So you’re at a networking event, and someone comes up to you, introduces themselves, and immediately asks for your business card. What’s your first impression?

Mine: oh, oh, someone is about to try to sell me something. Why? Because they haven’t even bothered to chat me up first.

This happened again recently, and I left compelled to tell the person I didn’t need her services. I then shifted the conversation to something substantive and wholly unrelated to my business.

Flash forward one week, and I finally find out who has called and hung up three times without leaving a message. Because, time #4, I’m in my office. It is her assistant calling to see if she can set up a “one-on-one meeting” for the two of us. Uh… No.

Sales may be a numbers game, but business is about people.

Photo by timparkinson (Flickr).