I’m catching up on some work in a coffee shop between meetings. And a stranger just walked up to me and said, “You look older in person than you do on Facebook and the internet.”
How’s that for an icebreaker? You think I’m gonna forget her? I doubt it.
I smiled and replied, “Thanks. I cram a lot of living into every day.”
Things that our parents and grandparents used to tell us when we were kids are still true. Things like, “You only have one chance to make a first impression.” And, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”
Whether online or offline, people are people. Remember the things our elders taught us. They make sense.
It’s very hard to go back and make a good first impression. All things being equal, people do business with and refer business to people they know, like, and trust. Don’t make it harder for people to know, like, and trust you by not making a good first impression. Either online or offline. Or both.