By Kara Jensen

You can’t deny that when it comes to dating, looking good and being confident are key to attracting a mate. People are inherently visual; they make an immediate judgment based on appearance before they even begin conversations. 

We spend billions of dollars and countless hours going to the gym, shopping for clothes, primping at the salon and even getting plastic surgery – all in the name of looking good. When we look good, we feel good and others are likely to perceive us as more desirable, successful, put together, intelligent and trustworthy. You’d certainly think this focus on appearance would carry over to marketing a business…but it doesn’t. 

Why do many businesses look so bad? Their logo is outdated, their website looks unprofessional and their brochure looks like it was put together by someone who just learned Photoshop. Many businesses also look like nothing – they don’t have a logo and their website is a page with traces of text on it. They’re void of any identity, something that screams, "I don’t care" or "I give up."

If there’s a time when you should be concerned about appearances, it should be with your business! Whether you want to believe it, people subconsciously draw conclusions about your business when they look at your logo, website, marketing collateral and signage. A poor appearance can trump your experience and generate an overall lack of confidence, while a professional and consistent brand can lead to opportunities you wouldn’t necessarily think possible.

This "Bad-Looking Business" epidemic is especially prevalent among small businesses. I’ve actually had logo design clients say, "This looks too professional" or "This logo makes my business look bigger than it is" – as if these were bad things! The best and most popular rebuttal is, "My clients don’t care about these things." Of course they don’t; they’re already clients. The purpose of creating a good-looking brand is to attract new clients. You need to look good to attract, just like in the dating game.

Your business’ physical brand isn’t everything, but its power should never be underestimated. It’s in your best interest to determine what your logo/website/marketing materials say about the organization, and whether that’s in line with what you really want to communicate.

Here are some great quotes for your reflection:

• Nothing succeeds like the appearance of success. -Christopher Lasch
• Good-looking individuals are treated better than homely ones in virtually every social situation, from dating to trial by jury. -Martha Beck
• Appearance rules the world. -Friedrich Schiller
• Clothes and manners do not make the man; but when he is made, they greatly improve his appearance. -Arthur Ashe

Kara Jensen is the creative principal for Bop Design, a marketing agency that partners with small business and focuses on lead generation through branding, web design, print design, advertising, SEO, and SEM. For more information, please visit www.bopdesign.com.