07/ 07/ 2006
by Misti Wolanski
Choosing the wrong work atmosphere will cost your business. You want to choose the work atmosphere best suited for your business to maximize the number of people willing—and wanting—to do business with you. Though all businesses should be professional, you can demonstrate that professionalism formally or informally. So, on which end of the pendulum should you err? Business professionalism is a form of formality, and friendliness a form of informality, and both profit a business, so how do you choose?
While no strict rule exists for determining this, here are a few questions to ask yourself when choosing between a formal and an informal workplace:
1. Consider your information
Are you expected to provide precise facts and thorough information, or does employee opinion have a bearing on customer decisions? Legal advising, for example, deals in strict facts, while running a downtown cafe might involve offering a personal opinion on what dishes you prefer when customers inquire.
Where precision and thoroughness of facts is mandatory, formality is usually preferred because it portrays professionalism. When opinions are requested and often expected, a friendly informality will often go a long way to promoting your business because it makes the customer feel comfortable and relaxed.
2. Consider your market
Do you do business with consumers or with other businesses? Other businesses and professionals may equate informality with immaturity, while the average consumer may find formality stiff and stuffy. Neither assessment will encourage customers to buy from you.
Also, young customers generally prefer informality—something to bear in mind if they are your target market. Their parents often like the traditional formality more. That said, many subsets of customer bases exist, so analyzing your market base helps determine which option will bring greater benefit to you.
3. Consider your services
Will your services be used for work or leisure? If your business promotes the welfare or continuation of customers' work, a formal atmosphere will likely keep them more comfortable. Most jobs are conducted with a formal atmosphere, and generally people are most comfortable with what they know.
But if you offer things meant for leisure time, informality will promote further relaxation. A relaxed buyer of leisure services will be more likely to buy more than he or she planned than will a buyer forced to interact in a potentially uncomfortable and stressful formal style with the seller.
4. Consider your niche
If a professional suite or a fancier dress is standard among your competitors and customers, consumers will find an informal atmosphere unnerving. Whereas, if informality is standard, a formal atmosphere will similarly discomfit potential customers.
The price of your services also helps determine what atmosphere you should use. Lower-cost options might benefit more from an informal atmosphere than pricey services would, while formality with lower-cost options might cause your customers to think that you are above them or their means. In the same manner, informality with pricier services may cause some customers to doubt the accuracy of your knowledge.
