided to start her own business.

“I’ve been operating the business for about two years now and what I love about helping homeowners is the feedback I get from their agents. Lots of buyers comment on how beautifully the home is presented and say they want to purchase the furniture along with the house,” said Amanda.

Amanda learned the value of staging when she needed to sell her property years ago. Amanda staged her own home using her existing furniture and soft furnishings and her home sold within days of listing. Today, Amanda helps homeowners by considering the best way to showcase their home.

“People looking to sell their home don’t necessarily understand the value of home staging and that it’s actually a marketing tool for their homes. First I look at the style of the property and find furniture to complement the age and style of the property. I then take into account the lighting, layout and the existing colour palette,” explained Amanda.

Staging-to-sell thrives on detail and in an industry where homeowners aren’t necessarily familiar with the value of home staging, genuine customer reviews are an essential tool for growth.

“Reviews add credibility to the business as it shows the experience you have working in your industry and in doing your job well. Reviews advertise the way you work and how your customers feel about your product or service. People are not always sure what home staging is and I think reviews help customers see what it is that I do. People think staging is only for those with lots of money but when they see my portfolio photos and read the reviews, it puts them at ease,” she said.

Amanda first came across WOMO through her business coach. As a client, she was asked to leave her coach a review on WOMO and when she realised it was a great marketing tool, she jumped on board.

“My business coach had a Meetup group and she shared how WOMO was a fabulous tool that was great for marketing. At the time, I was investing in another marketing database that had a hefty fee and I wasn’t seeing the return so I looked to investing into WOMO and the Happy Customers Program,” said Amanda.

Although having only recently joined the Happy Customers Program, Amanda is steadily attaining reviews from her previous customers by sending them a link to her WOMO profile.
“I love the way I get to create my own profile and personalise it. WOMO gives me things my website can’t and I’m able to add links to WOMO on my contact us page and testimonial page. I’ve had lots of click-throughs from those pages,” said Amanda.

As she continues to grow her reviews on WOMO, Amanda is certain her business will reap positively.

“If you’re thinking about joining WOMO, then do it. It’s the right investment. You can advertise your business through a scattergun approach, but WOMO allows you to be found by customers in your area who are looking for your services.”

View Amanda’s WOMO profile here or read more about the Happy Customers Program.