The Client Who Never Replied

A person is interpreted by many signals, and their way of talking is one of them. So I knew I had to control my pace and talk consciously. I did some breathing exercises, sat quietly for some time, and finally waited for the client to call me.

It was a SaaS company, and they wanted to partner with an agency that could provide them with a consistent flow of leads. At exactly 10, one of their personnel called me and I took the call. We exchanged greetings and names, and I asked him to first lay out his actual requirements in detail. Our exchange was clear and quick until then.

Then he took about ten minutes to explain what their organisation wanted, and I listened with full attention. I was jotting down the important points in my notes app. When he concluded, he expected me to answer. As I opened my mouth, I experienced a block. No sound came out, and my mouth was wide open. It felt as if someone was choking me. “Are you there, Pranjal?” he repeated a few times, and it felt strange.

Then I exhaled, inhaled, and responded, “I'm sorry, I have a speech impediment. I stutter while talking. Can we communicate over text?” It came out very irregular and distorted in places. He took a second and said, “That's perfectly fine, I'm all ears. Take your time and tell me.” It relieved me immensely. It made me think that the client wasn't seeing me as lesser because of my impediment.

So I skimmed through whatever I had jotted down, did some calculations, thought about what I had to ask, and then started talking. It was not an easy ride for me, and it must have been a terrible ride for the listener, because my stutter worsened beyond its usual nature, and I took forever to complete myself. He kept filling the gaps with “hmms” to show that he was listening, and he concluded the call by saying, “Okay, Pranjal, I have heard you. Now curate your best offer, and I shall discuss it with the board and tell you at the earliest.” Then the call disconnected.

I took an hour to create the offer. I considered various pricing points and which terms to include or exclude, and after thorough consideration, I sent it. He replied by text, “Okay, will let you know.”

And it's been three months since then. All the texts and emails I sent him lay unanswered. To this day, I wonder: was it my offer that didn't fit them, or was it my speech that made them choose an agency with better communicators? I like to believe the latter, because I think my offer was quite modest for their requirements. But in either case, I don't deserve to be ghosted.

I think it doesn't take more than a minute to give a reply which can be deciding for the course of a potential partnership.