First Impressions are Lasting Impressions

In real life, people will judge you by how you’re presenting yourself. That means how you look, and how you act. If they don’t trust your presentation then they’ll never trust your pitch, product or service.

FOUR MINUTES. Studies tell us that's the amount of time we have to make an impression on someone we've just met.

Furthermore, first impressions are often lasting ones. Which means that when you play your cards right, you can enjoy the benefits of the "halo effect." In other words, if you're viewed positively within those critical 4 minutes, the person you've just met will likely assume that everything you do is positive.

Within a mere 10 seconds, that person will begin to make judgments about our sense of professionalism, social class, morals, and intelligence. People focus first on what they see (dress, appearance, eye contact, movement). Next, they focus on what they hear (rate of speech, tone and volume, articulation). Finally, they focus on our actual words.

In a study, Albert Mehrabian, UCLA professor emeritus of psychology, discovered that:

  • 7 percent of any message comes from the words we use;
  • 38 percent comes from our voice;
  • 55 percent comes from our body language.

The same is true online.

If your website looks dated, cluttered, and unprofessional, if your twitter feed is all about what you had for lunch or abusing a sports team, people will form an opinion of you. Is it the one you want them to?

Here's 5 quick tips:

  1. Make sure your Facebook page privacy settings are managed (ie: completely private and locked down!)
  2. Clean up your Twitter feed, either make it private or ensure the content reflects the image you want, delete any irrelevant posts, and update Linkedin
  3. Observe those you respect and admire – how do they manage their personal brand and how do people respond upon meeting them the first time?
  4. Ask people you trust to give you feedback on your body language, some subtle shifts might have a really positive impact
  5. Google search yourself, manage and delete any old and irrelevant content