Personal Brand Stereotypes #7: A Nice Car Means You're Successful
After dealing with ageism,
I wanted to talk about social classes and how they are perceived by what they wear or what product brands they are attached to. James Bond drives an
Aston Martin in many of his films, which includes the DB5 classic car and the Vanguish. You can't tell me that those wouldn't profile him as a rich, successful and attractive person to females and business associates. The products we touch, the people we go out with and the companies that hire us all impact our personal brand perception. A lot of people are giving advice such as "
fake it until you make it," but that isn't
authentic.
What I’ve posted about so far:
- #1 - Tall people are basketball players
- #2 - Glasses make you look smart
- #3 - Men who wear pink are homosexual
- #4 - The hippie phenomenon
- #5 - Only punks wear mohawks
- #6 - Ageism puts Gen-Y in danger
Today, I'd like to go over what I believe to be a very interesting topic and one that many salesmen take advantage of. The question I pose is "
Does driving a nice car mean your successful." I've spoken with a few financial advisers and salesmen who invest money in their cars in order to seems like they are successful to clients. The root in all of this lies in a theory that I want to discuss here.
I believe that people only want to take advice from those more successful than they are. One way to demonstrate to others that you are more successful is purchasing a luxury car such as a BMW or Mercedes.
More analysis
Picture this: You're a saleswoman and meet a prospect at their house in a very rich area. You come with your handy
Ford Taurus and show up at the steps. You notice in the driveway that they own a
BMW 750I and a
Lexus SC430 (I'm a huge car buff). You walk into their house with low confidence because you put them on a pedestal and you start to give your pitch. The prospect walks away thinking "
do I really want someone handling my money that isn't as wealthy as me"?
When you attend a conference, do you really want to hear a keynote from a waitress at TGI Friday's? When you attend a class, do you really want a janitor giving you lessons on self-improvement or personal branding? When you go to work, would you even listen to a manager who doesn't know how to use Microsoft Word or Excel? I think you get the point with these exaggerated questions. The fact of the matter is that
we only want to deal with people who are more successful in these situations because that's how we learn and professionally network. When you cling to those who are more successful or intelligent than you are, you will be more motivated and learn more. Again, the people you surround yourself with will directly affect your success and how people perceive you.
Also posted on personalbrandingblog.wordpress.com
1. At 11 Apr 2008 12:30, Dennis McDonald wrote:
I've never understood why anyone would want to spend so much money on a fancy car when you could use all that money for a fancy home theater!
2. At 11 Apr 2008 12:33, brandonwright wrote:
Dan- First impressions are everything. People rack up tens of thousands of dollars of debt to finance that image, while others rent the expensive cars. I think this post and the others in the series speak to expectations. We expect people in authority to know more; have more tools in the toolbox. If expectations are not met or exceeded, then confidence is lost.
3. At 11 Apr 2008 13:37, Dan Schawbel wrote:
@Dennis - They do it because they want to appear as superior to others, so that they will get new clients. I mean some people are just rich (millions) and can afford it anyways, so why not?
4. At 11 Apr 2008 13:38, Scott Bradley wrote:
Dan, This is a great post. I think one thing is very clear..."You never get a second chance to make a first impression." I got that quote from Mark Cuban. Even though the concept is so basic...whether you like it or not this quote embodies the truth. People are judging beings by nature and we as humans really can't control if people will judge us or not. While it is also sad that we live in such a materialistic culture, and most people DO judge you initially by what you have and what you wear...we really can't do much about it. The concept is kind of like dating a girl. I always tell people...It's the looks of the girl that get you there, but the person inside that you get to know keeps you there. When you both are old hags you still need to have a person that you can relate to and speak with. Sadly, when it comes to judging people, mostly everyone judges the outside first, before figuring out what is on the inside. Imagine if people flipped this around and instead judged people based on what was inside before judging the outside...We would live in a completely different world.
5. At 11 Apr 2008 14:28, Kevin K. wrote:
Dan, you and I share a common interest (or maybe malady) - I too LOVE cars, always have, especially European sports and old American muscle cars. I notice just about every fancy car I see on the road when I drive anywhere. I agree, there is certainly an appeal to people who drive these vehicles. Personally, I find myself trying to catch a glimpse of the driver almost as much as oggling the nice car itself (I know, that's kinda weird). But as Americans, cars have become so much an extension of our personalities and (dare I say, our status and our egos), so we do end up judging people in some ways based on something that is very superficial. And like you pointed out, we also do that with physical appearance and dress, etc. Is that a fault of human nature? I think so. But it's widely systemic in our society, especially in this country. That said, I don't fault financial advisers or real estate agents who lease BMWs just to give their clients a shallow confidence that they are being serviced by a professional who appears to be successful themselves. I guess I do have a problem when people buy or lease really expensive cars way beyond their means as an attempt to get noticed for wealth and status that they don't have. Sheepishly I have to admit, that I am guilty of this in the past. When I was 20 years old I made the foolish move of buying a gorgeous Saab convertible, a car that I could hardly afford to insure and maintain. Well, I learned my lesson the hard way for trying to over-reach my means. For the two years that I drove this nice car, I couldn't afford to move out of my parent's house. I couldn't really afford to go out with friends or do other basic things that required money to live the lifestyle I wanted. And then when I got noticed by women who wanted to date me (probably because of the damn car!), I resorted to racking up thousands in credit card debts to support this illusion. In the end, I had a hard time making my car payments and had to sell the car for a $2,000 loss. Ugly. It was a hard lesson, but a good one to learn. What's my point related to personal branding from this story? I can look back and confirm that I was treated differently by people when they connected me to the nice car. Friends, relatives, co-workers, parents of girls I dated, new acquaintainces, you name it. Everyone bought into the illusion that I must have been successful. What fools we all were to believe such a thing. Maybe that's what should be pointed at as a potential pitfall in personal branding. There's more to people than meets the eye - always. And when you choose to "promote" your own personal brand, will you do so using illusions masked by material things, or will you rely on the strength and integrity of who you truly are - trust in your own "product" - to make your way through life and your career? In a society that is so consumed by consumerism, where we judge by appearances first - it's easy to see why it's so tempting to wear a mask...
6. At 11 Apr 2008 17:00, Scott Allen wrote:
It's unfortunate that fancy cars are so connected to success for so many people psychologically. For me, there are just SO many better things to do with my money: travel, education, investment, saving for retirement, etc. While I can appreciate good design and craftsmanship, and have nothing against people owning expensive cars, I'm not sure I'd ever buy a new BMW or Lexus, no matter how much money I had. If money were no object whatsoever, I'd probably have a Class A RV for traveling and a Toyota Prius for around town. Currently, we're a 1-car household. My wife and I both work from home and I do hardly anything locally with my work, so don't need a second car. Every once in a while, we know we're going to have a scheduling conflict, so half a dozen times a year, we rent a car for a couple of days or a weekend and still come out WAY ahead compared to owning and maintaining a second car.
7. At 11 Apr 2008 17:03, Dan Schawbel wrote:
@Scott - thanks for your perspective...I think it has to do with the nature of one's business as well...
8. At 11 Apr 2008 18:05, Michael Henreckson wrote:
It definitely is a stereotype issue. Yesterday I was walking out of the library and passed a conference room where a lawyer was giving legal advice to seniors. Out in the parking lot I caught myself thinking, hmm, none of these cars look nice enough for a lawyer to drive.
9. At 11 Apr 2008 18:57, David Sandusky wrote:
careful now... the waitress at TGI Friday's may be changing the world as she speaks. Her father can't help fund her dreams because of his auto-bill. A brand is a collection of values.
10. At 11 Apr 2008 21:52, Dan Schawbel wrote:
[...] Mazda Miata and Honda ...http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/motoring/2004340769_consumer0411.htmlPersonal Brand Stereotypes 7: A Nice Car Means You??re Successful After dealing with ageism, I wanted to talk about social classes and how they are perceived by what [...]
11. At 12 Apr 2008 00:33, Dennis McDonald wrote:
When I get picked up by someone driving one of those cars, I always wonder about their judgment and values relative to mine -- and how that might affect their decisions with respect to my interests. Thinking a nice car is indicative of superior judgment and worth is a very 20th century kind of thing in my view.
12. At 12 Apr 2008 02:24, Adam Darowski wrote:
Even though I work from home now, I still drive the paint-peelin' old school camry that's approaching 200k miles that I used to drive 140+ miles each day. And our other vehicle is a minvan. Wow, maybe it a a good thing I work from home. This stereotype could ruin me. :) Plus, then I'd have to shave. :)
13. At 14 Apr 2008 14:11, Personal Brand Stereotypes #8: Choose Your Major Wisely wrote:
[...] #7 - A nice car means you’re successful [...]
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15. At 16 Apr 2008 04:00, Maria Elena Duron wrote:
I agree with David that a brand is a collection of your core values and authentic strengths. Yet, like it or not we judge people in the first 7 to 15 seconds when we meet them and those first impressions are lasting! Did you know that it takes 56 other touch points to change someone's first impression of you. That just lets you know how strong those impressions are. While it may seem extravagant to spend on a fancy car, depending on your profession, that just might be a "tool of the trade". Who has time to go back and make 56 touch points to change the perception someone has of you as you drive up for a meeting, or take a client to lunch, or pick up a board member at the airport. Perception IS reality - like it or not. Dan, I also wholeheartedly agree with you. You are the average of the five people you hang out with the most. Many moons ago a great mentor of mine told me that, "you show me your friends, and I'll show you your future." Climbers like to hang out with other climbers; campers like to hang out with other campers and those who give up and don't even try because the mountain looks to high like to hang out with others of the same ambition level....it just is. Maria Elena Duron www.buzz2bucks.com
16. At 16 Apr 2008 14:12, Karen Crnkovich wrote:
While first impressions are important - let us believe it is how you represent yourself that matters, instead of the material cost of your clothes, car, watch... I say drive the older car and laugh all the way to the bank because you have a healthy savings account, no debt, etc. The root of our problems today, "mortgage crisis", is the notion that in order to be successful we must have fancy things. This is simply not true. If you are well spoken and carry yourself with confidence others will not question your success no matter what kind of car you drive. I can't say for sure, but I'd guess Warren Buffett didn't get to where he is today by driving an Aston Martin.