How do you avoid cognitive dissonance? First, be clear about the expectations your clients and prospects hold. For example, if you're a lawyer or financial professional, they'll expect a sober, formal, traditional, successful image, from the way you're dressed to the verbiage on your Website to the colors on your business card.

Then audit all the ways your company makes itself known to world. These include:

Signage: It goes without saying that if you have signs, they should be clear and free of spelling and grammatical errors, and their tone should be friendly and welcoming. With the exception of a biker bar or maybe a pawn shop, I can't think of any businesses that benefit from having rude, offensive or sternly worded mandates hanging about. For instance, the neighborhood family pizza joint I frequent serves some of the best pizza in town, but has silly rules posted that raise my hackles: "Check takeout orders before leaving. We are NOT responsible for incorrect orders after you leave!" and "Absolutely no checks." These messages contrast sharply with the warm, friendly staff. I won't stop eating their pizza because of their poor PR practices, but you can bet if another pizza place with comparable food opened nearby, I'd be tempted to defect.

Website: Not only should your Website be as professional looking as your brochures and other marketing collateral, it should share the same tone, messaging and design. If a customer or prospect reads one thing in your brochure, hears another thing from one of your customer associates and reads something else again on your Website, he's not going to be in a buying mood.

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