She’s got the look

I remember many years (decades?) ago hearing an interview with some celebrity about ‘style’. Her belief about style was that it’s vital that everything you wear in an outfit tells the same story. If something doesn’t fit with the story, then it causes a distraction and becomes the main point of focus, instead of the overall impression you’re trying to create.

People who know me will right about now be wondering why I’m writing about fashion! Bear with me…

That interview came to mind last week when I was reviewing resumes from a client’s recruitment campaign. There were, unfortunately, many applications where one glaring item detracted from the favourable image the applicant was trying to convey. A simple example is a cute or inappropriate email address like ‘pinkpussycat@gmail.com’.

I’ve seen people make similar mistakes – and I’ve been guilty of some myself – in how they present their businesses.

Once you have decided on your target market and your brand, everything you do should be consistent with the message you wish to get across to your clients and prospective clients. Any distraction you inadvertently cause makes it harder for potential clients to understand your style and how it relates to them.

Let’s say the brand you are aiming for is professional, reliable and trustworthy. Would you use an email address like the one above? Not when it’s so simple to create an email address with your name or business name, even if you don’t yet have a domain name or website. There’s no excuse for letting a dodgy email address tarnish your image.

Could there be something in your public – especially online – presentation spoiling your style?

Branding is an ongoing process and sometimes in our busy-ness cracks can appear in our style story. Some are easily fixed, others require more effort. Here are a few of the cracks in my online brand that require my attention:

• No RSS feed button on my blog;
• Time for new profile photos;
• Consistent, in timing and content, contributions to discussions on LinkedIn;
• Updating the Balance at Work Facebook page; and
• Many more!

Like mine, your brand may be a work in progress. If not, I’d love to hear how you got to where you are!
If you can identify with what I’m saying, what are you doing to build a coherent brand?

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Susan Rochester and her company, Balance at Work, have been providing people management advice and coaching to small businesses since 1998. Susan would love to hear your ideas and feedback. Connect with Susan on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook or visit www.balanceatwork.com.au to learn more.