(ThySistas.com) First impressions matter, and in business you usually only get one chance to make a positive impact on a potential client. Having a professional company image assists in building trust with both clients and stakeholders, and helps to lay a solid foundation for you to foster business relationships. However, corporate image is more than your logo and promotional material. Here are five things you should consider if you’re looking to boost your company’s reputation:
Impressive Office Space
Your technical skills may be first class, but if you invite clients into a dingy office with ripped carpet, stained walls, and wobbly old meeting tables, you risk looking unprofessional and underqualified. Don’t take this chance. If you’re concerned that your budget doesn’t stretch to a swanky office in the central business district, a serviced office may be a great option. It provides you with access to a fully furnished, vibrant and professional office space at an affordable price with flexible terms.
Professional Website
The reality of business today is that most new customers will discover you online, which makes your website an essential tool in creating an excellent first impression. People also read online reviews to form opinions about an organization, with recent studies showing that 65% of people consider an online search the most trustworthy source of information about a company. With this in mind, it pays to invest in a professional site. A good design agency will consider your brand image and customer journey when building your website, which will make learning about your company a straightforward and frustration-free experience for customers.
Healthy Company Culture
Everyone’s heard of the free gourmet food and quirky design features that makes Google one of the most sought-after businesses to work for worldwide. But, it’s the flexibility, shared values and focus on employee happiness among other things which led to the organization being awarded ‘Best Company Culture’ by Comparably recently. A healthy company culture not only attracts and retains smart, capable, and highly motivated employees, but also draws new business. It makes sense that if you invest time and energy into happy and productive employees, then you’ll offer exceptional service for your customers as well.
Customer-focused Service
A customer-focused organization listens to their customer base and takes their feedback on board at every opportunity. The way that you deal with complaints speaks volumes about your business and can be an opportunity to grow and improve your brand. Do you have a process that communicates customer complaints to the appropriate department and facilitates improvements based on this feedback? If not, it’s worth implementing one as soon as possible. You’ll most likely find that listening to your customers has a profound impact on your customer retention rate and by extension, your brand image.
Ethical and Sustainable Business Practices
Companies are facing increasing pressure from the general public to adopt sustainable and ethical business practices, from the wages and working conditions in factories to the type of packaging used for products. These business practices need to be consistent and integrated throughout the organization to hold up to public scrutiny – otherwise, people will be quick to identify and share any transgression with their social media network. Conversely, companies that present genuine and consistent practices in line with their overall business values will be rewarded with a loyal following.
Enhancing your company image extends far beyond the realm of the PR and marketing department. To further comply and encourage sustainable business practices, implementing eco-friendly resources even down to elements like the type of packaging you use can be a step toward this. Utilizing brown paper roll for example, from suppliers such as Packaging Chimp can be the simple steps towards making this a part of your business model. You can also use the above tips to consider your organization as a whole and lay the foundations for future success. Before long, you’ll be able to see the benefits in your sales reports and customer retention rates.
Staff Writer; Sherry Poole