It feels easy to invest in a book that will help you increase your sales. Or software that will increase your team’s efficiency. Or a mastermind program that helps you get to where you want to go. But when it comes to investing in your outer self, sometimes it never occurs to you to open your wallet.
There is ROI in investing in yourself.
Neil Patel of Quicksprout.com is a master of making money. He’s helped companies like Amazon, NBC, GM, HP, and Viacom grow their revenue. He conducted a year-long experiment to determine whether or not the way you dress impacts your revenue, and he specifically looked at the return on investment.
He tracked everything he did. He changed nothing about his pitch, what he was selling, or the type of business he was after. The only change he made was what he wore. That one change resulted in an increase of sales to the tune of $692,500.
He says that when he dresses nicer, he gets larger business deals. What he wears does create conversations with random people on the street, but his true ROI came from the results he got from dressing nicer in business meetings. As someone who dressed extremely well, he was perceived as someone who was extremely successful—making more people want to be associated with him.
In one year, he spent $162,301 on clothing—and it resulted in a return in investment of $692,500. That’s over a 400% return. Not bad, right!? His image gave him an edge. A $692,500 edge, to be exact.
Neil conducted an experiment, but you don’t have to. I tell you Neil’s story to offer the perspective that when you invest in yourself specifically to create an edge in your business, you will get results.
Neil went big. $162,301 spent on clothing is a pretty big number. But he also got a big return, and I would bet he knew that before ever starting his experiment. (Check out his own blog post about it here.)
In order to decide to invest in yourself, you need to look at one thing: what’s the return on investment you will get? Consider how much a client is worth to you. If a client is worth $10,000, and you spend $10,000 investing in your wardrobe, that one client just paid for your image upgrade. So now, investing in yourself has actually cost you nothing. And anything else that one client buys from you, or other opportunities you now land because of your new image, make that return on investment climb higher and higher.
My philosophy is, since you are going to get dressed each day anyway, why not dress in clothes that help you increase your revenue?
Each item in your closet works together to create your business edge. So each article of clothing is an opportunity to increase your bottom line.
Since each first impression is a sales opportunity, each article of clothing you wear is how you prepare for that conversation—so choose wisely.
Have you ever thought about what changing your clothes could be worth to you financially? It’s a simple calculation. You can calculate yours here: http://www.leeheyward.com/calculator
From the time we are children we hear about how image matters. We whine as kids because our mother wants us to tuck our shirts in. Remember your mom saying, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.”
Well, your mother was right, and your image is the key to your life success. What’s inside should count a lot more, and it usually does, but not when it comes to first impressions.
Social psychologists have determined it only takes 30 seconds for someone to form a first impression about you. That is fast. It doesn’t allow much time to tell people who you are, what you stand for, or how great you are on the inside. Thirty seconds only allows enough time for people to judge you based on what they see. Bottom line: your appearance matters.
Not only does your appearance matter, it also has a lasting effect. This is what psychologists call the halo effect. When the visual message you put out into the world is positive, the people you meet will assume that other aspects about you are also positive. Unfortunately, the reverse is also true—if you make a negative impression, you don’t always get a second chance to undo a poor first impression. Remember, not everyone gets a chance to speak to you so your appearance and your body language must do the communicating for you.
The good news is that you can control your image. There are many things in life that you cannot control. But how you portray yourself is something you cannot only control, but change.
Let Charleston Style Concierge help you control the image you portray. Learn how to put your best foot forward in an easy and effortless way.
More often than not, each piece of your brand image was created when you needed it, but not altogether in a strategic fashion. Your image may look fine, but does fine help you grow?
Eventually as you scale, your image foundation cracks, and the way your business presents itself no longer helps propel growth – costing you time and money to fix.
When you unlock your brand power, you get to pick and choose how people perceive you and your brand.
Our Image Mastery System™ takes the 5 key brand components that you already have and ties them together in a way that amplifies your results and achieves your vision.
