Image and etiquette coach Kay Hunter had a crowd of about 50 students engaged in an interactive presentation Thursday night in Wilden Lecture Hall about professional presence and the impact of personal branding. During the one-hour event hosted by Scholars for Business Achievement, Hunter taught students tips and tricks of successful image in the workplace in order to “outclass” the competition.
Hunter, who worked as a senior human resources executive for 15 years before starting her image consulting business in 2002, started off the presentation with explaining “misconceptions about image.” According to Hunter, some people often say that caring about image is “fluffy” or “pretentious.”
“The fact is your image is your personal brand and it is a critical business tool that will make you more successful,” Hunter said.
Additionally, she told the students that their personal brand is a combination of actions and appearance. After this, she launched into a series of slides showing different “brand images” celebrities portray. For example, while news anchor Brian Williams might convey “elegance,” Sofia Vergara portrays “sexiness.”
Hunter then coached students on what to do and what not to do for every detail they would need for an interview. She covered ties, necklaces, watches, hairstyles, shoes, shaving and makeup, the psychology of color, hand placement, posture, smiling and social media.
Students who attended the event had to be dressed business casual, and Hunter used this to her advantage to call out students in the audience and used them in her demonstrations often.
Because she went through what making decisions in each area looked like, she said she has higher expectations for the students who attended the lecture.
“It’s not enough after today to just be well-dressed,” Hunter said. “You want to ask yourself “What personal brand do I want to communicate?”
Junior marketing major Dave Guerrero, the marketing intern for SBA, said the group thought an image consultant would be someone who could speak to an issue that students often don’t understand.
“She was a really engaging speaker and I think a lot of the information she used was pertinent to the interview process and just networking and interaction with employers, even professors,” Guerrero said. “There’s a lot of things I’m more aware of in terms of body language and how that comes off in an interview or just in conversation in general.”
For junior business management major Milana Hoving, who wants to do an internship at a nonprofit or in a corporate setting in management or marketing, the most important lesson she learned was in strength. When talking about color psychology, Hunter pointed out that Hoving had a fairer complexion and would need to make color choices to combat that.
“Well, Kay actually told me that I shouldn’t wear a pink blazer because it would clash with my personality, so she told me to wear something that’s more classic and powerful,” Hoving said.
Hunter also encouraged students to look beyond boring when dressing themselves and working on image branding. According to Hunter, playing it too safe can also make people look invisible to an employer.
“Dressing professionally doesn’t have to be generic. You can tailor it to your style and it can really be a reflection of you, not just what everyone thinks a businessperson should look like,” said Hoving.
Hunter ended the presentation sharing products that help with personal branding, ranging from a small sponge that wipes off stains to double-sided fashion tape. Additionally, she is offering a 10 percent discount for her personal consultation services for Azusa Pacific students who sign up for an appointment in the next week. For more information about her image consulting business, visit www.kayhunter.info.