By Stanley El
How do you build a successful image for your business? Well, begin with deciding what that image is. If you’ve done your homework, that’s not a problem. You know what kind of image you need to be successful. I did say “need.” Many times the image we want for our business isn’t the one we need. So you have to work that out first.
Once you’ve gotten through that step, you need to find out what image you have now. You may be surprised. It will take a little bit of research to find this out. Talking to customers is probably the easiest way. Knowing the image you have now gives you a better idea about what needs to be improved. Now you can begin to plan your image program.
Before I go on, let me explain what image is. Most people believe image to be how people see you. They can see you as very professional, friendly, trustworthy, the best in the business, cheap, a lot of value, etc. I think you get the idea. One thing you must know is that the feeling people get from your image is the most important factor. Image is how people feel about your business, not just how they see it. People can see your business as very professional, but if they don’t feel good about it, they will not do business with you.
This point cannot be overlooked. People buy based on how they feel first. Regardless of what you tell them, their feelings will always come first when making a decision. So be very careful when working on your image. Too many businesses use negative or deceitful tactics in their marketing to try to establish a successful image. How successful can that be? Remember, you can fool some of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.
Whenever you use dishonesty, deceit or anything negative in your company’s marketing, expect to get that in your image. That’s right, image is a marketing tool. More importantly, image is the most valuable hidden asset your company has. Like any asset, the better you manage it, the more you maintain its value. The more you put into it, the more value you add.
Businesses that have been around awhile typically have a good image, although they may not know what that image is or how to use it successfully. Once they have made the discovery and understand the power their image has, they may reap the benefit.
For a new business, image is everything. They have a unique opportunity to establish any kind of image they want. The key is living up to it.
An image program is an important part of your company’s marketing. Once you decided what that image should be, you can begin to plan its launch. There are several points in establishing a good image: the direction or focus of your company; the services or products you offer; the attitudes of your employees; and the look of your business, products, materials — everything.
The most important point in establishing your image is how you communicate. Your communications with employees, their communications with customers, and the quality of your advertising and graphics…I could go on and on.
Finally, I would like to say that every business has its owner or owners, who ultimately make the decision on where the business is going. For you, I say remember these three words: focus, control, and flexibility.
Always have a strong purpose for doing what you do and your image will be strong. Maintain control of your feelings and you’ll project a personal image of strength and success. And remain flexible. Flexibility means accepting that other people need to be involved constructively to really succeed.
Republished from the newspaper column “Building Business”
