What is an Interior Design Proposal?

An interior design proposal is a significant document that demonstrates solid goals, objectives, and plans in creating a specific interior design project. It is typically written by a person who specializes in interior design projects for residential and commercial purposes which include apartments, condominiums, offices, schools, corporate buildings, restaurants, shopping malls, hotels, and many more.

According to a statistical study, specialized interior design industries are anticipated to rise at a higher rate of about 20% over the next 10 years. Thus, if you are currently working on a certain interior design project for your potential client and other business ventures, the first thing you need to accomplish is preparing an effective interior design proposal for your aesthetically-pleasing and functional interior design project.

Different Types of Interior Design Proposals

Contemporary, eclectic, industrial, Mediterranean, mid-century modern, urban modern, minimalist, and traditional interior designing are some examples of popular interior designing styles. For example, traditional interior design style showcases the beauty of classic European décor with the use of antique pieces, wood paneling and intricate molding. While the modern style manifests contrasting effects of bold colors or neutral with primary colors with geometric patterns and asymmetric design. Thus, you need to consider what type of interior design proposal that you will use for your work.  However, there is a wide spectrum of interior design around us. Below are different types of interior design proposals:

1. Airport Interior Design Proposal

Due to the massive scale of airports, creating their interiors can be challenging yet more enjoyable than typical interior design projects. By selecting the appropriate materials, furniture and lighting, interior designers can transform the atmosphere to elevate the experience in these buildings effectively. Some of the best airport designs in the world are Beijing Daxing International Airport, Hamad International Airport Passenger Terminal Complex, Jewel Changi Airport, Heydar Aliyev International Airport, Kurumoch International Airport, and Fort Mcmurray International Airport.   Developing an effective proposal for interior design is a beneficial method to get your airport interior design approved by your prospective client. 

2. College Interior Design Proposal

If you are still studying in an interior design college, it is crucial that you write an appealing proposal for your interior design projects, especially if you prefer to obtain advanced courses in applied arts for interior design. This will help you to attain further knowledge and understanding  about the core and elements of interior design such as different kinds of spaces and locations. To remain up to date with the trends and stay ahead of the game when it comes to interpreting home interiors and professional layouts in commercial and public projects, we suggest that you create an impeccably-written college interior design proposal. When you continue on your creative research in developing sophisticated designs, you will be able to produce unique interior design proposals.

3. Office Interior Design Proposal

HOK, Unispace, Cannon, Perkins + Will, Schemata Architects, Casework, Soda, and Studio11 are some of the best interior design firms that specialize in innovating interiors for various offices and companies. If you want to entice the crème de la crème of your field, designing a workplace that stimulates collaboration, communication, and creativity is definitely admirable for both employees and employers. Plus, it is essential to inject some office themes and design concepts like biophilic design, flexible workspace, ergonomic workstations, cozy home office design, industrial office design, etc. So, we recommend that you create a compelling proposal for your office interior design project. In this way, you can get some potential clients who want your office interior design services. 

4. Restaurant Interior Design Proposal

Bicycle Bar in Romania, Logomo Cafe in Finland, Le Pain Frances Restaurant in Sweden, Ozone Bar in Hong Kong, Esora in Singapore, Humble Pizza in England, Auburn in USA, The Manzoni in Italy, Et Cetera Cafe in South Korea, and many others are some of the best restaurants that have unique and amusing interior designs. Restaurants need great interior designs to greatly impact the minds of the customers to prompt them in entering their spaces, ordering more or less food, and staying for longer. Writing a striking proposal for your restaurant interior design project will help you in further attracting your clients and audience interest while helping the restaurant owners to market their brands effectively.

5. Library Interior Design Proposal

Have you seen a library with magnificent views of the lush landscape? Or perhaps you want to design a double-height penthouse library? Are you inspired from the grandiose interior designs of libraries such as Joe and Rika Mansueto Library in the University of Chicago, Calgary Central Library in Canada, Qatar National Library, and Tianjin Binhai Library in China?  If you need to design a state-of-the-art library for a client, it is important that you create a wonderful proposal with your trailblazing design ideas.

Benefits of an Interior Design Proposal

The significant role of interior design in the global economy is clearly evident in a statistical report which claimed that the global interior design market was worth approximately $ 121.1 billion! However, what are the notable benefits of writing an interior design proposal? Below are some of the benefits of using a compelling interior design proposal:

1. Careful Comparison of Prices and Processes

When you make a proposal for your interior design project, it allows key decision makers or potential clients to create a careful comparison of prices and processes. It gives them power to look intently on certain components of services in interior design which may vary in setting up the price difference. With this comprehensive data, it helps potential clients to develop more reliable and objective decisions when it comes to marketing and promoting interior design products and services.

2. Amicable Agreement Between the Parties

The core objectives, purpose, design process, anticipated outcomes, and scope of an interior design project are clearly indicated in an interior design proposal. This guarantees both parties in settling on an agreement regarding what the interior design project will offer. It explains to the prospective client accurately that the provider of the interior design services clearly discerns the overall scope of the interior design project. In this method, it can promote an amicable agreement to one another because of the trust and loyalty between the parties involved in the said interior design project.

3. Highlight Responsibility and Credibility

An interior design proposal also plays a crucial role in highlighting responsibility and credibility. It should tell the potential client that the interior designer is responsible and efficient in finishing the overall interior design project and establishing great expectations. So, make sure that you include possible risks or other concerns in the interior design proposal and how you would overcome those problems and obstacles in your design process. 

4. Illustrate the Process of Interior Design

Writing a project proposal for your interior design services appears to be helpful in illustrating the complex process of interior design as you present that you have a well-established plan in order to work and fully execute your interior design project. If you obtain a green light from your prospective client, this design proposal will be utilized as reference in working out the project timelines, budget, and resource scheduling  for the interior design contract.

Basic Components of an Interior Design Proposal 

In this section, you will learn how to craft a profoundly-written interior design proposal so that you are able to reach the interest of the readers of your proposal like your prospective clients, investors, and many others. However, a proposal has different components. Include the following elements for you to create a worthwhile document:

Abstract: One of the essential components of an interior design proposal is the abstract. It is a dynamic statement which manifests the main idea, purpose, core objectives, and target needs of the interior design project. Scope of Interior Design Project: Specify the important tasks such as strategic planning and programming, concept development, design development, construction documentation, and construction administration involved in the execution of an interior design project, as well as the key individuals who are responsible in working on these aspects, if you are an interior design firm or a team of interior designers. Inform your clients about the design style, and format to assist you in demonstrating additional details thoroughly. Project Timeline and Budget: Identify the requirements and budget of your client and align these factors on your interior design project timeline and budget. Include a clear timeline of the interior design project, along with other processes and methods that will be carried out with the use of charts and tables. This will assist you in illustrating additional details in a well-defined area. Professionalism: While creating your interior design proposal, you need to maintain the professional tone of the document, and avoid the use of colloquial words. It doesn’t need to be too formal but we recommend that you use a friendly tone with a sufficient balance of business formality. Be considerate and respectful while writing this document.

How to Write an Interior Design Proposal 

Interior design is not just about captivating looks and aesthetics of the building’s interiors. It is also fundamental to the branding strategy in different kinds of commercial buildings in various sectors. Additionally, interior design immensely impacts the psychology of a person, influencing his or her ideas, feelings, and actions. This is similar when writing an interior design proposal as it can effectively outline your definite goal and aspiration to your potential client. In this matter, we suggest that you follow the simple steps below while freely using one of our interior design proposal templates in this article:

Step 1: Write the Cover Letter

First of all, you need to write an effective cover letter to your potential client. It should have some main information about yourself, the length of time you have been working as an interior designer, your design style and approach, your goals and objectives, and many more necessary points. Always be clear and factual as you use proper language that will be easily understood by the client. Make sure that it completely conveys the issues the client has stated.

Step 2: Include an Executive Summary of the Interior Design Project

Your interior design proposal should include a brief and concise executive summary of your design project. We suggest that you apply storytelling not just in your interior design process but in writing your design proposal. For example, you can tell the design process and effect of the time in the aesthetics of Japanese Wabi Sabi or a global perspective centered on the acceptance of imperfection and transience. Thus, describe your unique ideas, and tell a thought-provoking story of the overall design process of the interior design project. When writing this section, you need to take your readers into heartfelt consideration. Then, fill the overview with reliable information like valid references, etc. 

Step 3: Demonstrate the Interior Design Solutions and Methodology

Set up an efficient and meaningful discussion with each member of your interior design firm while interchanging viewpoints, suggestions, and opinions about crucial interior design solutions and methodology to potential issues which are linked to your interior design project. After that, specify these details in your project proposal. Or if you are just working as a freelance and independent interior designer, brainstorm and develop a preliminary draft of your concepts and ideas about cutting-edge solutions for the project.

Step 4: Provide the Project Timeline and Budget

Talk with your clients about the requirements and their own preferences regarding the interior design project. With that information, create an estimate of the financial budget of the interior design project that you need in order to start the design and execution of the project. Provide a run-down of the cost for the interior design project production costs, manufacturing costs, and other fees. 

Step 5: Showcase the Unique Value

After that, showcase the unique value of your interior design project and why it is unparalleled to others. Emphasize the part on how your work will positively influence many people while supporting their needs and preferences with the production and realization of your interior design project. For instance, there are several furniture and décor elements that can be made functional and provide people enough space in performing their daily activities and other tasks. You can add this to feature the significance of your work that will impress your client. 

Step 6: Prepare the Final Draft

Last but not the least, prepare the final draft of your interior design proposal that provides meaningful and systematic information about your pitch. We recommend that you attach any supporting documents as well such as an interior design portfolio and create an interesting-looking proposal with the application of photography and color photocopying. Add some testimonials from references using excerpts in quotes followed by the source name. Then, schedule a meeting with the members of your interior design firm and/or the prospective client or company who will receive your interior design project proposal. 

FAQs

What are the basic methods of writing a proposal letter for interior design?

The basic methods of writing a proposal letter for interior design are specifying the important details in the letter, avoiding exaggerated terms and phrases in the proposal, keeping the professional tone, following the outline the client has used, ensuring that content has addressed client hot-button issues, and avoiding the use of designing jargons.

What are the elements that must be included in the interior design proposal?

When preparing your interior design proposal, you first need to introduce yourself and your company, as well as your experiences and accomplished interior design projects. Then, you must clearly explain your creative solution and design ideas to your client, specifying the essential steps that you will do. Then, include a simple and concise summary that contains the design scope, pricing, timeline, deliverables, and terms and conditions of the interior design services that you will provide. Explain the inclusions and the payment terms and conditions. 

What are different types of interior design styles?

The different types of interior design styles are modern, contemporary, industrial, mid-century modern, nautical, urban modern, bohemian, Scandinavian, traditional, transitional, farmhouse, eclectic, minimalist, vintage, and many others. 

What are some examples of interior design proposals?

Some examples of interior design proposals are project interior design proposal, interior design services proposal, fee interior design proposal, library interior design proposal, office interior design proposal, college interior design proposal, airport interior design proposal, interior garden design proposal, restaurant interior design proposal, and many more. 

“Design disciplines do not stay still for long, but these threads transcend time and act as a gauge through which to look at the evolving practice of interior design. It sheds light on what it means to practice in a changing world that is both contracting and expanding at the same time.” These words by Lois Weinthal, professor of School of Interior Design in Ryerson University, reflects the visions of many interior designers out there like you who aspires to bring design disciplines to the next level while providing visual pleasure and functionality to the people. So, writing a clear and striking proposal for your interior design project is an effective tool to reach your goal in helping people who really need your interior design prowess. Follow the aforementioned tips and steps here so that you are able to craft an exceptionally-written interior design proposal. Plus, download our interior design proposal samples here today!