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What not to wear – a smart user’s guide to dressing to impress

Outsiders may think PR is a superficial profession, and some insiders may even agree with them. But does that mean PROs should be obsessed about their appearance? The obvious answer is no, but that doesn’t mean that they should disregard it either. Ian Whiteling, editor in chief of web channel meetingsreview.com, has been meeting and working with PR professionals for over ten years, and has noticed that when it comes to dress, it is usually the males of the species who let the profession down. He says: “By far the worst dressed PROs I've met have been men – the shabby-suit and bad-shoe brigade. Disaster! And almost creepy. Are these guys still being dressed by their mothers? And does this pander to the sleazy reputation that PR tends to suffer from; that it is peopled by oily schmoozers?”

Whiteling does not think that all women get it right, however, adding that some seem to go too far, piling on the make up and even turning to cosmetic surgery to present a perfect image. He thinks this can be equally as scary as the men‘s bad suits, and also suggests that PR is just about first impressions, and therefore panders to another unfortunate preconception about PR.

Suitably attiredAs an outsider, Whiteling’s advice to those in PR is to consider the company they keep: “Finance PROs need to be immaculately dressed in business attire, whereas this would possibly be seen to be intimidating in the more relaxed media marketplace, where a more casual approach is required, but one that acknowledges an appreciation of fashion and trends. All this indirectly shows an understanding of the marketplace they are working within, which of course is key to successful PR.”

Rob Davies, consulting director at communications consultancy oneonone, agrees that different sectors require different approaches, adding: “What I find is you need to get to know your client first and then dress to match their expectations. Often that means following the dress sense their organisation follows so that you can demonstrate that you are aligned to what they are thinking and that they will take you seriously. So if your client’s organisation wears business suits then smarten up. If they all wear jeans then you have a bit more licence. But never lose sight of the fact that to them they are employing a professional, so your image must acknowledge that fact.” Davies says that a good piece of advice he received is that it is really hard to be caught out overdressed whereas it’s easy to be caught out underdressed.

But if you are not comfortable in what you are wearing, it could be argued that you might not come across as genuine. Ross Furlong, managing director of online specialists Furlong PR, thinks that although it is sensible to take a cue from the client’s dress code initially, it is important not to “sell out your own company culture”. He suggests that it is naïve to put on a pin stripe for a meeting in the city for example, pointing out that this can look a bit obvious to anyone with a basic knowledge of human psychology. He explains: “You don’t want to be accused of mirroring which can appear manipulative. As a PR person, you should hopefully have an intuitive idea of the impression you’re likely to make in differing circumstances and dress accordingly whilst retaining some individuality.”

Appearances matterBefore PR people become too anxious about striking exactly the right note with their image, it is worth stepping back and considering to what extent, truly, it matters. As Nancy Prendergast, managing director of PR consultancy Tannissan Mae, puts it: “Clothes do not make the man – or the PRO. It won't matter a jot how good you look if you don't deliver the goods.” This is not to say that Prendergast believes it doesn’t matter what PR people wear, on the contrary, she thinks that appearances do matter, pointing out that it’s right to look professional when out and about with clients and the media. However, Prendergast says that as PR is a creative industry, this should be reflected in the way PROs present themselves, even if they do work in technology and finance, adding, “I believe that clients feel comfortable seeing both something of themselves in their PRO – and something a little bit surprising.”

Listening to all this advice could make getting dressed in the morning a bit of an ordeal. Be smart, but not too smart, adapt to a client (but don’t mirror them), and reflect that one is in tune with the market place and understands latest fashions. Oh, and don’t forget to be original. For those concerned that their fashion sense isn’t up to these calculations, it is reassuring to know that being relaxed about clothing can also work. At Frank PR, according to its chairman and founder Graham Goodkind, there is a laid-back attitude towards dress. He says, “We’re not really that fussed what people wear to work, it’s not a big deal. It’s a relaxed and informal working environment so people dress relaxed and informally, whatever they feel comfortable in. I think this works best and rubs off on the atmosphere in an agency. We even recently had an account manager come into work dressed as Wonder Woman (it was Red Nose Day)! If a client need or event necessitates more formality in terms of appearance then I’ve found that staff work that out and match their look and outfit accordingly. It’s just a question of being a bit sensible – and we trust people to be sensible.”

Editors note: Send us in your best dressed, or preferably worst dressed pics, and we'll definitely put them on the blog. (Note the words "dressed" though, you must have clothes on, no weirdos.)

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