Actually, I’m not a big fan of feet in general.  Not that I have anything against feet, but there are many other body parts that I prefer to view…

I was reminded of my distaste for feet today.  After teaching a seminar to a group about Social Media Marketing, I was elated from the ensuing discussions when my phone rang.  I answered and a very terse voice called out on the other end of the line.  Immediately, without any preconceived notions, my adrenaline kicked in and my defenses went up.  Looking back, I wish I had been able to notice the signs of adrenaline before tasting the insertion of my foot into my mouth.

You see…I made a horrendous blunder. 

I should probably backtrack to about a month ago.  Someone that I had met through Social Media (specifically, inside919.com) was asked if I would come to a day long seminar and spend a few minutes talking to the women in attendance about WBON-Cary.  Any of you that know me, know that I jumped at the opportunity. 

Me: Of course, but I’m driving and probably will not remember the date. 

Her: No problem!  I’ll send an email, but you know it’s also listed on inside919. 

Me: Cool.

You can probably see where this is going.

That afternoon, I had not received an email, but got sidetracked and didn’t follow-up…ultimately, the entire conversation disappeared from my memory.

So, back to the phone call.

The lady on the other end of the phone states her name and I don’t respond (I recognized the name, but couldn’t place where I knew the name from).  Yeah, this was not a good start.  The voice gets more and more agitated as she informs me as to why I should know her.

Oh no!  The memory of our conversation slammed back into my brain just long enough for me to think…”wasn’t she going to send me an email?”  Yeah, there’s the foot.

Fortunately, my foot was so deeply lodged into my mouth that I had nothing more to say as a litany of accusations and hurt was expressed.  She’s right.  I screwed up.  I was wrong and should have followed up with her as soon as I realized that I didn’t have the email.  She had taken me at my word that I would come and in her eyes, I had broken my word and a trust that had barely taken hold on a Social Media site.

I took the foot out of my mouth and told her that I would feel the same way and sincerely apologized.  I’m not sure it came across that way because I don’t believe that my apology has been accepted.

So where’s the sales lesson?  There’s ALWAYS a sales lesson.

Follow-up! 

For goodness sake, if you have problems remembering things when you’re driving, don’t answer the phone or at the very least carry around a paper and pen to take notes.  Lack of follow-up will damage your reputation and this day and age, a reputation can be destroyed on a grand scale more quickly than any other time in history.

“The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions.”  [1855 H. G. Bohn Hand-Book of Proverbs 514]

~ Deidre

Deidre Hughey, partner at Dancing Elephants Achievement Group of the Carolinas, is a speaker, writer and sales trainer.  Her mission is to teach business owners and salespeople how to be successful without compromising their ethical standards.  For more information, please visit www.saleselephant.com or send an email to deidre@deagsales.com.