It may be a little thing to some – or a source of major concern to others – but getting snubbed by a prospective business associate is a cause of increasing concern. Many, if not all of us have fallen victim to the snub in one form or another, be it a lack of response to a phone conversation, voice message or e-mailed proposal (the “e-snub”) or mailed letter, the absence of a timely professional response is truly at an alarming level in corporations and small businesses.
This topic is not new. Many before me have voiced concern when confronted by a sales prospect or vendor who, having requested an immediate response or a detailed proposal, does not take the time to confirm receipt or report an outcome.
Margaret Waage recently penned an entry in her blog on this subject, and said it well when describing the result of a lack of courtesy in business communication as “a pet peeve is born and if you’re not careful it could grow into a full blown resentment.” See her entire post here.
Unfortunately, she may be spot on, as that simple lack of courtesy can and often does reflect negatively upon the individual and their company.
Neal Hirschfeld, a contributor to the New York Times, has an interesting spin on how to respond to the e-snub in his article. Hirschfeld suggests we have a little fun at the business prospect’s expense by thanking them for business, or in this case a position not yet earned. While I don’t subscribe to Neal’s particular response, he does raise some interesting points.
Sure, e-mail has caused many of us to become less social in our business dealings. And it’s all too easy to blame the spam filters or to delete a message in error. Yet, after all, how much effort does it take to send a quick, short note confirming receipt of a proposal, or even to say “thanks?”
Is there a general lack of courtesy in business communication? Are Gen-X’rs more or less courteous than Boomers? Is this a “hate to deliver bad news” phenomena, wherein people are afraid of hurting a person’s feelings by responding in the negative? Or are we all simply too overworked, brought about by the downsizing of staffs? I don’t have ready answers to the above – and grow increasingly concerned with our impersonal and non-communicative society – but I do have a few suggestions.
I urge all of us to take an extra minute out of our busy day to respond to those who attempt to engage us in legitimate business opportunities or discussion. I’m not advocating a response to every uninvited message you receive – especially from the ever present spammer – which would be a waste of your valuable time. I am suggesting that responses via e-mail or other means will be much appreciated, and go a long way to helping you develop or sustain business alliances.
I’ll even go a step further by suggesting you send a hand-written note via standard mail, or pick up the phone and make a courtesy call. It is, after all, the little things we do that earn us business and improve our highly valued business relationships.
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