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You’ll never know when that next big client will approach you, that’s why looking presentable to create a good first impression is important if you’re in for a business. In this episode, Eugenia helps us with what to wear to a business conference. Check it out!
Welcome back. Today we’re talking about “What do you wear to a business conference?” And is… is what you wear to a business conference different than what you’re going to wear elsewhere. We’re going to talk about that. Alright. Well I’m excited to talk about this and especially because I’ve experienced this with you. This is Eugenia. She’s an amazing wardrobe consultants. Is that we call yourself? -A wardrobe stylist. -Stylist. That sounds even better. -Consultant is good too but… -So, I’ve experienced this with you and that you’ve helped me with my wardrobe and we’ve talked about, “Oh, I’m going to be speaking at this event or I’m going to be going to this conference.” And so, how is the conversation different when we’re talking about going to a conference? How does that apply to wardrobe?-So, it’s very important.
So we can actually break it down into 2. Are you an attendee or you’re actually speaking at a conference, right? It depends. If you’re an attendee, obviously this is your time to shine, your time to dress to impress. To dress to how you want others to perceive you, right? So make sure that you dress the part and that you are… You look your brand, your business card. Have a personal style, right? So make sure that your clothing is clean and pressed. Make sure… -Is that going to be tough if you’re traveling to a conference. -Well, you know what? Usually most hotels have an iron and an ironing board. Or you can take a little portable steamer. -So people use those irons to actually… -You shouldn’t use those irons, Nate. Absolutely. They are there for a purpose. -I have to say. Since working with you, I’ve been using that irons at hotels what I’ve stayed at. But I haven’t before. -Well, let me ask you. Do you want people to look at you and say, “Oh my gosh. Did you just roll out of bed?” Or do you want them to actually take you serious, right? So yes. Make sure your clothes are pressed. It makes a big difference. -Okay, so you talked about… You’re going there as a participant but yet, you’re representing your brand… -Always. You’re always representing your brand. You have to remember, you never know who you’re going to meet, right? You never know if you’re going to meet your next best collaboration, future clients. You never know. So you always want to be prepared to dress to impress. So I have an example. -Yeah. -I have a few different clients who have national conferences that they attend to every year. Sometimes they played the part that they attend. And others, they are actually speaking at these major conferences. And some of them are national conferences where they’re speaking on stage being you know, thousands and thousands of eyeballs on them. So… But I have one particular gentleman who for the past three or four years now, he goes to this conference for his real estate company. And he started… He contacted me and he said, “You know what Eugenia? I want to look like a million bucks when I go to this conference. It’s very important to me.” And so anyway, every time he goes, he always gets complimented and comments of his colleagues of how sharp he looks. In fact, he wanted to have an accessory and not everybody needs to do this. But he wanted to have an accessory that said who he was. That helped him stand out from the crowd, right? Which actually happened to be like you red wool hat. Just a… Just a nice beautiful hat. I wouldn’t… I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that just for anybody. But anyway, it looked really good on him. And people started recognizing him by that hat. And then the rest of the outfits would follow. And often, he would go… He would also have to go onstage to get some awards and everything. And people… He would just stand out like a sore thumb. And in fact… -It was good thumb. -What did I say? “Like a sore thumb”? (Laughs) Yeah. Well, we don’t want to say. Cut! We want to say, he you stood out like… Like you really stood out from the crowd. And he caught the eyes of the owners of this company and actually gotten to work with them on a personal level. And in some national events. And that has really been very positive and beneficial to him both personally and professionally. So you never know. You want to dress to impress. -Yeah. So… I mean we we understand networking and how going to events like that. There’s so many people that you can meet. But there’s so much that gets said without saying anything. That’s correct. You want to be approachable. You want to look approachable. You don’t want to look like you’re better than anybody else.
That is not what I’m saying. But you only have that one first time to make that first impression then it better be a positive one. -So… And the example of that gentleman. He had that hat. And it sounds like that was kind of iconic. Should you plan like kind of a theme that people recognize you or can you do different things on different days if it’s a multi-day conference? -Absolutely. You can certainly do different things different days. But it needs to represent who you are. It needs to be your personal style, right? But one thing you need to keep in mind is to plan ahead. If you don’t plan ahead and you pack it last-minute, it’s not going to turn out as well. You’re not going to feel as good about yourself. And I guarantee you something is going to be missing. So you want to make sure you plan ahead. Planning ahead. Meaning, maybe even a month ahead or at least a couple of weeks ahead. Go through your wardrobe. Make sure you have what you want to wear. If you don’t, go shopping. And if you still don’t know what to do or if you don’t have time then absolutely, hire a wardrobe stylist. Because your time could be better surf elsewhere. And it’s stressful for a lot of people. So plan your week. If you’re a gentleman for example, you know, wear blazers. If you always look sharp. And most business conferences are business casual. I think it’s… It’s safe to assume that if you’re an attendee, it’s a business casual. So, we can talk about a little bit of what that means for both men and women. -Yeah. So, what are some… Let’s get into some specific recommendations for men and women. -Okay. For gentlemen, business casual, it’s always a big question. Most gentlemen have no idea what that means. What that means is a blazer. Some really nice dark wash jeans just like what you’re wearing. A nice well fitted button-down shirt like what you’re wearing. Or if you want to switch the button-down shirt which we’ve done with you. We’ve also opted for some t-shirts. Some nice t-shirts and logos. Just solid clean t-shirts. Either round neck or v-neck. Some other days can also be a nice knit polo. Not a polo that you wear out to the golfing range but a nice knit polo. Again with no logos or anything. This is not the time to be wearing a logo of your company on your polo. Believe it or not. So you can… You can… You can switch things up. You can also wear trousers if you’d like. You do not have to wear suit. But if you do want to wear suit, a lot of people love the whole suit idea. It is so much easier. Both items go together and it’s easy and then you just mix a button-down shirt. You don’t have to wear a tie. Pretty much business casual is dark denim jeans, Blazers, button-downs, knit polos or t-shirts that speak to your brand and then make sure you wear nice leather shoes. Shoes that look good and polished not that have been worn you know, or walked in a thousand miles. So, that’s very important. -So I want to comment on the the logo thing. Because as I… I’ve gone through another rebrand but a couple years ago, when I first created might “Be the hero” brand, I was so excited about it. And I created some fitness shirts that I really liked and they look great as far as fitness wear. But I started wearing that as… Well, this represents my brand. I’m just going to wear the shirt everywhere. So, I started dressing more casual when I… When I go to professional events or networking just so that… And it stood out. People recognized it. But just having a conversation with you and you showing me some alternatives and stuff like that. Like… Maybe just show it a little bit more light on why… Why did you recommend so much that I not wear those shirts. And why you recommend people. Even with a polo, they don’t wear… You know, an embroidered logo on their shirt. So number one is the fit for you. The shirt that you were wearing. The make of the shirt too. It was 110% polyester. You even admitted it. It looked like it, right? And it was… It hugged you in the wrong places. And… I’m not sure that that was the look you wanted to portray. I mean, you told me, “I don’t… I want it…” This is… You you told me specifically and with words what you wanted to portray. And that logo t-shirt did not portray that. You are the CEO of your company, right? You’re not a door-to-door salesman. And that’s kind of that look that you look like if you’re wearing you know, 100% polyester polo shirt with a big logo on it. You don’t look like you’re the CEO. Now, there are absolutely… Those times for you to wear your shirt with your embroidery in the name of your company on it. Absolutely. But conferences is really not the place. -Yeah. Because I… At the conferences I’ve been to since working with you, I’ve seen a lot of people that are there wearing their logo and some of them are the vendors. You know, they’re there at a booth. They’ve got it they’ve got a logo right there. -But that’s different. And that’s a little bit more appropriate. You know. Sure. -And… But people… Let’s even exclude them because there’s… That… I guess is it would be another conversation. But other people that have come up, they’ve just been a participant like me, shaking my hand, want to introduce. And I see that… I see the logo on their shirt. The first thought I had is, “This is an employee and their boss sent them to this conference.” That’s that. I don’t… That was the judgment that I make. And I notice that. And that’s definitely… For me. Because I’m not an employee. I’m… -You’re the CEO. -I didn’t realize… I didn’t realize that that’s the signal I was sending to people. -Now, if you want others to know automatically what your company is, an option is to wear one of those nametag that have the little… What are the little magnets. That’s an option. I think that’s a lot better so then you can wear the nice, sharp, sharp, outfit that you are wearing. And be switching that magnet around from your outfits. That’s a good option. If you really want people to automatically gravitate to what you do and stuff like that. So that’s… That’s… That’s a better option, I think than to have it glued on your clothing. -Okay. Let’s talk about women then. And what you recommend for women at a conference?
So, ladies. What I recommend is not too different from gentlemen, you know? If you want to wear dark denim jeans, be careful with the skinny look and that you’re not wearing jeggings because they look like yoga pants. So, if you are doing that wear. A top that comes below your dairy A and or mid thigh. So, it looks a little bit more appropriate. Dresses, skirts are also a good idea if those make you if you’re comfortable wearing those. Make sure that they come to the knee or just below the knee. Wear clothing… Wear tops that definitely are not too low-cut. Make sure that you look appropriate in that way too. And also shoes. Wear shoes that are comfortable and appropriate at the same time which is a little bit tougher for us women because come on the heels, they just make you look and feel so much better. But an option for that which often if you’re an attendee, you have to walk a lot and you want to make sure you’re comfortable is to carry a pair of flats that are comfortable. Or there are some flats actually that fold in half and you can pack them in your purse or in your tote bag that you’re carrying all day with articles from the conference and and whatnot. And you can just switch them, you know? You get to your meeting or you get to main conference then you switch to your shoes, you’re talking to people, you’re going to be walking you can switch your shoes. And but yeah, make sure that you are comfortable. Stay under four inch heels. You don’t want to send out the wrong impression. And again, clean and pressed. -So what.. If you… What… -Oh, one more thing. If I may. Make sure to wear makeup. There’s a lot of ladies that professionally they are in… They… They’re in the health care world or they like the natural look and that’s what they sell to. But you should always wear even if it’s just a little bit of makeup. It just makes you look more polished. -Alright, awesome. So, who knew that a conference, you could put a lot more into and maybe get a lot more out of it by doing so by planning ahead. So, thanks a lot for sharing this wisdom. -Thank you for having me. Make sure you subscribe and we’ll see you tomorrow.