Image consultants are important in people whose jobs are in the limelight. In the most extreme cases, these are the people who run for public office and those who are constantly in the public eye like celebrities and movie stars.
But there are other people who also need image consultants. High-powered executives, company spokespersons, marketing personnel and publicists also need image consultants to make them more personable and amiable to the public especially if the company they are working for is undergoing a controversy or is in need of crisis pr.
Despite the importance of these job in some fields, there is really no educational course or degree that teaches the basics of image consultancy. The most that these professionals can bring to the table is their experience in the business and their knowhow on how people think and perceive others. This is why most people who are into the field either get a communications subject or a psychology education, which is a bit closer to what their jobs require.
Although image consultants do not necessarily have degrees to speak of, there are criteria that will help you choose a good image consultant. Here are some of the things that you should look for in an image consultant.
Experience
Image consultants are basically molded by their experience in the job. Because there is really no degree or school that will teach them the basics, what they know will depend on the things that they have experienced while on the job. This is why the number of years of experience and the exposure in the job is important when choosing an image consultant. The more experience they have, the better they will be on the job.
Field of specialty
Some image consultants are well-versed in the field of politics while others are great in maneuvering people in the corporate world. When you look for an image consultant, it is best that you look into their background and see where they are more used to. Remember that experience in the field is not just the consideration but also the contacts that they have built through the years. These contact will help their clients in changing their images and in getting good press.
Track record
Look into their list of clients and check if they were successful in their job. You can even study the problems of their clients in the past and see if there are clients who have similar problems as you do. If they have, you are in luck because you will be able to compare what they did with the client with your situation. Having a string of success in the past will mean that they are good and effective in their jobs. Unfortunately, the better looking their track-record is, the more expensive their professional fees will be. So budget should also be your consideration.
Methods
You should also check their methods and the process by which they accomplish their goals. Are they people that you want to associate with? do you agree with the processes that these image consultant employ in order to bring about the change? Some image consultants focus on changing the appearance of the person while others go for the reputation more through good publicity.
See which method you like more and hire the image consultants that do those things.
