Your AI Notetaker Can’t Build Trust—But You Can
Earlier this week, I joined a video call with a few other business owners. Everyone showed up—except one person. Instead of attending, they sent their AI notetaker. No message, no heads-up, no explanation. Just a silent bot with a blinking “recording” icon, quietly logging every word. We all looked around, wondering the same thing: Is this normal now? Is this okay? Someone asked me, “What’s the etiquette here?” And that question has stuck with me—because it gets to something deeper than etiquette. It’s about presence. It’s about trust.
Let’s be clear: I’m not against technology.
You and I both rely on smart tools to run our businesses better. AI notetakers can be incredibly useful—they capture key points, save time, and help us stay organized. But just because we can delegate the task doesn’t mean we should delegate the relationship. If you can’t attend a meeting, let people know. Give them a heads-up. Explain why. Ask if it’s okay to send a notetaker—and, ideally, have someone from your team join on your behalf and follow up afterward. That’s not just good etiquette. It’s professional. It tells people their time matters, their voices matter, and the meeting matters. It shows respect.
When you don’t show up, people make assumptions—even if they’re wrong. They may think the meeting wasn’t worth your time, or that your input isn’t valuable, or worse, that you just don’t care. As a business owner, you’ve spent years building something meaningful. Don’t let a no-show moment undermine that work. You may not think you’re in the relationship business, but you are. Every client, partner, or colleague is deciding whether to trust you, refer you, or work with you again. And relationships like that don’t grow through automation. They grow through presence.
Think about the last time you closed a big deal.
It probably wasn’t because of your product features or your bullet points on a slide. It was because someone trusted you. They believed you’d solve their problem. That kind of trust comes from showing up—not just physically, but emotionally, attentively, and with intention. Your energy in the room (or on the screen) still counts.
Let’s not romanticize bots.
Yes, they can transcribe. But they can’t read the room. They miss nuance, tone, hesitation, excitement—everything that gives real conversations their meaning. They can’t make people feel heard. They can’t build rapport. They can’t offer insight or ask the one smart question that shifts the whole conversation. If you don’t show up, you don’t just lose the record of what happened—you lose the opportunity to add value, to connect, to lead.
Every time you attend a meeting, you reinforce your reputation. People see you as someone who shows up, someone who leads from the front. When you don’t, you risk becoming interchangeable—just another faceless service provider. That’s not how influence is built. That’s not how loyalty is earned.
If you’re stretched thin and truly can’t be in every meeting, no problem. Just don’t go dark. Send a team member who can represent you clearly and confidently. Give them talking points. Follow up personally with a message or a quick video recap. Use AI as a support system, not a stand-in.
People don’t buy just your product or service—they buy your presence, your insight, your leadership. AI is smart, but it can’t replicate that. So next time you’re tempted to skip a meeting and let a bot take your place, ask yourself: What message am I sending by not being there? Because while AI can take notes, only you can build trust. And trust is what actually grows your business.
Previously published on Substack.
