ghosting an agency after being invited to pitch

Let's say you're invited to pitch for a good piece of business and you agree to do so.


You understand you won't get paid for the work unless you're the winning agency (standard pitch practice, unfortunately) and even appreciate you'll have to cover the train costs of getting to the presentation.

This strategy won't make the pages of a 'Best Business Model 2020' manual but by and large, it's how agencies go about getting new clients. We know what we're getting ourselves into.

The disappointing thing is often the lack of communication from the client after the work has been presented.

Everyone knows projects changing, timescales altering and new people getting involved are all variables that can occur after pitch day. These things are understandable so the least a client can do is keep the agencies up to date with what's going on.

Yet weeks, sometimes months can pass without so much as an email regarding the project's progress - something that's not only wrong but fundamentally rude.

No client should be ghosting ('the practice of ending a personal relationship with someone by suddenly and without explanation withdrawing from all communication') an agency after a pitch, especially an agency they instigated contact with.

A pitch can only ever have one winner at least one loser and I'm sure no-one likes to make that call to the unsuccessful agency (s).

But if you haven't got the balls to make it, don't hold a pitch in the first place.

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