Do you judge a book by its cover? Even if you want to say “No”, statistics show that you probably do.
You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Solid advice, and it has been around for a long time with good reason. When it comes to your business and the way you promote it, you want to be sure that first impression counts!
From your branding, to the quality of your marketing materials, to the promotional items you give away you are being judged on the quality of what you putting out in the business world. The way you speak, the way you dress, and even your posts on social media are projecting an image of your business and your values.
How many times have you had a flimsy business card handed to you? Or, if you go to a company’s website and the links do not work properly, what does that tell you? If a potential customer senses a company won’t invest in themselves and their image, they will have a difficult time giving them their loyalty and patronage.
Think carefully when you leave your house in the morning what image you want to project. Are you meeting with a client or attending a networking event? Then be sure to dress the part. An un-tucked shirt, stained pants, or worst offender of all – a rip or tear in your clothing, signify a lack of attention to detail and do not project a professional image.
Think before you speak. Consider not just what you are saying, but how you are saying it. Tailor your verbiage to your surroundings. Make sure that you are using proper grammar. You don’t necessarily need to sound as though you are a scholar, but please don’t use double negatives or mispronounce common words. A common example would be using “supposably” instead of “supposedly”. These grammatical mistakes instantly cause your audience to question your intellect.
Keep in mind that a high perceived value is not synonymous with expensive. The key is to make sure you are portraying value in all of your marketing collateral, your personal image, and your business as a whole.
Remember – Perception is Reality.
What do you do to make sure that your company, your employees, and you yourself are projecting a high perceived value?