Email "Favors" that Aren't Winning

The other day I recently received what I assume was a mass "request" in the email. I assume a net cast to a wide audience, because it didn't say ... Dear Michelle ... but launched right into the request. And the request was for me to spread the word that this person could help our authors understand marketing better. And would I please forward this information? Now this request is an example of someone who obviously sent out a mass request to do a personal favor, which is never good. And the request for 3L Publishing to open its contact vault to this person was absolutely inappropriate. First, it showed that the person doing the request either wasn't paying attention to the fact that what she wanted was, in fact, part of what we do and she was dismissing our value and benefit ... or equally as bad, she wasn't paying attention to who she was making this absurd request to in the first place. If you're an individual or company, the worst thing you can do is be so shallow or distracted that you would dare to send out this kind of email to a mass audience. Asking a "favor" to a group of people, is not personal and pretty much presumptuous on your part. It shows you don't care enough to send your very best. And it shows you're not really paying attention to what you're doing -- and maybe even don't care to. Either one of those attitudes is not good for your image or business. And all this "favor" did was alienate me even further away from wanting anything to do with the sender. If you're so dismissive about what I do or don't pay enough attention to know what I do, it's bad form to send out such an email. So, the real question: Will I help this person out? Of course not. Will I ever do business with this person. No. Either answer isn't exactly what she was looking for.