The Richwood Report

If you ARE good, there's nothing wrong with making sure you look as good as you are. On the contrary, you need to be sure that the little details of your business look as good as the big items. This means being consistent in good-looking literature, advertising and equipment. Here's a good article from a really helpful site on public speaking, sales training and public relations. A quote:

David Garfinkel, co-author of GUERRILLA MARKETING FOR THE IMAGING INDUSTRY, told me about the experiences of a client. This retailer visited a trade show and was attracted to a distinctive and obviously costly booth for a design firm. He asked them to send him some information. When the letter came, it was on shoddy looking stationery, sloppily typed. The retailer decided not to do business with this firm. Although everything else had looked great, the sharp contrast between the classy booth and the shabby letter did not inspire trust that the firm would and could deliver. The design firm had spent at least $50,000 on their trade show exhibit, but didn't have the common sense to maintain a consistent image by investing in good letterhead and a competent secretary. It cost them a $100,000 contract.