What if someone asks me for a business card but I don't want to give it to him or her?

What if someone asks me for a business card but I don't want to give it to him or her?

Phyllis Davis (Business Etiquette Consultant) gives expert video advice on: What are the most important and least important items on a business card?; When is it appropriate to ask someone for his or her business card?; How can I graciously ask someone for his or her business card? and more...

If someone asks me for my business card and I don't want to give it to them, I tell people “I'm not in the market for your product or service and I'd really rather not give you my card”. Again, it's good to create clear boundaries for a woman. Men have no problem in doing that. The worst thing that can happen is you ask for someone on their card and they do what I call the “pat down”. They pat their breast pockets and their pocket and they go say that they don't have one with them. They may well have one with them; they just don't want you to have their business card. That's an embarrassing situation for a junior executive in a company today, to have that happen, but it's a good way to avoid giving your business card to someone you don't want to.