What NOT to do at your first client meeting

To my agency friends, I speak from the client's perspective - Never under-estimate first impressions. They determine just about EVERYTHING.

Most agencies who meet me come fully prepared for this first meeting - a short presentation about their firm, who they are, what they do, and almost everyone would read up about your company on the website or fire a series of questions at you even before the first meeting.

Typically, that's what most firms do, typically. I think it is the very least you can do, esp if you want their business.

The agency I met today, was simply APPALLING. They didn't:

1. bother to do their show and tell about who they are (maybe they assume I should know... RIGHT....)
2. While they read up a bit about who the client is and what we do, but somehow still didn't seem to understand us at all (they should have clarified on email beforehand really, if they din get it at the beginning)
3. forgot to bring their brains along with them to the meeting, constantly clarifying the things they had clarified like 2 mins ago
4. constantly gave me spaced out looks throughout the meeting
5. did not get most of the points i've expressed be it in the brief or spoken, even after repetitions and re-phrasing of sentences by me and my colleague
6. were just exasperating to speak to for 45 mins.

And this is all after an exasperating first phone call to the company to find out who'd be the right people to talk to for this project. The phone receptionist spoke with a ching-chong accent, didn't know what MICA is, who it stands for, much less that it is a dept under the government, then proceeds to transfer me twice to the wrong account managers before the final acct manager who took my brief said that she wasn't the right person to speak with but will pass me on to someone else.

It no longer matters how big a brand name you are. YOU SUCK.