Branding Colors and the "Uniformed" Look

The other day I went into my local bank branch. One of the accent colors they use is a lime green. The color is in their logo, on their brochures, on the pens they give away, etc. As I was standing in line I noticed all the tellers had some shade of this color on some article of clothing. One man had a lime green shirt under a sweater vest, another man had lime green in his tie, a woman had a lime green shirt under her blouse. It started me thinking about the uniformed look and which would make more sense from a marketing and branding perspective.

Should a company that identifies itself so much by its branding colors offer their employees a few different uniforms to wear? In this case, because it wasn’t so much a uniform look as it was a splash of color, would the company be better served to dictate a uniform? My other thought was here is a person with a rather low paying job having to go out and buy clothing specifically for his job. It is not as though the colored items don’t serve a dual purpose and can be worn for regular clothing, but the color choice is a trend color not a classic color like navy blue or cardinal red. What happens when clothiers move onto other colors, where do these employees get their work clothes?

In addition, not everyone knows what shirt size they are or how it should look. So you might have a young, thin person with a collar that is obviously too big or perhaps sleeves that are too long. While trying to create a color-schemed wardrobe you become distracted by his clean yet disheveled appearance. Another cost comes in the form of dry cleaning. While some of these employees are still grasping the concept of ironing, some clothing is best left to the dry cleaner. If not ironed or dry cleaned, this branded color becomes more distracting and negatively reflects on the brand as employees walk around in wrinkled clothing.

So I ask again, would it not be in the best interest of the company whose colors so closely identify their branding to institute a uniform? And should the company, in lieu of a uniform, reimburse the hourly wage employee for clothing and cleaning where color is mandatory and a part of his employment?

It has been several months since my last post. I apologize for not keeping up with the blogs. The past few months have been spent studying market opportunities and social media management. That being said, lets examine the economy as it stands today.

There is about 27% unemployment among blue collar workers. This means that existing inventories are being spent down with no real increase in future demand. Not a good sign. We are also confronted with 17% unemployment/underemployment. People have found employment but below or outside their experience and skill set. Finally, and most recently we were told the unemployment rate is officially 9.9%. Squeaking in at just under 10% makes this a positive in the eyes of the administration and mainstream media. However, there are several untold thousands of people that have simply fallen off the rolls as their benefits have expired.

Now we are into May and the college graduates will be entering the job market and next month, those not going onto college, will be graduating from High School and entering the job market as well. This is cyclical; it happens every year but is particularly sensitive given the overall job market and economy. That being said, there are more entrepreneurial opportunities to be crafted. Everyone has a skill set, but what is needed is the ability to convey the message and get contracts signed. This is where a specialist like myself can be of benefit to start ups as well as to small, existing firms looking to polish up their efforts.

So I hope that explains my absence from the blog and I have recommitted myself to providing educational and thought provoking postings. Look for a few per week. For daily updates you can also follow me on facebook, twitter, and LinkedIn