Topic: Dress For Success

Remember to always dress for success when in the office.

The more professional you look and behave, the more comfortable clients will be with you.

Appearance projects confidence and trust. If you want to become the best leasing agent, dress like it. The more professional you look and behave, the more comfortable prospects and current residents will be with you.

There are great boards on Pinterest or Wanelo that post office appropriate clothing.
I have a Wanelo board for this very reason! wanelo.com/christinibean/collections/for-the-office

I understand the concept of company branding. So, of course everyone in the office wearing the chosen "uniform" can be great to solidify identity of THE COMPANY. I absolutely considered this was needed in some companies/offices after I saw one leasing team wearing short-short cut-offs and camisoles/tank tops during the hot summer months, and when asked if they thought this was appropriate, they responded that they did. In my opinion, you may have to mandate a dress code when people don't have any common sense about appropriate image presentation.

That does not mean I LIKE dress codes forced down my throat right down to the number of pieces of jewelry allowed, the one option only type of shoe some policies mandate, and whether or not I can color my hair. Yuck. Those types of rules do evoke my rebellious side!

To the point that dressing a certain way magically instills confidence with your clients, it depends on the market. I can tell you, and I've said it before, I have leased many, many apartments on Saturdays when I was dressed for an afternoon coaching soccer. In fact, I'd say that the more relaxed and confident your Leasing Consultants are in their own abilities to lease, is more important than whether or not they are wearing black suits with white, pink,or lblue shirts. Managers can easily correct poor choices in outfit with their teams in most cases - especially when companies deduct the cost of the "company apparel" from employee paychecks.

I manage a higher end boutique community and we are of the thought that "mirroring" your prospects is a lot more successful then "out dressing" them. When is the last time you saw a prospect come in dress to kill? I'm not saying you should look like you just rolled out of bed but dressing down, versus the high heels, ties, dresses or pantsuits will probably help your prospects relate more to you. Capris, nice jeans, pants, even tennis shoes if clean, would work. I think it's overkill to have employees dress like they work in a corporate office. ;)