Dressing for your brand is an important element of personal branding. To find out what part your style has to play in conveying your brand personality I asked Alice Nichol from Buddy and Noo. This blog will act as a guide to personal branding, with Alice discussing how you can dress for your brand.
Alice is a personal stylist and founder of Buddy & Noo, she can offer amazing wardrobe edits and style advice for all occasions but really enjoys helping business women to look the part (even on zoom!)
How would you define personal branding from a stylist’s point of view?
Style is how we express ourselves through what we wear.
Your personal brand works the same way, it is how you communicate your values, personality and business style across to potential clients and wider audience.
It is how you visually represent yourself, how you set the tone and mood for your services and products.
If your business is service based like mine, then your personal brand is also how you give potential clients an insight into you, a way for them to get to know you so when they purchase a service, there is an expectation and level of familiarity there.
How much does the way we dress play a part in our personal brand?
Clothes may seem a frivolous thing to consider when it comes to your business and it’s branding. However the right wardrobe can affect your outlook, and most importantly, the way others see you. Our style and how we dress is an extension of our personality and a representation of how we feel about ourselves.
We can use clothes to boost our confidence, convey a certain message and hide areas we do not want to draw attention too.
Whether you are meeting someone face to face or by Zoom that first impression has to count, as once formed it rarely changes, so how you represent yourself through your clothes is key to making that first impression a successful one.
Is it important to connect with your brand colours?
One hundred percent! Colour is so evocative, it can communicate a mood, feeling or emotion without the use of words.
When choosing your brand colours it is so important you naturally feel comfortable with them or connect with them as they will be the main visual triggers a client will see within your branding.
As we said earlier, your personal brand is an extension of you so the colours within it should be also.
How important is it to wear your brand colours?
Not necessarily head to toe! It can look too ‘cheesy’ and a bit overwhelming for a client if you are a walking colour branded advert for your business!
What you wear can advertise your brand without the need for being head to toe in specific colours. If you want to wear your brand colours then be subtle with it, for example an accessory or a jumper in one of your colours can be a nice discreet nod without overwhelming.
How can I accessorise to suit my personal brand?
If you are going to use your accessories as a way of communicating your personal brand then think about not only colour but style.
If you are a B2B business who deals with more corporate clients in larger organisations and your brand colours are red and navy then rocking up to a meeting in some rosey red and blue tassled earrings with a complimentary bright floral scarf may not be giving the right message.
Instead a simple navy tote with a red scarf tied around the handle or elegant red painted finger nails with a navy silk scarf are more sophisticated, more appropriate alternatives for your client meeting.
3 Top Tips on how to dress for your brand?
- Always be mindful of your core values and your avatar when dressing for your brand. Try to put yourself in their shoes, so to speak! Think about who’s style would they respect and admire or if your outfit reflects the core values you are so proud of within your brand.
It may not be 100% your natural style but try to take some elements and emulate them in your outfits. - Be comfortable. There is no point wearing a fitted shift dress because you think it’s smart and then feeling extremely uncomfortable in it, as this will be written all over your face and body language. Instead think ‘smart = simple tailoring’ A fuss free, plain skirt with a simple shirt or tailored blouse will still give the right message but you can adjust for your comfort levels.
- Plan your looks for the week.
That first impression is so important when meeting future clients so if you have any specific events, meetings or networking events have a clear idea of what you want to wear and hang them ready in your wardrobe. You don’t want to be flustered and worrying about what to wear on the day!
A big thank you to Alice for clearing up some of the questions around dressing for your brand. If you would like more in formation from Alice about dressing for your brand then drop her an email at alice@buddyandnoo.co.uk