---
title: Prepare for a call with person-mcp
description: Import a contact from a profile you just read, log each touchpoint, and get a one-message briefing before you talk to them.
url: https://person-mcp.thally.app/guides/prep-before-a-call
---

# Prepare for a call with person-mcp

Import a contact from a profile you just read, log each touchpoint, and get a one-message briefing before you talk to them.

This guide walks through the loop person-mcp is built for: you meet someone,
you keep what matters, and before the next conversation your agent briefs you
in one message. It assumes the server is running and connected, as in the
[quickstart](/quickstart).

The examples use a made-up contact, Ada Example. Every response shown below is
real output from the server.

## 1. Import a contact

Open the person's LinkedIn or X profile in your own browser, then tell your
agent:

```text
Import this person. Note that we met at the Madrid MCP meetup.
```

Your agent extracts the fields and calls `import-person`:

```json
{
  "name": "Ada Example",
  "company": "Example Labs",
  "role": "Developer Advocate",
  "notes": ["2026-11-05 met at the Madrid MCP meetup"]
}
```

person-mcp creates the record and builds its `id` from the name:

```text
imported:
ada-example: Ada Example — Developer Advocate @ Example Labs
  2026-11-05 met at the Madrid MCP meetup
```

> **Tip:**
  `import-person` stores notes exactly as you pass them. Put the date at the
  start of each note yourself, or use `log-interaction`, which dates entries
  for you.

## 2. Log what happens next

Each time you message them or they reply, log it:

```text
Log that I sent Ada the demo link.
```

The agent calls `log-interaction` with the contact's `id` and a `note`. The
date defaults to today:

```json
{ "id": "ada-example", "note": "sent the demo link" }
```

```text
logged:
ada-example: Ada Example — Developer Advocate @ Example Labs
  2026-11-05 met at the Madrid MCP meetup
  2026-11-05 sent the demo link
```

## 3. Update a record without losing anything

Importing the same person again merges instead of overwriting. Fields you pass
are replaced, new notes are appended and duplicate notes are skipped. Here the
agent flags Ada as someone to keep an eye on:

```json
{ "name": "Ada Example", "tracked": true, "notes": ["2026-11-06 replied, call booked for Monday"] }
```

```text
updated:
ada-example: Ada Example — Developer Advocate @ Example Labs  [tracked]
  2026-11-05 met at the Madrid MCP meetup
  2026-11-05 sent the demo link
  2026-11-06 replied, call booked for Monday
```

`list-tracked` now includes her, which is useful for a weekly check of what
the people you follow have shipped or posted.

## 4. Get briefed before the call

On the morning of the call, ask:

```text
Prep me for my call with Ada. What do I know, and what did we last talk about?
```

The agent calls `search-people`, then `get-person`, and has the full history
in one response: role, company, links and every dated note, in order.

## Troubleshooting

#### search-people returns 'no matches' for someone you imported

  Search matches your query as one piece of text against the name, company,
  role and notes. A query like `ada meetup` only matches if those words appear
  together. Search for one word at a time, such as `ada` or `meetup`. The
  standing `note` field is not searched; put anything you want to find in
  `notes`.

#### The store is empty after you restart the server

  person-mcp reads `people.json` from the directory where you run `npm run dev`.
  If you start it from another folder, it creates an empty store there. Stop
  the server, `cd` into the person-mcp directory and start it again.

#### 'no contact with id ...' when logging an interaction

  `log-interaction` only works on an existing record. Ids are the name in
  lowercase with accents removed and spaces turned into dashes, so
  `José Méndez` becomes `jose-mendez`. Run `search-people` to find the exact
  id, or import the person first.

#### Port 3000 is already in use

  Start the server on another port and point your client at it:

  ```bash
  npm run dev -- --port 3001
  claude mcp remove person-mcp
  claude mcp add person-mcp --transport http http://localhost:3001/mcp --scope user
  ```

#### 'Input validation error' from a write tool

  The tool rejected an argument name or type. `log-interaction` expects
  `note`, not `entry`, and `import-person` expects `notes` as a list of
  strings. Check the [tool reference](/reference/tools) for the exact
  parameters.