From: CelticBob @aol.com
Subject: any thing retail

do send me any ifo on small itms iwould like to market them . thanks you Bob

Commentary: Your first clue that this businessman is clueless - the aol email. I don't know why, but the majority of my most difficult, rude and just plain stupid customers come from aol email addresses.

HINT: If you want someone to do business with you, at the very least, please include all appropriate letters of the alphabet, spaces, capitalization and puctuation in your email, otherwise you look like a fruit loop. And who wants to do business with a fruit loop?

 

From: jen @mshiltonj.com
Subject: Re: any thing retail

Bob,

Thank you for your interest in <<my company name>>. I am not sure what type of information you are looking for, but if you have not already, I recommend reading my FAQ and About Me pages:

<<urls provided>>

Please let me know:

1) who are you, (full name, job title, location, etc.)

2) who or what you represent, (website, clothing designer, business, boutique, catalog, etc.)

3) and what you are looking for - which items specifically caught your eye on my website, what price range, style, design, theme, etc.

"Info on small items" does not give me much to go on. How small is "small"? What info do you need which is not already provided on my website? "Market them" means what, exactly?

If you could provide this information, perhaps I can be of more assistance.

Thank you!

Jen ~*

 

Do you think this would produce a coherent reply? Well, here's what I received in return...

 

Email #1
From: CelticBob @aol.com
Subject: (no subject)

* Do you do wholesale?

 

Followed immediately by Email #2 ...

 

From: CelticBob @aol.com
Subject: do you sell wholsale these item

Celtic Necklace

<<photo from my website>>

Medieval Necklace $5.00 - Item #001234

 

To which I replied...

From: jen@ mshiltonj.com
Subject: Re: do you sell wholsale these item

Hello, Bob,

The Medieval Necklace is not an item which I would typically carry on my website. I happened to come into possession of the pendant, added the embellishment and put it on a cord. When it is sold, I do not plan to have any more, as I would have no idea where to find another pendant of this kind.

The Celtic Necklace I can make as many as necessary, if given enough time.

However, I am not licensed to be a wholesaler in the state where I live, nor do I typically produce items in bulk, so I have no established fee scale or discount structure.

Again, if you could tell me a little more about who you are, what company you represent, and perhaps what kind of situation you are seeking, I will be able to give you more information.

Thank you for your interest,

Jen

 

I didn't hear from him, again. Which, in itself, is rude. If you are going to contact someone, and they take the time to respond to you, at least give them a "thank you" in return. If "Bob" had decided he was no longer interested in my items, he could have said, "Thank you for your time. I will contact you again if I need any other information in the future." Or something like that.

A lack of simple courtesy indicates a lack of consideration, and if you have no consideration for the time and efforts of someone else, why should they want to do business with you?