“YOU WORE FLIP FLOPS TO THE WHITE HOUSE?” screamed the front-page story in the Chicago Tribune. The photo of Northwestern University’s national championship women’s lacrosse team, taken during their visit to the White House, shows four of the nine women in the front row wearing flip-flop sandals along with their dresses and skirts.

Who gives a flip? Apparently everyone, since the news hit the AP wire, CNN, NBC’s “Today” show, and more.

Flip-flops were comfortable, said the women when interviewed. Just because something’s comfortable, doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to wear on an interview, on the job – or when you meet the President. It gets headlines.

And it’s a first impression that doesn’t wear off easily. “No one wants to see your naked toes and calluses,” said Sharon Zalewski, director of marketing at law firm Godfrey & Kahn, SC. “How you dress makes a statement about you and how you carry yourself. If you dress too casually, does this mean that you take a casual approach to your work as well?”

Scott Alcorn, director of human resources for Standard Process, agreed. “Instead of a sport coat, dress shirt, dress slacks and polished loafers, you get faded Dockers (a belt if you’re lucky) or stretch pants, an old golf shirt and scuffed up hiking boots. I wear that kind of stuff on the weekend to cut my lawn. That’s not the kind of corporate image that most companies are looking to portray.”

One IT placement executive confessed, “As much as I don’t like wearing a suit and tie (especially on hot days), the one thing that is true is that you never can go wrong wearing a suit and tie to a customer meeting.”

The interviewer and your employer are your customers.

What should you wear on interviews?

“In our industry, it’s always suit and tie. Always. For every interview,” said Steve Yahnke, vice president, commercial lending, at First Business Bank.

“I’m in marketing and take a very conservative position when it comes to interviewing,” said Zalewski. “I hire people who represent the firm – oftentimes in public places. People immediately make an unfavorable impression with me when they wear anything less than a suit.”

Chad Randall, an executive recruiter with MRI – Sales Consultants, said, “It completely depends upon the position you are interviewing for. When in doubt, wear a suit. The rule of thumb I suggest is to dress one step up from what the hiring manager would wear.”

Randall recommends asking the hiring manager about appropriate attire prior to the interview. “Oftentimes they are more comfortable with someone that ‘fits in’ with their culture,” he said.

What about the second interview? “Also a suit,” said executive recruiter Laurie Purcell of Key Search Group. Pantsuits are OK too. “You will normally be meeting with the next level of management and you want to impress them as well. If you have to wear the same suit, fine. Just put a different shirt or blouse with it!”

As for suit colors? “Brown is not a power color,” said Carol Schneider, CEO of SEEK Careers. “Red should never be worn because it’s an agitating color.” All the hiring decision-makers interviewed recommended traditional suit colors: black, navy, or charcoal.

“Remember to dress for the job you want – not the job you have,” said Schneider.

And keep in mind your audience. No flip-flops when you meet the President. When you meet Jimmy Buffet on the other hand…