There’s a difference between being charming and being slick.  There are people who are naturally charming, like Audrey Hepburn, for example.  She burst onto the scene with her film Roman Holiday which not only won people’s hearts but also garnered her an Oscar.  Since then, her name has always been associated with charm and beauty.

Audrey Hepburn’s Unconventional Charm

Although Hepburn was charming, she wasn’t beautiful according to the standards of her time.  In fact, she was a bit too thin, a fact that was emphasized by the fact that she often wore black.  In the film Love in the Afternoon, Gary Cooper keeps calling her his “thin girl” as opposed to all the other buxom women he tends to date.

More than beauty, Hepburn possessed that elusive quality that we call “charm.”  You too can take a tip from here and conduct business with charm and savvy without looking like you’re trying to pull a fast one.

Omit Facts Without Lying

You’ve always heard that honesty is the best policy.  But you may have found that it’s not always the best idea to be completely honest when you’re doing business.  For example, if you’re approaching two companies who are competing with each other for business, you may not want to tell them that you’re also in touch with the other.  So you do have to lie by omission.

Get Your Point Across Without Criticizing

If you don’t like something that an associate is telling you, how do you gently set them right without putting them down?  One great way to do this is by saying, “These are the good points of your idea:…What I would prefer is…”  This way, you’re agreeing that they might be halfway to the goal but you’re also steering them in the direction that you want.  You’re not lying but you’re not criticizing either.

Believe it or not, most of us do have an inner radar that makes us naturally suspicious when someone is lying to us.  Don’t lie and you won’t be invoking that radar in your business associates.

Utilize Your Strong Points: People Skills and Writing Skills

Everyone’s good at something, whether it’s business-related or not.  You need to somehow make your strong points obvious when you’re conducting business.  For example, if you’re a good writer, write a proposal telling the other company why they should use your product.  If you’re good at talking to people, make sure that you get a chance to really connect with the people you’ll be doing business with.  Sit down with them, explain things to them and answer their questions.

Utilize Your Strong Points: A Great Product and Great Packaging

If your strong point is just that you have a really good product, don’t be afraid to give away some samples so that people will be able to use it and evaluate it themselves.  If you’re good at presentation, spend some time designing your product packaging because this has a really big impact on sales nowadays.

Creativity and Honesty in Business

When you utilize your inner talent and creativity, you’re bound to charm the socks off your clients, business associates and even your employees.  In a way, this is just another way of being honest with those you come in contact with, because you’re letting them see what you’re passionate about.

For more information, contact The Sherwood Group, Graphic Design & Website Design.

Please Note: Will Sherwood, CEO of The Sherwood Group, is in process of developing an online course with this working title: “Social Media Success in 45 Minutes a Week.”  Currently, he’s offering a 7 hour phone consultation program which includes a 1 hour phone consultation for each of 7 weeks, to help you use blogging and social media to drive the success of your business. The $2,500.00 fee is discounted to $1,750.00 while the online course is still in development.

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This article is published by Will Sherwood | The Sherwood Group |Website Design | Graphic Design | Marketing Communications: The Sherwood Group has over 30 years of experience working with all sorts of companies, small and large. Our clients range from entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 firms, in nearly every business sector, from across the street to around the world (and yes, even Europe, China, and South America). Our goal is to create advertising,  graphic design, website design, and marketing communication that still looks fresh and relevant 10-15 years later. Our mission is to stir your imagination and leave your competition shaken and wondering,  Now what do we do?”  We are located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

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