Where Does Attitude Fit Into Your Marketing?

Many years ago a good client of my printing company wore a gold lapel pin that simply was the word “Attitude”. When someone inquired about the pin he would bark at them, “None of your business” or “What’s it to ya?” or some other aggressive negative reply. It generally took about two seconds for the humor to be realized and a little laughter was a great way to start a business conversation.

Attitude will invite people to work with you or can have a chilling effect. Recently I had a conversation with a person who was investigating having a swimming pool installed. She said the contractor's attitude was so self assured that it elevated it to a level where the contractor seemed to be doing the customer a favor if they installed the pool.

Knowing the balance of self promotion, the words you choose to describe your business and your talents and what your client/prospect needs to confidently trust you with their business is key to effectively marketing yourself. It is also a demonstration of what your client can expect from you when you work on their marketing.

The best marketing is the positive things others say about your business or you. Testimonials, awards and other recognition is always better than saying it yourself. It also allows for more extreme comments because it is not you making them!

Next, using factual information such as The first..., The original..Recommended by..., Locally owned, Bonded & Insured, Third generation, etc. gives a solid legitimacy to the business. Be sure the statements are accurate and no competitor can make the same claim.

Flexibility in attitude is perhaps the most important thing to master. With some clients/prospects a formal, strictly business attitude is essential. Cross all the T’s and dot all the I’s, forget about jokes and other small talk and just get down to business. Be sure to dress appropriately and be on time! The other extreme is a casual lay-back attitude where business is an extension of a friendship. If you make a mistake with a new contact, let it be towards the more formal until you know for sure that you can relax a bit. 

A sensitive area to acknowledge is that your feelings towards a client will be responsible in part for the attitude you display. If for example there is a client you really dislike and you have the option of letting someone else in your company work with them - choose that option! If you do not have that option and continue to work with the client, you may end up losing them - which might be OK, except they may make comments to others that can impact your reputation. Best advice is to handle it in a more formal way and stay business focused.

Attitude can most certainly be felt in written form, not just face to face. The way you open a written communication on paper, text or email can set the tone and attitude for what follows. Dear Bob, Hi Bob, Good morning Bob, etc. puts a friendly face on the communication. Opening with just Bob or Mr. Jones, when you know the person well, will prime the recipient to be less than interested in the substance of the note. 

Also a critical element in conveying your attitude is body language. Whether one on one or addressing a group of people, how you carry yourself, the gestures you use, inflection in your voice, pauses, volume and speed of delivery, all contribute to people liking and believing you or being turned off and ignored. Making eye contact with people while you are speaking adds believability to what you are saying and therefore a trusting attitude will head in your direction.

Be your own litmus test. Think about people you know who you find to have a great attitude, someone you enjoy doing business with. Then think about those that really have a terrible attitude, the sales people you try to avoid - don’t be that guy!

During my now quite long career I have regularly received phone calls or emails from prospects that I met with asking for me to give them information we had already discussed. That was always a confirmation that they might not have remembered everything we went over, but they liked my attitude enough to follow up.