The strange guest just sat there at the bar for a couple of hours before the salesman passed by him as he was making his rounds. At that moment a strange look came over the stranger's face.
"You know," he confided to the salesman. "I wasn't even invited to your party. I just came over to tell you that some of your guests' cars are blocking my driveway."
"No worries," replied the salesman. "I'm glad you and your wife are having a good time."
"Her?" replied the stranger, pointing the very attractive young lady dressed in a classic black party dress. "Oh, no. She's not my wife. She's just been very friendly to me the past couple of hours. My wife has been sitting out in the car, waiting for me to get the driveway cleared."
Moral of the story. True sales professionals know that in order to be successful in sales you need to know all the people in the party you are trying to do business with. By not knowing all those involved in your customers' or your prospects' decision making process, you might unknowingly leave someone out in the cold. This could lead to a buildup of resentment towards you and eventually cost you the sale.
"Our sympathy is cold to the relation of distant misery." - Edward Gibbon
