*Not the actual outfit I wore to my meeting. ;)
Are you reading this in your undies?
Something that most web workers don’t have to worry too much about is their wardrobe. For the most part, web workers can get away with a hyper casual style of dress, if not borderline inappropriate (i.e. I’m typing this in my undies). Of course, when meeting with a client (especially if at your client’s offices), it is customary to dress in the style that your clients in house employees are held to on a daily basis. But, where do we draw this line?
Hiding Behind My Avatar
I recently met with an agency that has been scouting me for some time to come on as a freelance marketing/PR/video/social media/youth culture/whatever consultant. We have exchanged many an email and had more phone conferences than I have ever had with any other potential client. I took these things as good signs; they were still interested in my services and obviously just doing some super due-diligence. A couple of days ago, I got the call that they wanted to bring me on for one of their projects as an outside consultant. Hurray! We faxed contracts back and forth and it looked like everyone was ready to go. That is, until I showed up and met them in person.
Just A Bit of Mullet Flair
As I walked into their conference room I could tell that we might have an issue. I have grown accustomed to wearing designer jeans, t-shirt with sport coat and some style of Chuck Taylor sneakers. I have worn this to meet with almost every potential client that I have ever made and never had a problem. Now that I’m growing out the mullet (and it’s getting longer than pictures do it justice), I sometimes wear a matching bandanna, as well, to keep from having to brush the hair out of my eyes every two seconds. Although, on this particular occasion, I did NOT wear a bandanna and just wore my hair spiked up a little with a bit of mullet flair.
Does Conservative Style = Professional?
Everyone in the conference room wore a suit and tie, which did not bother me, this is a more conservative agency that is trying to break into a youth market. That’s why they hired me. What bothered me was that after talking to everyone and going over our game plan (and remember, I’ve talked extensively over the phone with all of these people), they closed the meeting with a brief discussion about my appearance. To them, I looked like I was “in a rock band or part of a motorcycle gang” (the exact demographic they want to hit). They didn’t think their client would find my style of dress (mostly my hair) professional enough and asked if I would be willing to cut it? WHAT!?! This completely baffled me and I didn’t know what to say, or even if it was legal for them to ask me to cut my hair (what is this, 1955?). I told them that I would think about it if it was really going to be an issue, but that I thought it was a strange request, seeing as they were hiring me to help their client start a conversation with the very demographic that they were asking me to look less like by changing my appearance.
Have you ever turned down a project because they wanted you to cut your mullet? ;)
I only grew out this mullet as a joke, so it’s not like I’m super attached to it. I was thinking of cutting my hair anyway. But, I am also a kid that was kicked out of high school because I wouldn’t follow a dress code that I didn’t believe in. I’m a kid that quit a successful real estate career because they wanted me to wear one of the most hideous shirts in the world EVERYDAY. I believe that a person should be able to dress and look however they want to look. But, I also want to land this account. So, what would you do? If they are going to ask me to change my hair style before I ever start on the project, what’s next? If they aren’t willing to let me identify with the demographic that I’m supposed to be helping them reach, are they even going to listen to any advice I give them? Have you ever run into a similar situation with one of your clients? Would you cut the mullet?
UPDATE:
Alright, so I threw up some blogs, polled Twitter, asked around on Facebook and scoured the social media universe for advice on whether or not I should cut my hair for a potential client.
In the end, there was overwhelming support for the mullet and most people believed that this client might not “get it” and could be trouble down the line.
So, I took all of these online conversations about the mullet to my client just to show them the way conversations grow exponentially about the stupidest little things (like my rat mullet) in the online world.
Oddly enough, this was the best way for me to give them hands on experience with how social media works and unbelievably, they apologized and told me that it was “out of line for them to ask such a question of me.”
And with that, what did I do? I went and cut my hair because I got cast in a print campaign today that required I cut my hair a bit. So, the mullet is now almost non-existent, but at least I did it for a casting role, rather than under the pressure of a client to make me conform.
I guess everyone is happy now. I landed a good print campaign and I landed a client that finally “gets it.” My agent is probably more happy than anyone (she hated the mullet!). Hurray for everyone!
Here’s a link to the new hairdo:
*A hairdo that can be worn wild or business professional!
