Thank You Very Little for the Referral
It was from a real estate agent with whom I tried to develop a business relationship. At the time, I was working on some loans mostly for real estate investors who were clients. I had met this agent, we'll call her Agent M., at a training conference and made a follow up call to meet with her. The idea was to get to know one another and see if we could refer some business both ways. At least that was my idea.
So out of the blue the other day I get the message from Agent M. The last time I had talked with her, actually her assistant as Agent M. is well buffered, it was to cancel a lunch appointment we had set. The reason I canceled was that Agent M. had become a lot less important to me over time. The reason for this was in ever-trusting fashion, I had made a referral to Agent M. a couple of months earlier and she closed the deal. A property purchase that netted her at least several thousand dollars. It was a lay up I'd say. And a pretty hefty commission check to boot.
Here's the point. I canceled the lunch then, and I'm ignoring the voice mail now, because Agent M. never said thank you. Agent M. never sent a personal note. Agent M. never made a phone call to say thanks. Agent M. didn't make a single gesture of gratitude. And needless to say, Agent M. never made a referral that was worth the ink in the pen to take the name and number.
Business today may be moving at the speed of light, but it will never move so fast that people shouldn't have the time to practice the basics we were all taught in Kindergarten. Say please and thank you. Share. It's true in life and it's true in business.
Goodbye Agent M.
Cliff Jones
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