SPAM Sucks, But Hiding Is No Way To Run A Business

Recently, I had reason to contact a fellow writer. I didn’t want anything from her. Actually I wanted to do something for her. I wanted to send her a pdf of a newsletter in which she had appeared.

She was on LinkedIn, but we weren’t linked and I didn’t feel like messing with that (just like I very rarely “friend” on Facebook, I don’t link willy-ga-nilly).

This gal’s email address wasn’t on LinkedIn, of course. Her phone number was there, but I didn’t want to call her. I’m busy, too, and phone tag was unappealing on a rushed morning. Look, all I wanted to do was email something I knew she would appreciate and I was getting frustrated.

Nevertheless, I made a pilgrimage to her website. Guess what? No email contact info appeared there, either. None. I mean, I couldn’t even fill out an “info” request. So, I made a last-ditch effort. I took a stab and emailed to first name@website.com. I didn’t send the attachment at that point of course, fearing her spam filter would reject the email. So I just wrote and said, “Is this you?”

It was and I was able to send a follow-up email with the attachment. I went to a fair amount of effort to help out this fellow writer because I knew she was looking hard for work. Having said that, I will say this: It’s totally ridiculous.

A professional looking for clients – and she is definitely trolling – should be easy to find. I’m sorry she’s getting SPAM (join the crowd), and I understand her personal desire to avoid email onslaught. But that’s part of being in business. That’s part of what we deal with. Get over it.

Scott Ginsberg-- author of –ABLE: 35 Strategies for Increasing the Probability of Success in Business and in Life -- has worn a nametag 24/7 for the last decade. What’s his first bit of advice? Be Findable.

-- scrubbed by Marketing Brillo