We’ve all been there, haven’t we? Those moments when we meet that sure thing, that client prospect who is so enthusiastic and is itching to work with you.
Followed soon after by those moments (days, weeks, months) that are devoid of any communication from that enthusiastic prospect.
You, my friend, have been ghosted.
It’s not often your fault, either. Anyone who’s ever responded excitedly to a sales pitch only to cool off later (or fake the whole thing just to get them away from your front door) knows that enthusiasm or promising conversations are not slam dunks.
Some prospects are being polite.
Some are trying not to let you down (the type who hate confrontation).
Some lack the ability to hire you.
Some don’t really want to hire you.
Some have no budget to hire you.
The reasons are many. But it really doesn’t matter why they don’t want to hire you. What you shouldn’t do is waste tons of time wondering and guessing. You may never know. It could be anything — from the person wanting to leave their job to them promising something they can’t deliver (hiring, for example).
What matters is knowing when to cut bait.
Here’s my personal list of prospects I’ll give up on:
The Tire Kicker.
They’re going to balk at your rate or worse, carry on the “Well, how much would it be for this“ conversation. When they lead with price and continue to focus on price, they’re not really looking for a partnership. They’re looking for a bargain.
The Repeat Ghost.
Those of you who have been around this blog a while remember the guy who was so eager to hire me. For years, he sought me out and said, “Email me after the conference” and then ignored my email and follow-up email. After about five years of this circular dance, I stopped emailing. He was never going to hire me despite wanting to.
The Pile-on Prospect.
Then there’s the opposite of the ghost – the one who wants to communicate. A lot. I once got rid of a client I was about to sign with because not only was he sending me multiple emails before the contract was signed (enthusiasm is great, but in one email, not four), his mother was sending me emails. One potential client wanted me to run everything by his frat bros. The latter is easy to fix because if that person isn’t listed in the contract, they get no say (I have a clause that makes it a breach of contract if other people suddenly show up. If you need it, DM me.). The former was just nuts.
The Morphing Project.
If the prospective client cannot describe what they need, even in general terms, you could wind up chasing your tail or not delivering what they really want because they never told you what that was. Confusing sentence, right? Try living it. In the few cases where a prospect couldn’t nail down what he wanted, I bowed out. One odd case started as a business book but quickly morphed into a few books and then into a children’s book — in the span of an hourlong conversation. There was talk of the book winning him custody of children, so I was definitely out.
The Clerk-Typist Assumption.
Very early in my freelance writing career, I had a client who hired an editor but who really wanted a clerk-typist/cheerleader. On first meeting, he literally said, “You should be writing this down” because he felt (incorrectly) that everything he was saying was golden.
When facing a prospect who thinks they hung the moon and stars, it works best to be direct. “Your project is rather rough in its current state, so you were right to call me to help with the fleshing out.” or “The book could use a solid editing, and I think we could start with removing the cliches.” Something that sets the expectation that you’re there to work, but not in the role of secretary.
Determining the Issue at the Outset
The best advice I can give you when facing any client prospect situation is to come prepared.
Make a list of questions for each client prospect. Find out the project, their expected deliverables, their budget, and what they hope to get out of your partnership. From there you’ll know if this is someone you want to work with.
Your turn:
How do you know when to give up on a prospect?
What horror stories can you share about the ones you went ahead with?
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