How Interior Designers Can Use SEO + Photography to Attract Luxury Clients
My interior design SEO tips for Dallas creatives looking to increase bookings of luxury projects.
What do Pinterest-worthy images and Google search results have in common?
They both drive luxury clients straight to your business.
If you're a Dallas-based interior designer looking to elevate your online web presence and increase overall visibility, developing an understanding of SEO and investing in professional photography are two of your biggest secret weapons. When used strategically, they don’t just make your website look beautiful, they do the heavy lifting and make your website findable. That’s what has the power to turn browsers and lurkers into future clients and buyers.
In this blog post, I’ll walk you through how interior designers can pair smart SEO with strong imagery to attract ideal clients, all without running paid ads and without worshipping the alter of the ever changing algorithm every day.
Design by Chelsea Dunn Design
Design by Ashley Marcella Designs
Why SEO Matters for Interior Designers and Brands
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) might sound like something only web developers and tech bros care about, but it’s the most important thing you can do to generate leads for your business. Your potential clients are searching for designers just like you right now.
They’re typing things into Google and ChatGPT like:
“Colorful interior designer Dallas”
“Kitchen remodel design Highland Park”
“Eclectic vintage home design Texas”
Modern organic interior designer Dallas Fort Worth Texas
If your site isn’t showing up at all, you’re missing massive opportunities to work with people who are already sold on hiring someone to help design their home or business. If they can’t find you, they can’t hire you.
Google is the new word-of-mouth. If you’re not ranking, you might as well be invisible
Showing up on page 1 of Google isn’t just about bragging rights (I honestly don’t know anyone who brags about this, but ask anyone who shows up on page 1 and they’ll tell you they get consistent leads). It builds professional credibility, increases web traffic to your website, and sets you up as a professional go-to designer in your niche.
Design by Artbuckle & Co
Design by Artbuckle & Co
How Professional Photography Supercharges Your SEO
SEO isn’t just about keywords, as a whole it’s absolutely about user experience. Beautiful, professional photography keeps visitors on your website for a longer period of time, has the ability to increase time spent on page, and reduce bounce rates. Google notices that kind of thing, and it’s only part of the SEO equation.
Here’s how photography helps your website ranking efforts:
Enhancing Website Visibility
High-quality, keyword-optimized photos (with proper file names and alt text) can appear in Google Image results, which drives organic traffic back to your site. For interior designers, product brands, and photographers, image search can be a huge referral source.
Photos Increase Time on Page
Compelling visuals keep visitors on your website longer, which signals to search engines that your content is valuable and engaging. This “dwell time” can positively influence rankings.
Visuals Make Blog & Web Content More Shareable
Photos turn blog posts and service pages into visual content worth pinning, sharing, and linking to, especially on platforms like Pinterest and Instagram, which drive referral traffic that boosts SEO authority.
Boosts Backlinks
Outstanding photography often gets cited or featured by other websites (e.g., press features, roundups, blog collabs), earning you valuable backlinks that increase domain authority.
From Page NONE to Page 1: My Own SEO Gains
My Google Analytics dashboard from January 2023 to July 2025. That’s the power of developing a SEO strategy and creating content optimized for organic search.
How to Optimize Photos for Better SEO Performance
Design by Tyler Garrett Interiors
Use Descriptive File Names
Before uploading your project photos to your website, rename your image files with clear, keyword-rich names. I use a format that describes what I do, what the photo is about, and who I serve in my business.
❌ Example: IMG_4002.jpg
This does nothing to help potential clients find design content or you for that matter.
✅ dallas-interior-designer-modern-transitional-blue-wallpaper-dining-room
This helps search engines understand the image content and improves your chances of ranking in search.
Write Strategic Alt Text
Alt text (alternative text) should describe the image in plain language and include relevant keywords naturally. Don’t merely stuff keywords in the Alt Text, describe in plain language what is included in the image, as Alt Text is important for accessibility efforts.
✅ “Colorful orange living room with green velvet furniture and modern western art, designed by a Dallas Interior Designer specializing in modern western interior design.
Every. Single. Photo on your website should include descriptive alt text. Alt text boosts SEO and improves accessibility, and Google loves that.
Compress Images Without Losing Quality
Large images slow down your site, which hurts SEO.
I recommend clients to download web size images from their gallery (2048px long edge) and take the extra step to put them through a compression program tool to shrink them before uploading to their websites.
Go as small as you can without sacrificing resolution. Use tools like TinyPNG, JPEGmini, or Squoosh to reduce file size before uploading.
Curious to see where your site stacks up: Google has a tool for that: https://pagespeed.web.dev/
5 Actionable SEO Tips for Dallas Interior Designers
Design by Britney Ratto
Design by Britney Ratto
Design by Britney Ratto
There’s a lot to learn around SEO and it will feel overwhelming at times. I know it did for me in May 2023 when I enrolled in an SEO boot camp and began optimizing my website for search. It’s not a quick fix, it’s a long game, but it will help your business thrive. If you are feeling overwhelmed by all of this, my advice is to start small. If I had to rebuild my business and SEO all over again, this is what I would tackle first. These 5 steps will move the needle without making you want to throw your laptop out the window.
1. Set Up Google Analytics and Google Search Console
Do this today! Link them both to your website, over time these powerful tools will tell you where you should be directing your marketing efforts. You’ll learn what keywords you are being found for, what social media platforms are driving traffic to your website, and where your marketing efforts are paying off. Use this information to inform your content strategy and create blogs and web based content to rank in search for other keywords that aren’t on your radar. I review this monthly and plan content around it.
2. Optimize Your Home + About Page
Your homepage is prime real estate, first impression stuff. Use the main keyword you absolutely want to rank for like “Dallas interior designer” naturally in your headers and copy. I highly recommend using online tools like Google Keyword Planner or Keywords Everywhere to discover keywords with search volume in your niche.
3. Create a Portfolio That’s Easy to Navigate
To maximize reach, give each project its own gallery page or blog post. Use keyword-rich captions and descriptive titles like “Eclectic Ranch Makeover – East Dallas.” Compress your images for faster load time. Group rooms together through keywords filters like kitchens, living room, outdoor living, etc, and make sure every single image has alt text that describes what the photo is about AND includes keywords that describe what you do, who you serve, and what your design POV is.
4. Claim Your Google Business Profile
Add up-to-date photos, service areas, and a short description with your keywords. Ask happy clients to leave reviews that you can use for testimonials on your website. Reviews really matter, the more you have the higher you’ll rank for your service keywords.
5. Start Blogging with Strategy
Once you have compiled a list of keywords and optimized your website, take your keyword list and start creating blog posts and case studies around them. Some topic ideas include: before and after project transformations, outline your service offerings, outline your client experience, project reveals, what it’s like to work with a designer, common questions you get from clients, why clients should hire an interior designer, interior design tips and tricks only industry pros would know, project reveals that detail the design style and aesthetic, behind-the-scenes challenges, roundups of specific rooms or design themes you’ve designed over time, and guides like “How to Design a Kid-Friendly Kitchen in Lakewood”
Design by Britney Ratto
Design by Britney Ratto
Design by Britney Ratto
Design by Britney Ratto
Design by Britney Ratto
Pairing SEO with Visual Strategy
Once your website is optimized and you begin blogging, start the process of building backlinks to your website. Create accounts on platforms that link back to your site (I’ve done Youtube, Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, Houzz, Yelp, Linkedin, Google Business Profile, etc).
Then start researching how to effectively pitch your projects for editorial press consideration. Submit requests to do interviews and be featured in local publications, business features, trade show panels, podcasts interviews, designer profiles in local magazines, service announcements, etc.
Submit your work to online design publications like Apartment Therapy, The Spruce, House Beautiful, or Rue. Follow editors and engage with their content. Every link back to your website improves your own website’s authority in Google’s rankings. The higher your site reputation ranking, the higher you’ll rank for your chosen keywords over your competitors.
Photography plays a huge role in not just how you’re seen, but how often. That’s why it’s so important to work with a photographer who understands marketing and SEO.
When I shoot interior projects, I’m always thinking about:
How these photos will perform on your website
How they’ll support future case studies and blog posts
How they can be used across Pinterest, Instagram reels, Tiktok, and press features.
Ready to Attract More Luxury Clients?
The recipe is simple:
Great design + smart SEO + standout photography = a magnet for ideal clients.
Whether you’re just getting started or ready to refine your online presence, investing some time and energy into understanding SEO and investing in professional photography is one of the smartest moves you can make for your design business. Got questions about SEO, please reach out via the link below. I’m happy to help in any way I can.
I’m Stacy Markow, a Dallas-Fort Worth based photographer specializing in interiors, architecture, and bold brand imagery.
When I’m not on set, you’ll find me in the garden, planning my next trip, or hanging with my crew (Zelda my Boston Terrier is always included).
Need vibrant visuals for your brand or space? Let’s chat.
