If you're tall, you are good upper-management material! This long running joke was featured in the Dilbert comic series, but according to the 6'3” Arianne Cohen, author of The Tall Book: A Celebration of Life from on High, height in business equaling success and promotion may not be a joke after all.
Citing numerous studies, Cohen points out overwhelming statistics that demonstrate the favoring of the tall. For example, in tracking salaries and comparing them to height, one study showed that tall people make an average of $789 per inch per year—quite possibly my favorite statistic of all time! Another study showed that when presented with equal resumes, 70% of the bosses chose the taller applicant.
As fascinating as Cohen's book was, my thoughts wandered on to other ways perceptions guide our reactions and motives. One of those thoughts was about conference calls. Especially if a customer is nowhere near an office, during an audio conference their only sense of a company is by sound. Whether they buy, don't buy, or gain or lose confidence can be much attributed to what they hear.
If a customer joins a conference and listens to one or two moderators informally talking and joking around, starting and stopping because of distractions at their location, and generally treating the conference call—and the customer's time—as unimportant, they won't leave with a good feeling. It doesn't matter if the audio conference was hosted by a huge multi-national, the customer will perceive it as unworthy of their attentions.
On the other hand, with a well-run conference call, one that has multiple and engaging speakers, a firm but upbeat moderator, and a stimulating parade of information and opportunities, a customer will feel inspired to action, pledging money and loyalty. This can happen even if the company hosting the call is much smaller than would be seemed.
The results can be very telling. A conference call can make huge companies sound incompetent and inept if improperly conducted, or turn small companies into far reaching conglomerates. It all depends on what the customer is made to perceive.
