We’ve all heard the statistics on first impressions: when you meet someone for the first time, only 7% of their impression of you is based on what you say, 38% on how you say it, and a whopping 55% on their appearance and manners. It’s no wonder we worry about choosing our clothes for that all-important meeting or job interview. But nine times out of ten, when you attend a business meeting, the person you meet for the first time has already formed an impression of you based on your communications with them up to that point. Most of the time, that will include some kind of printed material: a brochure, a letter, a business card, or all three.
As with face-to-face meetings, only a small proportion of your prospect’s impression will be based on what is said. A little more comes from how you say it: is the tone confident and professional, and have you checked for spelling and grammar errors? But most of your prospect’s impression will come from the appearance of your communications, so doesn’t it make sense to focus most of your attention there?
Just as poor grooming (dirty shoes, wrinkled clothes, and messy hair) gives the impression of being an unprofessional person, poorly presented marketing materials (cheap and faded paper, low-quality printing, free clip art, and silly fonts) suggest a lack of professionalism. run the organization.
However, it is not just the quality of the materials that will be of concern to your potential customers. Once you’ve gotten over the first hurdle of showing that you pay attention to detail and value quality workmanship, you still need to show that you are the type of person they will want to work with. Just as an interviewer will look for someone who seems to fit your company, based on their experience, their manners, and the clothes they wear, your prospects will look for the type of supplier they would like to do business with.
What do your business materials say about you?
Even the choice of paper can be revealing. The ordinary white paper suggests a simple and sensible approach. Thick, textured paper means a more traditional personal touch. The colored papers are fun and original, suggesting a lively and innovative organization.
Then there is the design. Images or not? There is a school of thought that says it is always good to include something to get attention, but sometimes the wrong image can be much more disgusting than no image at all. It’s no coincidence that cheap kebab shops and burger joints adorn their menus with cartoons or vivid photos, while smart hotels tend to rely on words to get the job done. A simple burger or hot dog can be outlined in a few well-chosen lines, but it would take a truly skilled food photographer to deliver on the delicious promise of a description like ‘Fillet of sole meuniere served on a bed of wild rice with a garnish. of asparagus’.
Everyday products like tools or household items, even well photographed, may not be exciting to look at, and while some companies try to avoid this by including images of attractive models demonstrating their use, some people see it as exploitation or something inappropriate.
There is no easy way to measure how much business you win or lose with well-chosen marketing materials, but you can try to measure its effect by testing your design on a test audience before having hundreds of copies in print. Look for people as similar to your target market as possible; What draws your pub friends may be very different from what would impress Mom, Dad, or Aunt Joan. Ask them, not just if they like the way it looks, but what impression you make of you and your organization.
Once you have a look that represents you well, you can be sure that when you get into that vital sales pitch or presentation, you’ve already made a good first impression.