Dressing the Part
In my post, “Contractor Etiquette,” I discuss all the substantive qualities that characterize a good contractor.
While substance counts, so do appearances.
In fact, at least initially, when the client is forming their first impression — or deciding who to hire! — the importance of dressing professionally can hardly be understated.
So, in my experience, good contractors wear clothes appropriate to their trade (e.g., white overalls for painters); travel with a full complement of well-organized trade tools; drive a work vehicle that is outwardly clean and in good repair; and show up at the client’s home groomed like they’re going to a job interview (which they effectively are, every day they’re on site).
Invariably, the contractors who do a good job attending to all of the foregoing . . . also seem to do quality work!
P.S.: I don’t have any scientific data backing me up, by my general impression is that, just like good looks can help land a white collar job, so, too, good looks can be a factor getting blue collar work — perhaps just a little less so, because a white collar workplace is more face-to-face.
