The Image of Being Earnest

Those furnishings are the obvious, visible badges of success. They're a quick way to establish image, and speed is critical. Consulting is a high-impact profession. You don't have the time luxury of the typical executive or manager who can gradually win people over through wonderful skills and inner qualities. You've got seconds to create a good impression and a precious few minutes to establish a relationship. If you blow it, you might as well keep that carefully crafted proposal in your briefcase. It will never fly.

The Sticker Price

But do you really need to flash an $80,000 car or a $250,000 boat at the client to win the business? Absolutely. It's all part of the high stakes consulting business, according to Judith Ann Graham, senior image consultant with The Image Advantage (New York, NY).

"Consultants need to have the finest car, along with all the other quality accessories that support a capable and successful image," says Graham. And, if a car or a boat is a part of the consultant's image seen by the client, then it needs to be the best car or boat.

Of course, best is determined by the situation, not just by the price. As part of her image consulting, Graham conducts an ongoing research program focused on cars and image. BMW, Lexus, and Mercedes Benz are the best choices, she finds, when you want to say that your lifestyle is about high performance and high precision. By comparison, Jaguar won't evoke that same high performance image, according to Graham. On the other hand, if you want to convey an image of luxury, Graham says, the BMW won't get you there. Go with the Jaguar for its sleekness and cushy, pampered feeling.

Consultants should have this same level of image-awareness with their personal accessories. High quality briefcases come in so many variations that the right choice can send a very precise image message: conservative, flamboyant, trendy, or technical. And what goes into the briefcase continues the reinforcement. A high tech consultant, for example, who carries the latest and greatest electronics and communications gadgets reinforces the techy image. A consultant from the same company who carries just a phone and a pager is making the statement that he or she is customer — and business-centered.

It's important to remember that you don't have to tell the client the kind of person you are, because you're showing it through the image you create. "It's like show and tell," says Graham.

The Fashion Bug

Clothing choice is another opportunity to tailor your image and your impact on clients. Clothing is especially important because what you wear is the beginning of the bridging process with the client. The car, the boat, and your personal accessories all tend to reflect the aspect of image that says who you are. Clothing choice, however, can reflect your sensitivity and your respect for the client. A consultant, for example, should always try to dress appropriately for a client meeting. You make the effort to find out what the client expects you to wear — business professional or business casual — and generally follow those conventions.

Even within these limits, consultants can still convey a personal image through clothing. One way you do that is by not drifting toward the low end of permissible. For instance, consider a sport coat with dress slacks for business casual rather than khakis and a polo shirt. You also convey the right image through the quality of the clothes you wear. Once again, the consultant needs to radiate consistent high quality, whether it's in the choice of car, cell phone, or clothes.

The image you build based on appearance is like setting the stage. You've established initial credibility and gotten the client ready to listen. The next stage in image-building is action. While you're introducing yourself and moving into the substance of the meeting, the client is probably concentrating on your actions, your nonverbal communications, more than on your words.

Your Body Talks

"A majority of us, 70 percent to 80 percent, are primarily visual learners," explains Linda Brakeall, president of Phoenix Seminars (Chicago, IL). This is why those graphics you use in your presentation are so important. But, as Brakeall points out, clients are also reading you during the presentation. Do you believe what you're saying? Do you care about the client? Do you even understand what you're saying or are you parroting ideas that somebody wrote for you?

These kinds of messages are conveyed primarily by body language. Experts say that if you want to show that you believe in your message, you need to maintain eye contact with the client. If you want to show that you care about the client, sit up in your chair and lean forward slightly. If you want to show that you're invested in the message (you understand what you're saying), use gestures from subtle to adamant to emphasize your points. And it's just as important to avoid the negative signals. Don't fold your arms, gaze into space while listening, or lean away from your client.

You've probably heard these nonverbal fundamentals ad nauseum. Then you get wrapped up in your ideas and forget to craft your nonverbal signals with the same care you use to craft your words. Unless you practice the art of body language, it may take real effort to avoid the consequences of poorly "speaking" it.

"Women, especially, have a tendency to fold their arms when they're cold," says Anna Wildermuth, author and president of Personal Images, Inc. (Elmhurst, IL). This doesn't mean that they're closed or standoffish, but they're often perceived that way, according to Wildermuth. Even generally positive body language can be misconstrued. A consultant may lean forward while speaking, consciously or unconsciously showing enthusiasm. If you're a large person, however, the effect may be intimidating or threatening. Good use of eye contact is also a lot more difficult than it sounds.

"In my workshops, I recommend making eye contact especially at the beginning of a meeting, at each high point, and when you want to check your approval rating with the audience," says Wildermuth. If there is an ideal duration of eye contact, it depends on the situation. In an introduction, Wildermuth's rule is to stay long enough to note the color of the person's eyes. In fast-paced environments, it's common for people to look away before they've even finished exchanging names. This isn't usually some sort of personal rejection; people are just busy and distracted. But as a consultant, if you lose eye contact during the introduction, warns Wildermuth, you also lose a great opportunity to begin establishing a relationship.

Multilingual Gestures

As the communicator, you need to use "standard" body language: Make eye contact, don't fold your arms, etc. That's because your clients, your audience, are likely to react to these physical actions in a predictable way. In essence, you use gestures and motions to convey an open, engaged, supportive person.

Throughout every client meeting — whether it's one-on-one, a small group, or a large seminar — consultants need to know if they're getting through to the audience. Smiles and nods are indicators, but only if the audience is willing to give you some conscious attaboys. A more subtle and dependable signal is mirroring.

"People start to adopt the body language of the speaker when they're in agreement," says Linda Brakeall. Fold your hands, they fold their hands. Cross your legs, they cross their legs. Tilt your head … Well, you get the idea. Strange as this may sound, mirroring is a widely accepted phenomenon that tells you the audience is buying what you have to say.

You can also adapt mirroring into your own image building. You do this by mirroring the person with whom you're speaking. Subconsciously this seems to establish a psychological rapport. To see if you're having an effect, after you've mirrored someone for a while, try changing your position. If they change with you, you're probably getting your message across.

Even when you start accepting image as visual communication, the extreme significance of image in successful consulting can be hard to accept. You spend years in school learning a skill, and more years building experience and successes. Then you're told that what you say is less important than how you say it, less important even than the clothes you wear or the car you drive. Actually, your professional expertise is absolutely what clients need and what they're really buying. But the professional image you project, more often than not, is how you sell it.

Power Points:

• People use the image they perceive in deciding whether they like you, trust you, or respect you.

• Consultants need to radiate consistent high quality, whether it's the choice of car, cell phone, or clothes.

• Body language, or nonverbal communication, may be the most important and least practiced image-building skill. Lack of skill often turns body language into a communication wild card. You're thinking and saying one thing, but your body language is sending a different message.

Professional Image Vs. The E-culture :)

As you network, e-mail, and collaborate electronically through your day, image — or visual communication — may not seem like a big issue. You want to communicate efficiently? Send an e-mail. If you want to add the personal touch, pick up the telephone. And if you want a real (well, virtual) face-to-face, use video conferencing.

Communications technology has permeated business so thoroughly that we wonder if it's time to phase out handshakes and sit-down meetings. One of the people who should know is John Peetz, chief knowledge officer for Ernst & Young (Cambridge, MA). A part of Peetz' job is evaluating new communications technology to help the Big 5 firm communicate better internally and with its global clientele.

"Five years ago, we were discussing with Boeing the possibility of less air travel and fewer planes due to the new communications technologies," Peetz recalls. But exactly the opposite happened. Technology took geography substantially out of the equation, enabling consultants to connect with clients far away. "Now we spend more time on airplanes to personally meet with our widespread clients," says Peetz (speaking from a client site in Rome).

To illustrate the point, Peetz says he might need to talk with a CEO about a political problem in which several members of the CEO's organization aren't aligned with company direction. "That's not an e-mail conversation and often it's not a telephone conversation," according to Peetz. It's a face-to-face meeting.

Peetz sees technology as more supplement than replacement for face-to-face meetings. If the consultant team is working with the client team on a design process, for example, ideas can flow back and forth and debates can often occur in a purely electronic environment.

At critical moments in every engagement, however, even video conferencing is no substitute for face-to-face interaction. Although Ernst & Young often uses video conferencing, the technology has limitations. You can't get eye contact with video conferencing, Peetz explains. Video conferencing doesn't let you read an audience to see if they're really tracking what you're saying, and vice versa.

"Relationships are still the cornerstone of a professional services relationship," says Peetz. "Our ability to effectively serve clients rests on a foundation of trust, and trust is built on the in-person, face-to-face, eyeball-to-eyeball meeting of two human beings."