Recently I picked up a book titled ‘The Designer’s Guide To Marketing and Pricing’. I’ve found this book to be very insightful as to general good marketing practice. While reading, I came across the section ‘How to get out of a conversation’. I thought it was too funny not to share. Let me know what you think…
- Get a refill. If there’s food or drink involved in the event, you can always say, “I think I need a refill.” Or you can smile and say, “Excuse me. I need another one of those Sweedish meatballs.”
- Involve another person. Another escape is to introduce another person into the conversation. Then say, “Excuse me while I let you two get to know each other.”
- Stand up. Sometimes you don’t have to say anything. Just stand up! Your conversation partner is likely to take the nonverbal cue.
- Hand them your card. When you are ready to move on, hand the other person your business car, smile warmly and say, “I’ve enjoyed chatting with you. I’m going to mingle a bit. But let’s stay in touch.”
- Check on something. Glance at your watch and say, “Excuse me. I need to make a quick phone call to check in with the [babysitter, boss, sick spouse... whatever is believable]“.
