I Hate Salespeople

For those of you who don't want to listen to me rant, skip this post.   I hate salespeople.  When they call, I don't talk to them. When they come to the door, I don't meet with them.  Why is that?  Because I don't want something forced upon me by a person I don't know.  You want to sell me?  Get to know me.  Don't insert yourself into my world and push your product or service on me.  You're violating my space and offending me.  It's especially offensive when you do it after I've asked you not to do it.  This morning, someone to whom I've explained all this brought two salespeople to our collaborative practice group.  It was obvious that he hardly knew these people himself and that these people had no clue what collaborative practice was all about - and they didn't take the effort to find out.  All they cared about was what they were selling and whether we were buying.  Guess what?  Everyone in that room was offended and none of us is buying.  The sad part of it is that I bet those salespeople thought they did well.  Moral of the story is that unless the customer comes looking for the product, it is the relationship with the buyer that sells the product.  Get with the program.