Does Looks Really Matter in Your Personal Life and Business?

Maybe you've heard the saying "Never judge a book by its cover". It extensively means one shouldn't judge the value of something by its outward appearance (looks) alone.

Ironically though, we humans are naturally big visual judges. As a matter of fact, people who are considered more beautiful or handsome than average tend to be highly perceived of and get more favors than others. This is called the "Halo Effect ".

A 2004 study by Timothy Judge at the University of Florida?found that for every inch of height, a tall worker can expect to earn an extra $789 per year. That means two equally skilled co-workers would have a pay differential of nearly $5,000 per year, simply because of a 6-inch height differential, according to the study.

So, whether you and I like it or not, we continually judge a book by its cover; metaphorically and literally. That's why authors spend millions of USD on design of book covers, businesses spend millions of USD to hire models for the advertisement of their products and "packaging" is important for individuals and businesses.

THE ROLE OF LOOKS IN JUDGEMENT

Why is judgement by looks a thing, even when many don't want to judge people or things by their appearance alone? I think this is because we are often required to make judgement quickly, with very little or no information made available to us. Therefore, we, humans, have chosen visuals as our favorite path to heuristics.

Heuristics are mental shortcuts that allows you to solve problems and make judgments quickly and efficiently. These rule-of-thumb strategies shorten decision-making time and allow you to function without constantly stopping to think about the next course of action.

So, most of the time you think, "Hmm, they look great, they must be great", instead of asking for their profile or biography to make a judgement.

Take care of your personal looks then. It is your gateway to forming impressions that lasts beneficially for you in the mind of your associates.

THE ROLE OF LOOKS IN BUSINESS

In the context of business, your "looks" is represented by your brand identity.

Your brand identity is the visual—and to a lesser extent, verbal—expression of your brand. This can include your company's name, logo, designs, collateral (flyer, banner etc), color palette, typography, brand voice, tagline etc.

Essentially, your brand identity is the collection of all elements you create to portray a beneficial image to your target audience.

Your brand identity is often the first touch-point and impression of your brand. Thus, your target audience actively judge your brand with how you present yourself through your identity.

Your brand identity influences the behavior of your target audience towards your brand, which in turn has a direct impact on the performance of your business.

For example, if you're in store for a skincare product without having any preference in particular, there is high possibility that you'll choose one with the best packaging. What happened there is that the company's choice of using that packaging, that appealed to you, had influenced your behavior which in turn made a sale for the company.

Credit: Alina Wheeler (Designing Brand Identity)

You'll be surprised to learn about how much effort, time and money top companies put into creating and maintaining a brand identity that help them attract and retain their best customers.

Xiaomi literally spent around US$300,000 (124 million Naira) to redesign their logo this year.

Xiaomi's Old and New Logo.

Now, is the logo redesign worth 124 million Naira or US$300k? For that, we'll need to examine brand equity (especially in a competitive industry like tech), value perception etc. However, those are discussions for another day.

A Final Thought

It is true that each of us is far more than our appearance. However, when we meet someone new, they inevitably make judgement about us. And with nothing else to hold on to, they rely on our appearance to make that judgement. So, how you look does matter, even if you wish it did not. You only get one chance to make a first impression, and you want it to be the right one.

In the context of business, the major conclusion is to make sure your brand identity is:

Distinct: It should clearly differentiate you from the competition and be attention grabbing.

Meaningful: It should go beyond aesthetics and resonate with your target audience.

Sometimes, an element of brand identity is even designed to represent brand values and commitment.

An example of this is Southwest Airline’s heart inspired logo. Southwest Airline writes, “We like to think of ourselves as a customer service company that happens to fly airplanes. Without a heart, our planes are just machines.”

Southwest Airlines' Logo

Memorable: It should make a visual impact and be easily memorable.

Sustainable: It should be able to stand the test of time and lend itself to a brand architecture if required. It should also be able to grow and evolve with the brand.

Cohesive: Each piece of your brand identity should work together without much effort, complement each other and represent the brand effectively in their entirety.

Easy to use: It’s intuitive and clear for whoever needs to use them.

These said, it is worthy to note that you don't need to spend millions on brand identity if you can't afford it; especially if you're a start-up.

You can work on your identity yourself, for free, with resources made available on the internet.

So, evaluate your brand identity today. Check if it portrays the preferred image of your brand to your customers. You can do this evaluation by asking the people that matters most to your business, your customers. Or getting a professional to do it for you.

If you decide after your evaluation that you need to amend your current identity or create an entirely new one, do it right away. It has a big impact on your business, as mentioned earlier.

Fortunately, I published a FREE in-depth guide on creating an effective brand identity. Although it is targeted towards realtors, the principles and steps in it is widely applicable outside of the real estate industry. Click here to get the free guide and resources that comes with it.

In case you need a professional touch on your brand identity, if you want to create an identity that attracts and retain your best customers, reach out to us now. Our crack team of professional designers will make sure you get a beneficial identity that supports your perpetual business growth.