How Will You Wrap It?

​Every year in December we see rolls and rolls of wrapping paper, bows, ribbon, lights, and decorations. We care how things look from the outside in. Wrapping matters. The wrapping or cover is what draws attention and peaks the curiosity so we want to know more. This time of year we see similar themes in the pictures and colors. We’ll take a little new with what we are familiar with. The familiar is comfortable and makes us feel secure whether it is in our stories, profiles, resumes or letters. 

After completing my first book, “Fire Up Your Profile For LifeWork Success” I had to think about what I wanted the cover to show to a prospective reader and who might create it. I chose Karen Phillips to discuss the cover with. She suggested I look at covers I like and think about what I wanted for the cover of the book.
 
The cover and title need to draw people in to read the substance of the book. I wanted something that looked fired up and energized. My first thought was something orange and fiery like fireworks or an air balloon firing up. I wanted the cover to show what the book could do for the reader––get them excited to talk about themselves through different mediums. My first two ideas looked like Halloween with lots of orange and black. That wouldn’t give the impression I was looking for. I found a picture of people reaching up toward the sky, and Karen put the colors and style together to make a fired up picture of people reaching up to be all they could be. It was perfect for what I wanted people to know about the book. 

When the cover or wrapper shows something we are comfortable and familiar with we are more likely to trust it and want to know more.
 
For example I recently got a mailer from Inc. Magazine with a great deal on a subscription. I like the magazine so I filled out the subscription form, but then I didn’t think I would get around to reading it so I set it aside. When I opened my email I had another deal from Inc. with a picture of the magazine cover. It was a picture of Daymond John from Shark Tank, someone I was familiar with from the television show. That sparked my interest and I sent in my subscription.
 
When you get your audience's attention and share something familiar or complementary in your introduction, pitch, story or cover letter you build trust immediately. The person you are talking with will want to listen.

What do you do to build trust?

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