Y’all. Thank you SO MUCH to all of you who gave feedback on our latest reader survey. While we get a lot of Google hit traffic or people who just come for the reveals (or the hot personal goss) knowing more about you (and your needs, wants, and constraints) is incredibly valuable and really does change the business for the better. Some things didn’t surprise us (we all love a MOTO over here) but so many of the answers we were like, “REALLY?” or “OK, wow”. Like all digital businesses, we are at an inflection point and personally, as a business owner and mom (who still loves being a design blogger), I’m always juggling how to grow and progress the business while maintaining solid connections with my husband, kids, and team. It’s not always easy (and nearly impossible without a good team) and I’m so excited to figure it out. This year we are going to rebrand and rebuild the site – not a cheap, easy, or fast feat. It’s time for a fresh look, sure, but what about the site do we want to lean into, not to mention what type of homes, stories, and styles do we want to tell and explore? What is the real purpose and the big old question of “WHY?” And so many of the answers really rely on you, our daily readers. Those of you who check the blog like the news – I truly can’t thank you enough for being here. While we want new people to drop in and stay, of course, just programming the blog for clickbait has never been our MO and this survey was once again so enlightening.
The last site rebuild was big and cumbersome as I wanted the blog to be more of a design resource – a go-to place for all things design, decor, shopping, tips, community, etc. I’m sure many people found it helpful at times (including myself) but ultimately a lot of those pages went less clicked and then as things shifted with my team we stopped updating them. So as I was being asked all these questions about what I wanted the new site to be like, and what changes do I really want to make, I felt lost and confused. Your survey shed so much light and more importantly, gave us more confidence and clarity. THANK YOU. Ok, onto the survey – here are some of the highlights that I thought would be fun to chat about:
- We received thousands of responses – 4x more than our last reader survey. WOW. THANK YOU. As a perpetual “suggestion box” person, I thank you ?
- 88% of those surveyed are homeowners. This surprised us, too – I guess we thought that since our audience is so big in NYC and LA there were more renters (and maybe there are) but at least those who filled out the survey own homes (which also makes sense since you tend to really care about remodels and decorating if you feel ownership over it).
- 55.5% of readers visit daily; 4.1% of those surveyed only follow via social. WOW. It’s SO hard to keep up with content on all platforms so we often have to prioritize (and de-prioritize) our time. Now, of course, this was a survey on the blog so naturally, it’s going to be blog-heavy, but y’all this pleased me GREATLY. I’m a blog reader with so few daily reads left out there. While I know that my IG has 1 million followers, we honestly value and will continue to value the daily blog readers here so much more, just as you’ve prioritized us.
- Our top 5 most-beloved post types are: before-and-after transformations (loved by 86% of the audience); renovation tips, shopping guides, and easy updates (72%); farmhouse updates (70%); DIY projects or tutorials (60%); roundups (60%). On the other hand, seasonal trends/holiday decorating ideas are the least popular type of content (favored by 10%). This is funny since I spend so much time and money decorating for holidays and they never truly “hit” which is fine, I enjoy the heck out of doing it. But the survey confirmed that.
- Series-wise, MakeOver TakeOver (MOTO) is your favorite with 56% of the vote. SAME. ? Close runner-ups are Design Agony (34%), Fix it Fridays (32%), and Flea Market Finds (30%). I mean, you don’t have to ask me twice to do more flea market finds posts:)
- On a scale of 1-10, the overwhelming majority of you rated your design enthusiasm/knowledge between a 5-8 (72% total). The most popular rating? A 7, selected by 25% of you. AMAZING. You know, you care, you love design, and want to learn more (SAME).
- You are overwhelmingly interested in living and family rooms (88%), with kitchens taking second place (63%) and bedrooms in a close third (62%). NOTED. I would have definitely thought kitchens would be #1.
- 70% of you cited “budget constraints” as your biggest challenges when it comes to designing their spaces (understood). 40% cited choosing the right products as a challenge (we can help!); 36% cited lack of time (we can’t help with adding more time – but maybe we can highlight more quick transformations? On it).
- 89% of you prefer consuming interior design content in blog format (hooray!). 51% enjoy static photographs on Instagram (compared to only 30% who enjoy reels, and only 4% who like TikTok!); 35% enjoy scouring Pinterest. 19% prefer to watch long-form video content. There’s lots of room to grow here – YAY.
- The style preferences were surprising! Our audience prefers Scandi (47%), Mid-Century (44%), and Traditional (38%) design styles. The least favorites? Maximalism (.3%), Transitional (.4%), and Eclectic (.5%). Crazy, right?
- Color-wise, we saw a few patterns: 36% of the audience decorates with earthy tones; 22% with bold/vibrant colors; and 22% with neutrals. We’ll keep a variety of color palettes coming – I love them all in different ways.
- Moving forward, you would like to see more vintage and antique furniture (65%), budget-friendly pieces (64%) and eco-friendly/sustainable pieces (45.3%). Only 10% of you want to see high-end pieces, but 28% are interested in custom/hand-made design. This is very exciting to me personally and this feedback is absolutely going to shape a future project that I’m dripping with excitement to start.
- When selecting furniture or decor, 80% of those surveyed prioritize functionality and comfort; 77% prioritize aesthetics or visual appeal; and 59% prioritize price/value for money. (Only 5% prioritize brand and only 17% prioritize sustainability, which is surprising). In response, we’re focusing more on in-person reviews, testing products, testimonials, and really trying to illustrate when and why a product is really, really good.
- When it comes to DIY, 71% of readers want to see small-scale renovation projects. 70% want to see how we solve tricky home organization problems, and 55% want to see more DIY outdoor or landscaping projects. While we aren’t a huge DIY blog (god bless those people, so much work), I always want to do more so this is helpful to know where we should focus when we dabble.
- Only 13% of those surveyed spend over $4,000 on sofas and or sectionals, while 70% spend between $1,500 and $4,000. That is a big margin, but y’all there are so many good sofas for under $2500 (but very few under $1k) so this is good to know that we are aligned.
- More than 50% of readers said their typical budget for a dining chair is under $200 per chair. 29% said they’d pay up to $300. 1.8% of readers said they’d spend $600 or more per chair. AGREED. Dining chairs (because you need so many of them) add up too fast.
- Coffee tables had the widest budget distribution, which we expected. 24% of the audience would prefer to spend under $250; 31% name their budget between $250-400; 18% say they’d pay between $400-$550; 12% suggest they spend between $550-$700; 7% look for tables between $700-850; and, surprisingly, 8.2% are willing to pay over $850 per table. SO INTERESTING.
- How Often Do You Change Your Home? 10% of readers update their homes monthly; 27% update quarterly or seasonally. 22% invest in new products only when necessary, 18% swap annually, and 20% update their home every few years.
- We were genuinely a little surprised by your top furniture and decor retailers! In the last year, 67% of our audience has purchased home goods from Target (as expected), but 51% purchased from Amazon! This is interesting because the feedback we get in the comments does not match reality here. Shows that convenience is winning in a lot of ways. Rounding out the top 10 retailers: Wayfair Brands, Crate & Barrel, West Elm, Etsy, Anthropologie, Pottery Barn, World Market, and CB2. This tracks with the budget info provided above and we’ll be sure to highlight more of these affordable brands moving forward (they are our favorite as well).
- For those who enjoy our lifestyle/fashion content – 56% say that product reviews or recommendations are most helpful for them, followed by quick and easy mirror selfies from me (40%), and outfit ideas from the EHD team (36%).
There was a lot of nuance in the responses that we were able to distill into actionable, bigger-picture stuff (spoiler: more relatable projects). January marks 15 years of being on the internet, (which is about 60 in blog years) and I’m always so grateful to be here, that my team is here, and that you are here. THANK YOU and exciting things to come I promise. xx
Opening Image Credits: Photo by Kaitlin Green | From: A Quick Trip To Target: The Little Things That Make Me Feel Good And Pulled Together