Illustra Image Consulting Blog

A Positive Brand Must Permeate Your Whole Business Environment

Many professionals spend a great deal of money on advertising, marketing materials, and website production in order to effectively communicate their brand. But in the process they forget one of the most essential ingredients – the all-encompassing and important brand environment.

Your brand environment is one of the most observable and effective ways that your unique brand message is conveyed to clients and colleagues. A great marketing technique is to match your brand environment to your uniqueness, so that both resonate harmoniously with your target audience.  Let’s say, for example, that your brand message is about sophistication and elegance. Ask yourself if your business environment implies those same qualities, and examine how your business environment and the tools you use represent those particular attributes.

Perhaps you want your brand to advertise that you are approachable and friendly – or maybe the message you want to exude is that you are a leading edge visionary. Whatever the concept is, make sure it consistently saturates the entire brand environment.

To evaluate your brand environment, take into account everything from the list below:

·       The décor and physical layout and organization of your office.

·       The ambience of locations where you meet with clients for business discussions.

·       Places you hold conferences, workshops, or seminars.

·       Tech tools like your desktop computer, laptop or mobile phone.

·       The vehicle you drive to meet clients.

·       Business tools like your briefcase, messenger bag, portfolio, or writing instruments.

All of these things create impressions of your brand that are perceived by your competition, your colleagues and your clients. Make sure you always project a strong brand through your environment and business tools, to give you a constant brand message presence. Keep in mind that your brand environment must remain congruent with your messaging. Ask your colleagues or a professional brand strategist for their point of view and assessment, and have them really critique your brand environment to see if it ties back into your brand bio and marketing message.

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Sarah Hathorn is a professional image consultant, certified personal brand strategist, speaker, and author.

Her company, Illustra Image Consulting, works with high-achieving future leaders and large businesses by enhancing their corporate and personal brand image to take their businesses and careers to the next level.

Blog, Ezine & Website:  www.illustraimageconsulting.com

Copyright 2009, Sarah Hathorn, AICI CIP, CPBS

Three Ways to Be Indispensible

In down turning times it is easy to get caught up in the entire negative media and get lazy about our work.  I know many of you have asked “why should I care about a positive mindset, going the extra mile or looking my best at work when business is slow?”  That is exactly when you need to be different and stand out from your peers and competition. It tells your organization a lot about your values, goals and confidence level during difficult times. Here are my three practices for all business professionals to keep you in the forefront of everyone’s minds until the tide turns:

1). Have a Positive Attitude

Many businesses have begun cutbacks on staff, expense reimbursements, raises and bonuses. You must remain positive and be appreciative for having a job today. Although you may be earning less, you are still of value to your company and must have a positive mindset and be appreciative for all that you do have today. Offer positive solutions to cost-cutting measures to help your company see ways to save, which sometimes they are unable to see objectively to help organizations retain employees. 

2). Go the Extra Mile

As we are all doing more with less, it’s important to take on more responsibility, which is becoming a necessity in today’s world. This conveys to your employer that you are responsible, efficient and you are a team player.  If your organization is going through a merger, buy out or transition, step up and volunteer to be on the merger/transition team. This not only allows you to stay on the cutting edge of decisions being made and helping others transition from outside your organization to understanding the company culture but you will hear and see what decisions are happening so you find out the facts first. Your voluntary spirit will be perceived as being positive and taking a stand to help your organization increase their market positioning.

3). Create a Polished Image

Although business may be tougher to get today than it was a year ago, remember you represent your corporate brand. You are the identity and representative of the firm to your customer. Does your image visually, verbally and non-verbally represent your firm’s values and corporate brand? I work in companies everyday and I can tell you many employees don’t positively represent their firm’s corporate brand image. You may need to spiff up your image now more than ever. When organizations are downsizing, oftentimes one’s image may be a determining factor in your being let go. Many times employers won’t tell you the truth but the fact is that talent and performance isn’t enough today.  Looking great today will allow you to reap many benefits in the future because you stand on your personal reputation of your personal and corporate brand.

Companies do remember in hard times who helped to shift a negative work environment to a more positive one, which employees were courageous and stepped up to take on more responsibility and continued to positively influence their corporate brand through their appearance and professional grace. When all these tumultuous times are over and the economy is back in full swing, you will be the one who stood out from the crowd and be recognized by attaining great career positioning than your negative peers.