Clients Ghosting: Advice please!

This is a sales process question, not a "magic words" question. And as usual the problem is at the beginning, not at the end where people think it is.

As you have discovered, a sale is not a sale until the money is in the bank.

As you have also discovered, some--maybe even many--people will be polite and are afraid to say No. So they say Yes to the sale, then ghost you later.

The solution is at the beginning. Not trying to raise the dead at the end.

Are you setting an agenda and expectations up at the beginning of your calls, with just a few sentences to lay out what will happen...and what the expected and acceptable results are?

My impression is that, like most new agency owners, you are vaulting into features and benefits of your offer. This is too early. The customer does not care yet. They probably never truly want to know what you are talking about. I've sold many such services...high end websites, ongoing SEO & PPC packages to help bring the right people to that website...all the other usual things. When I get to the presentation phase and start showing them the "how it works" part, I've set it up with a good agenda and expectations segment. I've told them it's OK for their eyes to glaze over. I've said they can be wowed by what I show them in Semrush, and why their competitor HVAC firm has grabbed all the SEO results for this neighborhood (I'm Canadian but lived in the US for the last zillion years, so let me add that u in for you...neighbourhood) by all those cupcake sales and cash sponsoring the local kids sports club in the newspapers in an impenetrable fortress of PR, so we should instead focus on that part of themap. I've advised them what I really want them to understand out of this part of our conversation is that we, the company I represent, know what we're doing.

And I've had appreciative presidents email me back later, saying that exact same thing. "I didn't understand half of it, but you clearly know what you're doing!"

So that's not the focus. That's not where the sale is.

Another option is raising your price. Makes a better commitment from those who go forward.

But the main issue is in the order of things and the focus of the conversation. It's not about "SEO". They want something, not SEO. SEO is the means by which they get what they want.

At the start of the call tell them what you're going to do as you take them through the call. Ask them if they have any questions or specific things they want to see. That'll tell you something about their level of buyer awareness. Tell them it's OK for them to have their eyes glaze over (this will often produce a laugh), be wowed, and/or say, "Wait a minute, I'm totally confused. Can you go over that part again?" Many people, especially in the UK where about 1/4 of my clients have been over the past dozen years, avoid embarrassment, the perception of looking stupid, etc. Give them explicit permission to. Let them know you won't tell anyone.

Tell them at the start of the call what you'll be going over, what the steps to the conversation are. Ask them if there's anything they want to add onto the agenda. Tell them that where the discussions end up are either a) it's clearly a fit for both of us, and we'll move forward, or b) it'll clearly be Not a fit for us both, and we'll part as friends. Say, "If you feel it's not for you, please just tell me. You won't make me upset. I want to hear it if so." Or, "When we get to this point and I've laid out what I think is best going forward, will you do something for me?" (pause for their Yes) "Will you be frank with me, and tell me honestly if you don't want to do it? That's perfectly OK, and I'd like to hear it now rather than you say Yes and not really mean it. Can you do that for me?"

You have to let them know it's OK to say No. Otherwise, they'll pretend to say Yes, but you'll really be getting a No with a two week waiting period.

Putting the agenda and expectations in place, containing that up front contract, will do a lot to reduce the ghosting. You'll find your closing rate is actually lower than you thought, but it'll be more honest.

And if it were me, I'd be going back even further in the process. How do they get onto your calendar to begin with? What have they been shown, believe, come into the conversation with? Have they "met you" before they ever talk to you? What does your warm-up sequence look like? Are they aware of price ranges, typical project steps, what's required? Do they know why your agency is a better choice for them than others?

Heck, do they even know that they NEED a solution like yours? (You'd be surprised at how many agencies try to sell their solution but the buyer hasn't even agreed that they need something like that at all in the first place...I call this The Danger of the Two Sales: first sale is, "Do I need something like this in general?" and the second sale is "Is your solution the best one for me?". People rush past the first in order to try and make the second, and fail).

If you take nothing away from what I have to say except one thing, let it be: the problem is at the beginning, not at the close.

When someone agrees but doesn't pay, one of four things is happening:

They don't feel enough urgency

They don't feel enough risk if they delay

They're avoiding a decision internally

The buying process isn't aligned with how they actually purchase

thanks for detailed response i struggle in selling this helps a lot

Guess there are roadmaps FROM ...

an' roadmaps TO --

but less'n you know where the frick you are, the hell is the point you steppin' out noplace?

You gonna loopsydoops out forevah as a misplaced co-ordinate!

Janno, ghostin' gaht so much easiah since we gaht way too many people we figured actshly cayurred.

"I shall proclaim my glories to the Caaahsmaas!" vs "What in hell happined to muh fayvrit panties?"

Here is a scene frahm when I like FOWERR:

"Please will you quit biting {KID NAME REDACTED}, {Prinno B name back in kindahgartin}! I''m calling the cops ... and please will you quit throwing the entire contents of the classroom like AT ME!!!"

Now ima FOWERR plus WHATEVAH, I guess violent pernickityness has less space in muh smaahlsdraahw.

Plus, popyoolayshwaahn dynamics figures WAY MORE GHOSTS.

Saytin an' Shakespeare still dead -- an' now they gaht Bobby Douglas to contend with, the fkrs.

I should mebbe gaze upon them, as they suffuse butttween all mortal touchpoints, as if in a self-evident dream.

Untouchable souls without end.

tbh I prefer ghostin' to hauntin'.

You can kinda snoopsy up sweet to life's unfoldin' miraculatchoore without nowan else needin' to be hurround.

NEED HELP WITH YOUR YOGIC POSTURING?
Contact Princess Balestra NOW if you've ever struggled in class with a proto-fart during Goddess, Gorilla, or Shiva Squat.

You need another business model where you offer
them something limited, that they need, and if they
do not buy it now, people who want it are waiting.

You need a whole new attitude and sales posture:

It's like when I get off the phone with you and you
don't buy, the next person I call will buy it and you
will be SOL because I won't be dealing with you
again and this offer will not be available.

That is the attitude you need to get.

You are in the right industry, you just need to refine
what you're selling so that customers demand your
services and they are happy to pay for them instead
of you chasing after them and being ghosted.

The "polite rejection" problem causes your organization to lose potential sales because 67% of confirmed sales will not make payments. The people who answer with "yes" during telephone calls actually show their British nature by refusing to deliver a direct no answer.

Here is the shortlist to fix the leak:

The "Deposit" Close method requires taking a small onboarding fee or spot reservation fee through a Stripe link which operates during the live call. The company will not see any revenue from customers who refuse to pay £100, as they will never spend £2,000.

You need to create a "Start Date" expiration system that enables you to show your availability as limited-time availability. The upcoming month will have one implementation slot available to me. The invoice payment needs to be completed by Friday to confirm that schedule.

The "Shelfware" Risk: Remind them that an SEO roadmap loses value every week it sits unimplemented. Your most effective marketing method operates through digital decay.

The "No" requirement exists because you should check customer readiness through a scale that runs from 1 to 10. The customer needs to reveal the hidden objection that exists when their score falls below 8.

Geoff,

This is like any other business out there.

Most people will tell you that they are interested but a small percentage of them will actually buy. Of those who buy, 20% will take action and do something with what they bought,

You just have to talk to new potential clients all the time.

Go to Google and search for the "80/20 rule". This will make more sense to you and you will see things in a new way.

This is a great problem to have -- your close rates are actually strong until the invoice stage.

Let's break your funnel down logically:

100 calls

42 buy £499 roadmap

21 agree to retainer/project

Only ~7 actually pay

Your real leak is between verbal agreement â†' payment commitment.

That's not a sales problem.

That's a friction + risk + urgency problem.

Just follow-up and tell them the value of their potential loss when they didn't fix the issues.

I have been selling SEO since 2009, full-time. My advice is to presort the prospects while on the call. Rather get them to sort themselves. Makes for quicker calls, less dead-ends, less wasted work on proposals.