Maybe you got here much faster than me, but when I started to take my business seriously, I knew I needed a mentor.
When I really started networking, the Lord kindly brought one into my life. We met up the first few times and really began to get to know each other and each other's backstories and businesses.
And when you get to know me and what I do (as you have), it doesn't take long AT ALL for me to start talking about paper. (And you all know I can nerd out on paper for quite a while .)
One of my broken record remarks is how the quality of the paper influences people's perception of a product (or service, or person, for that matter). Or, said another way, paper quality matters. So I'm sure I spoke with Bob about this, but there were a few moments that sealed the deal for him.
The first time I showed my design skills, the flyer was printed on very nice, heavy, glossy, card stock. I gave the flyer to him to do with what he pleased (because I had extras).
Understandably, he didn’t really want to keep it because he had no use for it (he wasn’t the business’s target audience).
Paper Quality Matters
After this, I’m not quite sure what I expected, but instead of doing what most of us would do — leave it somewhere or throw it away — he tried to politely give it back.
As a result, I was genuinely confused. That is, until he explained himself. “This feels way too nice to just…throw away.” Little did I know, that was when I first started teaching him about paper because paper quality matters.
When Bob mentors someone, he gives a list of exercises and activities to discover more about yourself and your business. So when he gave this exercise to me, I saw a need. Because I love what I do, and I wanted to show gratitude to him, I branded his unofficial mentoring “company.”
I named his company, came up with a logo based on the name and what he does, and designed some worksheets for his “mentorees.” (I think he still uses them.)
Now, normal printer paper that you buy for your home printer is about 20# weight. I believe I printed his worksheets on 70# weight. (“Weight” is how thick or heavy the paper is.)
As a result, when I showed him my work — and his new branding — not only was he overcome by the thoughtfulness, the paper made a big impression. At first, the worksheets look like they’re on normal pieces of paper. But when you pick them up, they don’t feel like they’re on normal paper. They feel…substantial — not cheap.
After he showed his gratitude and expressed how impressed he was with the paper, I gave my spiel.
“The quality of the paper reflects the quality of the product.”
Paper quality matters. If you want someone to take you seriously, you need to present yourself seriously. That means using “weighty” paper. It’s psychological.
Little did I know, he took that to heart.
Fast forward a year and a half, and he was leading the mastermind I am a part of.
He handed out blank sheets of paper for us to write our thoughts on (that I honestly didn’t think anything of — I deal with all kinds of paper all the time).
After the meeting, someone came up to him and said, “that’s some fancy paper you’ve got there, Bob!”
Because I was standing nearby, he said “you can thank this one [referring to me] for that. She has taught me a lot about paper.”
I wasn't expecting that early in the morning. I was dumbfounded. Remember, I didn’t even notice (I’m not sure I even held the paper). But she did. And the difference made enough of an impression to deserve comment — because paper quality matters.
Those little “lessons” from more than a year prior apparently made such an impression, that it changed the way he operates.
Even when it comes to handing out blank sheets of paper.
…that still made an impression on someone.
In conclusion, that’s your action item for this month:
Change the way you think about paper. Change the way you present yourself. You never know who it will make an impression on (or when).
If you want to make yourself or your company memorable, if you want to differentiate yourself, “small” things, like paper weight, make a big impression.
