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  Kathleen Gran is having a great time working as an Image Coach and helping people achieve a strong, personal brand. Her mission is to get people to understand the power of their visual impact so that they can thrive and succeed.

  

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As an entrepreneur, you probably hand out dozens of business cards every month, if not per week. You hope that your card will serve as a reminder for the recipient to give you a call, send an email or provide a basis for referrals. You also hope that your card will have a long lifespan in your client’s file. Yet, many folks overlook the importance of their business card’s role.

FACT: Your business card is a small, but powerful marketing tool

At just 5 x 9 cm, your card can actually make or break a client’s first impression of you and your company.

Handing out a card that is not in sync with your company’s mission, that is conveying a confusing message, or that is lacking in design is detrimental to your professional image. Handing out a card that is not in pristine condition (stained, corners bent) will give a negative impression that will be difficult to overcome.

Your business card is an extension of what you, and your company, represent so it is important that the recipient immediately understands what you are about.

FACT: a business card must meet 5 criteria in order to be effective

1.     It must clearly define your identity 
Your name, title and company name must be prominent, yet well balanced within the design of the card. This information will help the recipient quickly establish your ranking within your company.

2.     It must facilitate access to you 
An efficient business card tells people what they need to know about your product or services, how they can reach you and where they can learn more about your business. It must represent you well when you are not around to provide your contact information.

3.     It must be memorable 
To ensure a long lifespan in someone’s files or for it to be an eye-catcher when on display, your business card must stand out in such a way that people will want to keep it even if they know that your services are not for them.  Aim for the “wow” factor.

4.     It must convey quality and trust 
An effective business card is one that conveys the level of quality of the product or service that you are selling. If you are selling a high quality product and your card looks home-made and printed on your ink-jet printer, you will not relay the type of image needed to build credibility and trust.

5.     It must be attractive to your target clientele 
Your business card needs to qualify your product or service to attract the right clients to your company. Your target clientele needs to relate to your card design. You will not have the same design when you target families with young children than when you target elderly citizens. For the latter you may want to use a larger font size, for example.

If your business card is a standard company one, you have little room for creativity. However, you may still impress your clients by keeping your cards in a high quality card holder and handing them out together with a postcard or other small brochure that is designed to your image, if that is allowed by your internal policies and procedures.

FACT: your business card is a smart investment

Your business card is one of the first elements that will brand you to your potential clients. It is a smart investment to optimize your professional presence and anchor your unique professional image.

To determine if your business card needs a makeover, fill out my quick assessment available in  my June post.

Check out my 2 business card makeovers, also in the June post! 

As we communicate more and more via electronic devices and less and less in person, our manners have taken somewhat of a back seat and we tend to forget that even if the person we are contacting is not directly in front of us, there is still a human being at the receiving end of our message. We’ve all heard of email communications creating havoc despite the fact that the sender’s intentions were initially good. So how can you avoid embarrassing yourself, or worse, losing your reputation over an email mistake?

Adopt the following 12 basic rules of business email etiquette. 

1. Your Emails Reflect Your Brand
   Your image and brand are still “visible” through your email communications and these should therefore be monitored closely. Create a branded signature that will appear automatically whenever you send or reply to a message. Include your name and title, website URL, phone number and social media links. You may also include a thumbnail of your logo and add a legal disclaimer about privacy or confidentiality if required by your company.
2. Forget Email Art
   Some folks really love to show off their artistic side. This is not appropriate for business. Leave the coloured backgrounds, multicoloured fonts, emoticons and any other animated, or worse, flashing elements for your personal communications. The best is still a black or dark blue font on a white background. Speaking of fonts, chose standard fonts and stay away from the fancy ones that are difficult to read.
3. Avoid Email Shouting
   Nobody likes to be screamed at. Writing your emails using capital letters only will have that effect on the receiving party. You may capitalize a word in a sentence to emphasize its importance only if it’s a short word. It is better to use bold or italic formatting to add emphasis. Avoid underlining as this may be interpreted as a link.
4. Be Concise
   An email should remain short and to the point. If you need to write a longer message or a report, write it in Word and send it as an attachment.
5. Spell Checking is Mandatory
   It takes only a few seconds to run a spell check before pressing the Send button. Don’t overlook this step because an email containing spelling or grammatical errors and improper punctuation will reflect a lack of professionalism and give the impression that you are sloppy. Again, sending an error free text is part of your image and how people will perceive you. Don’t forget to make your message easier to read by inserting paragraphs.
6. Respect Your Contacts’ Privacy
   When you are sending a message to a group of people that do not necessarily know each other (for example, your various service providers), it is mandatory to use the BCC field to add the names. Not everyone on your list might appreciate having their email addresses known to the rest of your distribution list.
7. Don’t Copy Everyone On Everything
   The most irritating email faux-pas that people make is to reply to all when the message requires an answer to the sender only. For example, if I am sending an invitation to 10 people and ask that each confirm their attendance to me, each person should reply to me only and not to the whole list. Read carefully what is required before you choose the Reply to All function. The Reply to All function should only be used exceptionally.
8. Confirm Reception
   When someone sends you a document, an invoice, a report or an answer to a request, confirm reception to the sender. These documents are often important and the act of confirming reception will reassure the sender and won’t leave him guessing on whether or not you got it.
9. Make It Personal
   Use the person’s name to open the message, as you would do in a letter. Be polite. Email is not your free ticket to forego good manners.
10. Use Auto-Response Feature 
    When you are absent for a long period of time – attending a several day seminar, away on vacation, several days in training – use your auto-response feature to notify people that you are not available to reply. In your absence message, give an alternate name and phone number that the person can use if they need immediate assistance.
11. Size Matters!
    Limit the size of your attachments. Not everyone’s system is set up to receive very large files. By doing so, you may cause your contact’s system to freeze or break down. Either first check with your contact if a large file can be sent and if not, use an FTP server or, if delivery time allows, burn a CD.
12. Forwarding Messages
    When forwarding a message, delete the message thread. The person receiving your forwarded message does not need to know who your previous sender was. Leave in the text for comprehension, but delete the sender’s information.

These 12 rules represent your basic etiquette for emails. Several more rules may be implemented but ultimately, it is your responsibility to make sure that your communications reflect a professional image, every time. Clear, polite and respectful communications will create credibility and trust for you and your business.

I had the privilege of working with Danièle a few months ago, and she was kind enough to allow me to share her transformation with my readers.

Danièle had been struggling with her look for some time, not knowing how to update her style. She felt she was at a point in her life where she needed to present herself differently to the world and didn’t know how to go about it.

I first did a short interview on how Danièle wanted to be perceived. I then did a complete analysis of her body type, face and eye shape, and colour palette and we discussed possible hair styles and hair colours that would enhance her features.

A hairstyle change is always the most frightening part of a makeover for a client. Makeup, clothes and accessories, you can always toss away if you don’t like, but a hairstyle is there to stay… at least for a couple of weeks, if not months. So it was not without hesitation that Danièle embarked on her journey. I’m glad she did.

Click to enlarge

Look at how Danièle’s whole body language is much more vibrant after her makeover! Before, her whole demeanour reflected apathy and withdrawal. There was no spark, enthusiasm, nor vivaciousness in her style or appearance. After the changes, she looks lively and dashing. She looks happy. Her posture reflects that new sense of pride and self-confidence, not to mention that she looks years younger!

Sometimes it doesn’t take much to rediscover that vibrant person that is buried inside. The result is well worth the investment!

Bravo Danièle. You look fabulous!

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