Getting Permission to Email

When meeting someone at a networking meeting or for any other business, it's customary to exchange business cards. And while our business cards now include our email addresses, having been given one doesn't automatically mean you have permission to send email to that person.

If your plan is to send that person an email, any kind of email, when you exchange cards ask for that permission. A simple, "can I send you an email later on?" will suffice.

Later, when you send that email, be sure to remind the person where you met. And if your email is in the form of a postcard, provide them with a link to "opt -out" of receiving those kinds of emails. If you need to contact that person at a later date, do so with a regular typed email, with your message plain and to the point.

Then maybe down the line as you continue your correspondence or even business transaction later, you might ask again for permission to email them your newsletter or business updates.

Also be prepared to receive email from the people you meet. Always take the time to read what they've sent you, as they've put just as much time into contacting you, as you have in contacting them. Maybe even go a step further in clicking through their email to their website, and check out their business a little farther. You might be able to refer a friend or another business client to them, and there is nothing better to cultivate a business relationship than referring business. Pay it forward, so to speak. Eventually they'll return the favor.