I like money. Because I like giving my daughter and pets the life they deserve. So it’s not surprising that I go after almost every potential client who comes my way.

Yes, I said almost. I decide not to pursue a number of potential clients during the first interaction. I drop some during the proposal process. And hey, some drop me then as well. I haven’t dropped anyone once contracts have been drawn up. But I do know some people who have. And maybe I should have dropped at least one client there.

The point is that it is not always about whether the client wants me. It’s also about if I want the client. I am just as important as the client in this scenario, and I think this is something a lot of freelancers forget.

If you find you are constantly forgetting this, let me remind you with some reasons why I haven’t pursued a client.

Client didn’t have the budget

This is obviously the most frequent reason why I won’t go after a client. I ask as early as I can what their budget is, so neither of us are wasting our time here. Where it becomes problematic is when a prospect doesn’t tell me what their budget is, and I have to guess.

Prospects who don’t give you a budget likely need to be dropped immediately. Why? Most times, they end up saying some really offensive things when I give them the packages I have worked up based on our discussions. And it’s rare that they end up signing and even more rare that they end up being a good client. If they’re not going to give you all of the information during the proposal process, they will not give you all the information after you have signed the contract. They may have trust issues, and working with someone who has trust issues is maddening. You will constantly be surprised by their demands and that will be maddening. So it’s best to move on.

I didn’t like the contact

This may seem petty, but not liking someone is a very valid reason to choose not to work with an organization. And that includes when an organization is a perfect fit for your company.

I talk to my clients every day. Sometimes multiple times a day if we are in the middle of a big campaign. I have to trust them completely for information, and they have to trust me completely to do my job. If we don’t have a high level of respect for each other, the work suffers. Both of us will try to make up for what we think the other lacks, and it becomes a bit of a war. And in that war, the biggest losers are the organization and the audience. We just come anywhere close to accomplishing our goals without respect.

So if something in my gut tells me that I’m not connecting with this person, I get out. I’ve been through that exact situation so many times. It’s ruined holidays for me because the person refused to follow my advice and then realized at the last minute it was the right call. I’ve gotten overly frustrated because I couldn’t trust the information that was given to me. It’s just all really bad for my mental health and blood pressure. And honestly, life’s too short to not enjoy what you do. So it’s best for me to move on.

Client is just trying to check a box

This seems odd, but there are organizations out there that want to just look like they’re doing something. They’re not all that interested in actually doing anything. Sometimes it’s a very active board who decides certain things need to happen and a beaten down staff who just doesn’t want to be bothered anymore. So they do things with little to no critical thought involved just to make the board happy. Sometimes it’s a staff who has shiny object syndrome and goes chasing after every new things. Then the board is happy. Something that resembles progress is happening! Results tied to business goals no longer matter. I’ve experienced both multiple times.

What both have in common is that the client is not all the interested in effective social media. They want something that makes them look like they’re doing something. It doesn’t requires any kind of critical thought. And both become really frustrating when you are trying to achieve what they say are their real goals (but likely are not). In most cases, they don’t communicate right up until the second they hear something from their board. And in both cases, they are not giving you the information you need to do your job.

I have made someone care about social media even if they started out disengaged. I lost a lot of time and effort in that crusade. Someone who only cared about the shiny objects has never made the switch for me. And I’ve wasted a whole lot of effort in trying to make that happen. Trying to change people and their priorities is just not going to be as simple as you think. It’s better to just let them have those priorities. Move onto someone who is interested in what you do.

I don’t have the time

If you were to ask me what my typical reason to walk away from a potential client is, there was a time I’d say that it was budget. Now I simply don’t have time.

Before my daughter was born, I had time to train someone to help me out, as well as time for a little scope creep. I don’t anymore. Any time I lose is time I’m taking away from my daughter. That means I’m much more reluctant to let it go. Do I sometimes eat into my daughter’s time with work? Yes, but I don’t want to set myself up for that to be a regular occurrence. I’d rather use the time I have with efficient clients who know what boundaries are. They’re unicorns for sure, but I, frankly, only want unicorn clients at this point in my life. It’s not always possible, but I’ll never stop chasing them.

Why have you walked away from a potential client?