One BIG Integrity Mistake Not To Make
One of the fastest ways to lose integrity with potential clients is to cross a personal boundary, but we don’t always know where those are. Here’s a story of an innocent and BIG integrity mistake.
A friend of mine has a sign on the side of her car that advertises her business. It has her phone number which is her cell phone. One day, she pulls up to a stop light and her phone rings. She answers (Not that she should have! But she did). The guy on the other end says he’s in the car next to her (and waves at her). He continues by saying he can make an advertisement that would wrap her car.
First of all this woman isn’t big on the car wraps. So, she says no thank you. He pushed a few more times and she still said “no”. When the light turned green, she hung up.
What’s the moral of the story?
- Don’t cross personal boundaries. Take down the number and call it later. Don’t sit in the car and wave at the potential client. That’s just creepy!! Contact people in normal situations. Don’t make a new situation up.
- DO take “no” for an answer. When you first meet someone and they flat out answer you with a “no” or “I don’t need that” or “I’m not interested” then accept that for an answer. For NOW. You can always check in with them later and see. Which brings me to the next one…
- DO ask if it’s okay if you talk about your business when in a non-networking situation. This guy didn’t even ask if now was a good time, or try to arrange a meeting. He just assumed she wanted to hear about it and went into the pitch! Ugh! Ask permission to market before you do.
This woman felt railroaded by the guy and felt like she had been stalked. So, of course, she’s never going to call the guy. He just lost a potential client and/or referral. Integrity…gone!
What are some more appropriate ways this guy could have approached this situation? Leave a comment and let’s see what we come up with.
