Marketing is an essential part of business. How you choose to present your business—and a client’s first impression of it—is crucial to that first step towards success. You may not get a second chance to make that good first impression.
With so much competition already in your space, and upstart entrepreneurs trying their hand at securing new deals, first impressions can often be the difference between a client choosing your business or going elsewhere.
Here is some advice on how to make a good first impression.
Invest in good PR
PR is the essential communication platform between your business and the public, and the direct route to communicating the message you want to be shared. If the general public first discovers your business through the channels of PR, then you will want that first impression to be a good one.
PR can make it so; you can lean heavily on PR to paint your business in the best possible light, and market your services in the best possible way.
It is also a valuable business relationship that you should set up as soon as possible.
Present a welcoming business setting
If you have clients visiting your business premises, then they have the opportunity to form their first impression of what you do before they have even met anybody within the business. This could be based on the state of your building, location, the way your reception is presented, and the general atmosphere of your station.
You should think about reception signage, which makes an impact when a client first walks through the door. You also need to consider cleanliness and friendliness and ensure everything is easy to find so that clients are made to feel comfortable straight away.
Encourage engagement
Although it is your job as a business to push your own service or product and make sales, this shouldn’t be a constant one-sided sales pitch. You can put people off in the first instance if you make it too much about you, and fail to engage with the consumer or other relevant parties.
A better first impression will be formed if you connect and engage with others and create a positive foundation for your business relationship. If you give the impression that you care only for the message you’re trying to push, you risk garnering disinterest.
Be professional always
It may be considered an obvious tip, but it’s the simplest thing that a lot of people can easily miss. Being professional doesn’t just mean looking smart and being respectful (though, of course, those ideals are part of it). Being professional means doing precisely what your business promises to do, doing it in a timely manner, being courteous, being interested, and presenting a professional image in everything you do. This includes how you choose to sign off emails, how your business answers the telephone, the design of your business cards, your product packaging, and your website design, to name but a few.
It doesn’t matter what style your business is—whether it’s formal, casual, more playful or serious—professionalism should always be present.
