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How much do you put up with from a non-communicative potential client?

This is somewhat similar to the question below me but a bit different so I figured I'd create another thread. I'm not just asking about this specific situation but what you hypothetically would put up with in terms of lack of communication

A potential client contacted me the other day about sitting for their cat (they're going away at the end of the month but don't know which upcoming Jan weekend it will be) & we exchanged two messages and he suggested that this Friday would be good for a meet-n-greet. I asked him what time he would like to meet, and I didn't receive a response until I messaged him a day later, asking if he was still interested. Three hours later he tells me that he has to agree on a time with his wife and he'll get back to me as soon as he can. Now it's over a day later and no response from him and we're supposedly meeting up tomorrow.

Now this definitely isn't the most disrespectful situation in the world but at what point do you decide that a lack of respect for your time isn't worth it? I get vibes that he might not even let me know what time to meet until Friday actually rolls around, or might put it off altogether and reschedule the day of. I guess I'm just wondering what is typical for you guys & how much leeway you give to people when it comes to scheduling. I'm probably overreacting, I've just been lucky to schedule meet-n-greets within one conversation & get that out of the way so this feels so unnecessarily drawn out to me.

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And how do you handle when a client is unsure exactly when they're going away? Like it's between the two last weekends of January in this case. Do you tell them you can't hold the spot for them since they're still unsure? Thanks

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I give potential new clients 24 hours to respond to my initial request for a M&G. I give them my availability and ask if any of those dates/times are convenient. If they don't respond, I send another message asking if they are still interested and to please let me know what date/time they would like to meet. No response in 12 hours? Archive and move on, indicating owner was not a good fit. Sometimes they do have to check with the spouse, work, other commitments, etc. so I give them the benefit of the doubt for the first message.

If it's a vague inquiry with no specific dates, I tell them in the first message that I do not make reservations until after a M&G. If they don't respond to my first message, as discussed above, in the reminder message I also remind them I do not make a reservation and cannot guarantee a spot until after a M&G.

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Thanks! What would you do in my situation where he initially responded immediately this Tues morning then he didn't get back to me about time, only responds a day later on Wednesday when I followed up & still hasn't gotten back to me about the time that works for him and his wife for Friday...

Is this the kind of client I perhaps shouldn't bother with? Also, he knows they're going away at the end of the month but doesn't know which of the last two January weekends it'll be & I have no idea when he'll know... would you just say that you can't save any weekend for him in that case?

At this point, I would just archive the request as 'owner made other plans' and move on. I would send one more message saying that your calendar for tomorrow (Friday) is filling up and you need to know specifically what time they will be there and you can't save time without a M&G. Then leave it.

Thanks for your advice. What would you do if they messaged you the day of with the time?

If it's convenient, then meet with them. If not, or you'd rather just avoid them, apologize and tell them you are no longer available due to other commitments. Thank them for considering you and say that there are other qualified quality Rover sitters who could keep their dog(s).

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Book a Stay
Woodbridge, VA

The good, the bad, and the ugly! These are the clients we deal with, most are good and easy to deal with, some are bad and a few are truly ugly. This is all part of the pet care business, not much you can do about it. Accept the fact and move on. Remember, this is just one booking among many more to come. Sometimes “winning” can come at a cost, like negative reviews and wasted time.

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Unfortunately I only get about one request a month these days because I can't do boarding due to my own dog's aversion of it. So that's why it's so frustrating; because I don't have any other clients to engage with and I'm just waiting for this guy to respond.

Thankfully I don't make money solely from dog sitting so I don't think it's all that necessary for me to accept the 'bad' clients and waste my time that way. and obviously this person hasn't booked (part of the reason why I'm asking now) so obviously they can't give me a bad review...

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It sucks, but honestly move on. Archive with owner didn't respond. Sometimes owners are just feeling out the field. Rover usually recommends for them to contact multiple people for one service and sometimes people are too shy to simply say they went with a different person. Sometimes they're working and can only respond on lunch break or when off from work. I had one guy who would text back immediately once and then not text until after 4pm.

Realistically if they can't be bothered to contact you and let you know for sure one way or the other; you don't want them as a client. You're getting a glimpse into their personality. It doesn't mean they're a bad person, it just may mean they don't respect you enough to get back to you in a timely manner.

If they don't know for sure when they'll be gone, try to encourage them to commit. Ask "when will you know?" Or "does your job let you decide the week of?" It is true they may still be going back and forth on the date. However everyone eventually has to tell their boss. Finding out that they have to give a month notice to work and yet they don't know when they need you is a red sign.

I understand that it can be rough waiting for clients. But is it really worth it? Sometimes it is! If its job that sounds like it will repeat or for a chunk of money (500$+) then, yes tag them repeatedly lol. If its a one off or 100$, its not worth your peace of mind.

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I think this would definitely be a repeated gig...the last time we communicated was when I asked him if he was still interested two days ago and he said 'Yes, sorry for the delay in response. I have to coordinate a time with my wife. I'll let you know when I can.' And that was the last time

(cont'd) we communicated. We were supposed to meet this Friday but it's already Friday and he hasn't messaged me... it's been over two days. I kinda want the job but it's no fun being treated like nothing

I found him posting about this job on care.com with more specifics actually which is how I know it would probably be a repeated thing. AND I would just be taking care of their cat which is a super easy gig. So it's tricky to decide what to do.

Also I think it's Fri night-Sun night so no need to tell their boss probably. And lol I actually archived it after he didn't respond for a day.... if i get an aloof vibe from someone I tend to archive the request very quickly.

But see here's the thing.... he was supposed to get back to you and he didn't. Then when you followed up, he AGAIN said he would get back to you and didn't. Even if it turned into a repeat job, do you really want someone like that as a client? Leaving you hanging until the last possible second?

Yeah, I totally agree with you. I only do house sitting and drop in visits and pretty much get only one Rover request a month so it's just hard to let go (thankfully I also do dog walking so I don't NEED this job, but still). And watching a cat is like a freebie gig lol but yeah, you're right.

What should I respond with if he does contact me? I so badly want to say 'Sorry but I only work with clients who value my time. Best of luck with your search' but I know that's so unprofessional lol

EVERYONE has access to text or email, I personally wouldn't deal with that. My time/resources/energy are too valuable to continually wait. When u archieve, he still can book with u or contact u later. All it does is remove it from your immediate sight and allows you to focus on someone else

If he does contact you back a simple "Sorry but since I didn't hear back from you I made other plans/moved to the next client on my list. I hope in the future you think of me and best of luck with your search' etc It doesn't mean that you're booked, simply that you moved on.

Yep, I know about the archiving deal. Lol I don't want to hear from him again tho...

If I had a dollar for every client that said they'd call me back, I could retire lol! Don't take it personally. Rover encourages them to contact multiple people when they send out stay requests. So honestly some may simply forget or space it off.

Yep and I'm sure he's talking to a bunch of sitters on care.com as well..

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Thanks, I think I'll just wait and see how it plays out for now; give myself more time to think about it.

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