Create a Climate for Success by Mastering Your Total Image - Part 3

In the first parts of this series, we introduced the concept of your Total Image, and discussed Hidden Image, your Reputation and your Experienced Image. This article, we'll continue the discussion of your Total Image with the fourth component: Your Proven Image.

Your Proven Image is you experienced over a period of time - it can either build on or derail a positive first impression. Consistency in your self-concept, your reputation and your experiences with others will help to build a Proven Image that is an asset instead of a liability. Some factors to consider:

1. Interpersonal relationships - are you taking time to acknowledge and appreciate others - even those who can't hire you directly? A consistently friendly approach will be reported favorably throughout your community and help you gain more clients in the long run.

2. Working style - do you work toward consistent delivery times for specific projects? Do your clients know what to expect for typical project turnaround times? Taking 3 days to complete a specific type of project one time, and then taking 2 weeks for the same type of project the next time will cause uneasiness with your clients and make you seem less dependable.

3. Advertising & Promotion - have you developed a consistent message for your advertising and promotions? If you use a consistent group of fonts and colors in your advertising, marketing and promotions, you'll develop a consistent visual identity that will tie in to the image of your company and its services over time. Your clients should be able to tell easily if a particular advertisement is for your company or not.

You must, as an Independent Professional, take care to make the last exposure to you, your Business or your expertise as valuable and positive as the very first one. Consistency is vital for creating valued Business relationships.

In the initial meeting with a client, which may be in person or at their company, work toward showing interest and courtesy to everyone involved in that client's business. You can never know whether individual who appears to be an ordinary employee is in reality one of the principals of the Business!

Your initial meeting sets the tone for the future relationship with that client, and you want to be confident, yet not disrespectful.

If you strive to complete projects for a new client within 24 - 48 hours initially, and later let that time frame slide to 5 or even 7 days without a very good explanation, the client will begin to wonder why they aren't getting the same excellent service that they got at the start of their relationship with you.

Always be sure to under-promise and over-deliver where your clients are concerned. Wouldn't it be better for a client to say "I always get my jobs delivered early from XYZ Company - they go to the trouble of making sure their work for me is never late," than for that same client to say "Well, my response time with XYZ company depends on what else they've got going - if it's a busy time for them, we might not be able to nail down a delivery date."

Consistency should also be present in the way you look for new clients - advertising and marketing plans are as distinctive as the Businesses they serve. Local or regional networking events can provide a fertile testing ground for new client approaches, within a consistent framework and identity for your