Whatever your professional, personal, or relationship status might be, we all need to market ourselves to others. We are constantly selling who we are to onlookers, and a huge element in that marketability is in how you dress.
Do you want to dress your best to be a standout? If so, the following tips can help you learn how to use your business clothing as a tool to represent who you are and what you offer.
Quality Is King
When it comes to business wear, quality always trumps quantity and price for the consumer. Why? Neither a sale nor designer label will automatically make a suit right for you, and it’s better to pay the price of nailing a single look than to have dozens that aren’t working for you.
Quality is king of the business wear hill whether you’re looking for a job, promotion, or to win someone’s heart. So, start by inspecting the suit’s fabric. Is it scratchy? Is it too flimsy or stiff? Is it a horrible man-made fabric like polyester or polyester blends? If so, move along to a better quality.
Dress With Your Core Message In Mind
There’s a very good reason that people instinctively take note of soldiers when they wear their dress uniforms. It’s a soldier’s business attire, and it sends a powerful, profound, and crystal clear message about the person wearing it and what they represent.
It’s the same with a man in the right civilian business suit. A well-dressed man automatically draws the attention of onlookers. And, with the right suit selection and attention to detail, he can deliver his core message with ease and authority.
Don’t Forget The Details
Once you’ve nailed matching your core message to your business attire, it’s time to go over your look with a fine-toothed comb. Pay attention to the details because it’s these that often make or break your look.
Remember, even the most costly and high-quality suit can muddle your message and destroy your image if it’s not the right fit for your body. Pay attention to cuff and hem lengths. Check that the fit is neither too tight nor loose and that you have room to comfortably transition from sitting to standing positions.
Ensure that the accompanying components of your business suit are congruent in style and quality. These include a quality dress shirt, dress shoes, and tie. Don’t neglect the details within these selections, either. The wrong length tie, for example, can easily become a distraction.
Look beyond fabric to ensure that craftsmanship is up to par. Inspect areas like seams, stitching, buttonholes, and loops for boutonnières.
Do a test run to ensure that the suit’s design and cut coordinates with your body beyond a standard fit. How pockets are made, for example, can create unflattering bulges and lines. The drape of the material can also look very differently from one body shape and size to another.
You’ll also want to pay close attention to coordinating and harmonizing color, pattern, and design selection amongst each element and in relation to your own color wheelhouse. Even simple mistakes here can quickly diminish the power of your image.
The above handy tips are an excellent start to marketing yourself by dressing your best. Do you need more help? We are here to pull your look together down to the smallest of details.
