Denver, Colorado, December 3, 2025 – Unframed Digital, a leading digital marketing agency for the design and architecture industry, today announced the release of its new, landmark research report, ‘How Designers Source, Shop & Specify Products Online 2025’ that challenges everything the industry knows about how designers discover and purchase products.
The survey of 783 designers, architects, and builders overwhelmingly confirms that the traditional showroom model has been replaced by digital channels, with 98% of respondents actively shopping for products online. This mandates a digital-first marketing and sales strategy for product brands. The report provides critical data for product brands, revealing exactly what drives online purchasing decisions for design professionals and which product categories are most frequently sourced digitally.
The most striking finding: Organic search is the #1 product discovery channel for 54% of designers, significantly outpacing social media (38%), trade shows (12%), and email marketing (38%). Yet despite this reality, most design brands remain underinvested in SEO and AI optimization strategy.
Specs, BIM, and Transparency Drive Purchasing Decisions. When shopping online, designers prioritize access above all else. The most important factors driving their online buying behavior include: 64% value readily available product specifications, technical data, and BIM/CAD models. 56% favor brands that offer transparent and visible pricing. 45% prioritize the ability to shop 24/7 from anywhere.
“What excites me about this data is how clearly it reveals the diversity of designer shopping behavior,” says Maggie Swift, CEO of Unframed Digital. “Whether a product is highly technical or requires a custom spec, designers are shopping for it online and many categories are nearly neck and neck in digital demand. Brand leaders need to recognize this shift or risk being left behind like a relic of the Ghost of Marketing Past.”
The survey exposes a critical misalignment between where designers search and where brands spend marketing dollars. 70% of designers say Page 1 Google visibility is extremely or very important to their purchasing decisions. 29% never look past the first page of Google results. Only 12% cite trade shows as a top product discovery channel, despite the industry investing millions in events. 11% of designers don’t attend trade shows at all.
The report suggests that product brands must rapidly adjust their marketing and sales strategies to provide robust, digitally accessible information – including detailed specs, BIM models, and transparent pricing to meet the expectations of today’s design professionals.
The full How Designers Source, Shop & Specify Products Online 2025 Report is available for download on the Unframed Digital website.
About Unframed Digital:
Unframed Digital is an award-winning SEO, AIO, and content strategy agency specializing in architecture, interior design, and global product brands, and a 2025 Netty Award winner for Top Digital Agencies in Los Angeles. With over 25 years of combined expertise, they deliver measurable, data-driven growth for leading clients such as Rocky Mountain Hardware and Engel & Völkers, managing over $3M in annual organic click value.
As the only global SEO and AIO firm dedicated exclusively to design and construction brands, Unframed Digital combines technical precision with a deep understanding of design to help clients outperform competitors and build long-term digital value. Their AIO services help brands gain visibility in AI-powered search and large language models like ChatGPT. The agency’s leadership has been featured in major industry outlets and events like USA Today, Business.com, Business of Home, Design Chicago, and Kitchen & Bath Business.
