When it comes to attracting high-end clients for design services, less is definitely more.

Glitzy home and lifestyle magazines are chock-full of sumptuous photos of interiors and stylish ads for luxury goods, but they are more likely to appeal to affluent rather than wealthy consumers. Those with the most to spend are seeking a more bespoke experience, something created especially for them — and that includes how you reach them.

Activity in the high-end market is on the rise. The number of households with a net worth of $1 million or more reached an all-time high in 2015 of 10.4 million, according to a recent news release from the Spectrem Group. That's 300,000 more households than in 2014.

Along with that growth in wealth has come increased demand for luxury homes in many parts of the country. Because desirable lots are harder to come by, and construction costs have risen substantially, many of these buyers are purchasing existing homes and having them remodeled. All of which bodes well for interior designers.

So how do you tap into this market? Not by the usual means. These consumers may spend some time consulting the design and lifestyle magazines or browsing images on Houzz, Instagram and Pinterest, and might even check out your website. However, when it comes time to make a purchasing decision or hiring a designer, they rely on other channels of information.

Luxury marketing consultant Ana Andjelic, in an article for Luxury Daily, states that today's luxury consumers "often already know what they are looking for and evaluate their choices not by comparing price and product information, but through their friends, taste-makers and cultural zeitgeist." The way to engage these consumers, she says, is by "creating small, intimate and curated relationships."

Although it can be difficult to get on the agenda of these busy individuals, spending some personal, face-to-face time getting to know each other — before any business is done — can pay long-term dividends, by making yourself top-of-mind for future projects or through referrals. If that's not possible, you can try to have a brief phone conversation or arrange an introduction at a social gathering via your network.

When you get the opportunity, you want to focus all your attention on them, like a laser.

Once you learn more about how a potential client lives, and about their family, friends and preferences, you can begin to tailor occasional "touches," small bits of information you can share now and then via email, text or social networks. Let them know about new products, design ideas or events they may be interested in. Offer to answer any questions they may have or to put them in touch with those who can.

Keep your exchanges brief and focused, but congenial, as though you were passing along a tip to a good friend. As the person who understands them, their needs and wants, and their taste, you want to establish yourself as their "go to" designer when the need arises.

Luxury consumers today care less about the prestige that comes from the ability to purchase expensive goods, but they still place a high value on exclusivity. By providing a highly customized and cultivated level of service and responding to their unique design wishes, you can offer them a bespoke experience that will satisfy their desire to assert their individuality as well as their accustomed expectation for your undivided personal attention.