Do you wear a suit?
106 RepliesJump to last post
[quote=Ready2Jump][quote=baylorjoyce1]
Maybe this is a generalization, but if you work on a referral only business, you should be fairly safe in whatever your attire has been to be appropriate.
[/quote]
Where is the upside in being "fairly safe" when the alternative is to be absolutely safe?
[quote=NASD Newbie][quote=munytalks]
Yes, I disagree. I don't wear suits every day. If I lose a client because they were unimpressed with my attire, I don't care. A suit every day isn't me. Are you suggesting that we 'fake' a look to get a client? It's not real. It's not who I am. It's not what I believe.
[/quote]
A suit every day isn't you? Would that be because you're a slob, or too lazy to choose ties?
Do you suppose that Stan O'Neal shows up wearing a golf shirt?
For those of you who know who Launny Steffens is, ever see him in a golf shirt? I didn't and I used to see him around Boca Raton and out in the desert.
How often do you suppose Sandy Weil wanders around without a tie?
How about the top brokers who will hit this year's RR magazine list?
You dress out of respect for your business, your career, and for your client or prospect.
Why in the world would you want to send an image of a golf pro when you're trying to convince a man or woman that you're a serious money manager type?
Why not show up in shorts and pretend to be Andy Roddick as long as you're going to be pretending to be anything but a serious financial advisor?
[/quote]
I grew up in Seattle.
When Time Magazine put Bill Gates on the cover the first time in 1986- guess what- He's not wearing a suit & tie.
Is he a slob? Too lazy to pick out ties?
Bill Gates RARELY wears a suit. Like Me.
So, if you WERE a Financial Advisor- and you aren't- you can romance Sandy Weil. Oh and Kenneth Lay always has the nicest suits on. John Gotti was a great dresser too.
[quote=Ready2Jump]
Oh, and my McDee's owner client... he hates $1000 suit wearing brokers.
[/quote]
One of my best clients is an owner/operator with 10 stores. There's not a week that passes that we don't meet in one of his stores to review the past week activity. As much as I would like to think I can dress down, reflecting back I realize that not even once has he ever seen me without at least a shirt & tie.
As much as I hate to agree with Put, I must side with him on this issue. I wear professional attire out of respect for the business I'm conducting. Although my client would respect me in a polo and khaki's, It comes down to the image that I have built over the years that I want to preserve. I doubt you will ever loose a deal because you woke up that morning and chose to wear a suit instead of khaki's.
[quote=munytalks]
Bill Gates on the cover the first time in 1986- guess what- He's not wearing a suit & tie.
[/quote]
If he were a financial advisor he would wear a business suit.
How often to you see Warren Buffett in anything except a business suit?
[quote=Broker Fee]
One of my best clients is an owner/operator with 10 stores. There's not a week that passes that we don't meet in one of his stores to review the past week activity. As much as I would like to think I can dress down, reflecting back I realize that not even once has he ever seen me without at least a shirt & tie.
As much as I hate to agree with Put, I must side with him on this issue. I wear professional attire out of respect for the business I'm conducting. Although my client would respect me in a polo and khaki's, It comes down to the image that I have built over the years that I want to preserve. I doubt you will ever loose a deal because you woke up that morning and chose to wear a suit instead of khaki's.
[/quote]
Three comments. The story rings true because McDonald's owners refer to their units as stores. One of my biggest, perhaps the biggest, disappoitnments in my life is that I was offered one for $40,000 in 1971 and didn't have the money.
I'm curious what kind of activity a McDonald's operator would be engaging in that required a weekly meeting--was he hedging his expenses or something?
One never needs to feel bad about agreeing me, or Put whoever he might be.
Mr Put Easy Newbie,
I think it would be safe to assume, that most representatives posting on this forum dress in the manner that attracts the clientele they strive to service. (forgive me if I confuse names)
Ready2Jump might spend more time in "business casual" if he/she spends more time in the field calling on folks. Ready is also currently with EDJ and might have a "less sophisticated" client base a bit put off by an Armani(sp?) suit.
We serve a great deal of engineers who are very mentally organized and detail oriented people and we try to represent that with our attire. (as I said before suits/heels, dresses/heels)
Bottom line? I think Ready, Baylor, and the rest are grownups and know how to atttract the clients they want...suit or no.
Respectfully,
[quote=Devoted SA]
Bottom line? I think Ready, Baylor, and the rest are grownups and know how to atttract the clients they want...suit or no.
[/quote]
So, what is the upside of possibly offending somebody?
Are you too so cocky that you too figure "screw 'em if they don't like the way I dress?"
All I am saying is that this is a business that has expectations--and among those expecatations is that financial planner types are serious as a heart attack.
And as such they should be dressed like morticians--but with a laugh and a twinkle in their eyes.
NASD Newbie, you are retarded.
Apparently my clients are now liars since they told me DIRECTLY that me wearing a suit was an issue.
Some of you keep talking about going in to client's offices and needing to look the part. I like the way I work and my clients come into my office, my turf, my dresscode. If I wanted to wear a suit everyday and work in a major wirehouse office, I would wear a suit too. However, having my own firm allows me to run my operation however I see fit, and it seems to be working out for me. I don't need to walk across a stage in a suit for some large outfit to receive an award for the most MF sales last year. I reward myself with my own practice built on my own terms.
I think you resent the fact that I do not have to wear a suit to run the type of practice I want. There is no other reason you would be running your head into a wall over trying to convince me that I have it all wrong.
I don't want to jump to conclusions, but did someone say that you aren't even a rep? So when did you become qualified to tell me how to run my practice and how to properly market myself?
On the rare occasion that I leave my office for a client, or when a completely new client that I do not know comes in, I do wear a suit. I have said that I have no problem with people wearing a suit, even if it's everday. And don't tell me to dress like a banker, I'm not a banker.
[quote=baylorjoyce1]
Apparently my clients are now liars since they told me DIRECTLY that me wearing a suit was an issue.
[/quote]
Let me be clear. I am saying that you are a liar.
I am also asking you where you see the upside in dressing like a golf pro instead of a financial professional?
If you want to be casual why not wear tennis shorts and tell your clients that you're on the way to play doubles with Richard Rainwater?
Perhaps in New York where you come from.
In places like CA, TX etc. clients are a little bit different. I'm not being cocky at all. What I AM saying, is that most FA's, Rep's have a certain "fish" they are fishing for, and as such....you use a certain type of lure/bait/pole etc.
High powered big business types (LA mogul types)...might really need to/want to see the suit.
Small Business Owners (husband and wife machine shop owner w/ simple IRA & 10 employees)....not so much. Can't hurt...might help.
If you don't like the no suit idea, you'll hate this. One of our most HNW guys (has $3.5 mil w/ us) we met at a Home Show we had a booth at. We were dressed nicely, but what I'm saying is different bait is all.
[quote=NASD Newbie][quote=Broker Fee]
[/quote]
Three comments. The story rings true because McDonald's owners refer to their units as stores. One of my biggest, perhaps the biggest, disappoitnments in my life is that I was offered one for $40,000 in 1971 and didn't have the money.
I'm curious what kind of activity a McDonald's operator would be engaging in that required a weekly meeting--was he hedging his expenses or something?
One never needs to feel bad about agreeing me, or Put whoever he might be.
[/quote]
The veteran operators will tell you that if you have 1 to 3 stores...then you have a JOB. The profession does not become lucrative until your debt is paid down over a number of years & even then you are forced to remodel or reinvest so the debt never goes away. My client has been at it for over 10 years and is just now starting to do well. Since I manage all of the company employee executive benefits, cash flow management, and over a dozen qualified & non qulalified accounts for the owner & his family it is certainly worth the time spent. The old 80/20 rule.
The upside is me running my own firm how I want and not having to worry what other nonreps like you have to say about it.
I bet since you're a HP & Wharton guy that you and your family have tons of money. Let me make this clear, if this is your attitude about the way my firm is run, I don't want any of you or your families money. Is that clear enough? Does that have any gray area? What is the upside for me? That I don't have to have jacka$$ clients that are not worth my time. That I don't spend my time with my clients making sure that I am giving them the right image.
It's my firm and I will create the image I desire, not what you think is proper.
If I had a party, I would hope that your parents were my clients who recently had a divorce, so I could invite them both to my party and them fire them both because they had an issue with the "Austin Golf Club" golfshirt I had on that night.
It's sad that you feel that we have to please everyone. I hope you realize that feeling that way will lead you to a unhappy life. You seem to think I need to prove something to people and that's where we don't see eye to eye.
[quote=Devoted SA]
Perhaps in New York where you come from.
If you don't like the no suit idea, you'll hate this. One of our most HNW guys (has $3.5 mil w/ us) we met at a Home Show we had a booth at. We were dressed nicely, but what I'm saying is different bait is all.
[/quote]
New York is my adopted hometown--but I grew up in Dallas. I have lots of wealthy fraternity brothers and friends who sit around in casual clothes. They are running their own oil companies--one owns about 500 fast food places--I know my way around money.
I also know that while I would probably be fine looking like a golf professional most of the time I would be fine looking like an investment banker ALL OF THE TIME.
Do you suppose there is a career coach out here that would tell a financial services salesperson that it was ever a bad idea to wear a business suit?
Of course not--so why would anybody intentionally choose to do something that might backfire?
The brokeage houses in downtown Dallas have dress codes that require men to be in business suits--it's not because they don't get it.
[quote=NASD Newbie][quote=Devoted SA]
Perhaps in New York where you come from.
If you don't like the no suit idea, you'll hate this. One of our most HNW guys (has $3.5 mil w/ us) we met at a Home Show we had a booth at. We were dressed nicely, but what I'm saying is different bait is all.
[/quote]
New York is my adopted hometown--but I grew up in Dallas. I have lots of wealthy fraternity brothers and friends who sit around in casual clothes. They are running their own oil companies--one owns about 500 fast food places--I know my way around money.
I also know that while I would probably be fine looking like a golf professional most of the time I would be fine looking like an investment banker ALL OF THE TIME.
Do you suppose there is a career coach out here that would tell a financial services salesperson that it was ever a bad idea to wear a business suit?
Of course not--so why would anybody intentionally choose to do something that might backfire?
The brokeage houses in downtown Dallas have dress codes that require men to be in business suits--it's not because they don't get it.
[/quote]
The only way you'd know your way around that kind of money is bussing tables at the country club, Monkey Boy.
[quote=NASD Newbie]
[/quote]
Do you suppose there is a career coach out here that would tell a financial services salesperson that it was ever a bad idea to wear a business suit?
No, I don't think so. You are right. I DO think a coach would tell a fss it would be a bad idea to show up to work in your pjs/twister sister t-shirt & flip flops etc.
Of course not--so why would anybody intentionally choose to do something that might backfire?
Well, Baylor is choosing to do something opposite that had backfired previously. He/she (sorry) had lost an account because of the suit. An obvious bad experience, a backfire in the OTHER direction.
Today when we were coming back from lunch we saw a 16 yr old walking into Blockbuster video with what appeared to be a resume/application. This young man had dressed in slacks (not khakis), pressed shirt, and tie. Hardly a requirement for scanning videos on a Friday night, but WHAT an effort. Someone's obviously taught him well.
I don't think Baylor shows up to work looking like Fluffy Zoeller (wait Fuzzy?). Anyways, I don't guess Baylor needs my help here.
[/quote]BAYLOR-
NASD Newbie is not a Broker. And he ain't no silver spoon "I grew up in New York, summered in Martha's Vineyard" either.
He's a crusty old dude with nose hairs growing in his ears. He lives in San Francisco. He flunked out of Berkely in the '50's. He's the night janitor in the Merrill Lynch building downtown San Fran. That's why he's always bloggin' at strange hours and that's where he hears these tales of fantastic financial deeds.
Philo...
I hate your guts, you smart college guys! I've been seeing your kind around since I was ten years old... working as a busboy. "Oh busboy, it seems my friend has thrown up on the table. Clean up that mess, boy, will'ya?" And then when I went to sea as a steward... people poking at you with umbrellas. "Oh, boy!", "You, boy!", "Careful with that luggage, boy!" And I took it. I took it for years! But I don't have to take it any more. There's a war on, and I'm captain of this vessel, and now YOU can take it for a change!
There have been a couple of comments about when a client may catch you out of your regular business attire. You don't have to aplogize for that! You're not in a business situation or environment. You are who you are on your own time. But, on business time I'm in a suit. All the time. Every day. It's who I am. It simply feels like another layer of skin to me. Nobody does business with me because I wear a suit, nor does anyone shun me because I wear a suit. It is simply who I am Monday through Friday.
Someone on this board said that annuity wholesalers try to impress him with their $1000 suits. Are you sh*tting me? $1000 for a suit? That's common.... that is if you're having them made and tailored for you. Again, I'm not trying to get off on how nice my suits or clothes are. In fact, I'm the first guy to clip coupons out of the paper on Sunday morning. However, I do view clothing purchases as serious, long-term investments. First and foremost, I want them to be as comfortable as any pair of sweats that I own, durable, and extremely functional. They should be classical yet contemporary without being overly stylized. The latest fashion may in fact show you to have no taste.
But, if I run into a client at the grocery store in my baseball cap, shorts, and flip flops, I couldn't care less. I'm a real guy on my own time. They respect and understand that I am a good family man and husband, too. That is, if they even recognize me. Most people I know are so used to seeing me dressed up that they don't even recognize or look out for me when I haven't shaved for 2 days (I have to shave twice a day as it is) and am wearing my spectacles instead of my contacts. I can literally go undercover when I'm not wearing a suit!
Good thread BTW.......(for a change).........