Your actions, or lack of actions, can speak louder than words. Please be aware of the message that you are sending. Do you wear your professional hat with regularity? Are you leaving the impression that you want?
Several months ago I contacted someone about services for my business. All seemed fine and I thought we were going to begin. Some additional information was requested from me, I sent it, and never heard from the person again. I sent several emails and even phoned to get no response. I was truly disappointed because I believed this individual definitely had the talent to do the job and I was willing to pay top-notch because of this expertise.
I send many emails for my clients and myself. It truly amazes me when we have a bit of exchange and then the other person just seems to drop off the face of the earth. A polite reply or any other response would be most professional. Or, I get an email signed with only a name and no business name or website link. Sometimes, I simply don’t recognize the name and will ask for help jogging my memory to where I know you from.
When I have these interactions (or lack of interaction) it really makes a less than favorable impression. If answering simple emails is falling through the cracks then I wonder if an actual project would be handled with the same level of detail.
Please don’t be a fair weather professional. You never know if the contact/impression you just made may influence a networking venture later on.