Lost a 3 year retainer over a single voicemail in Boston

I forgot to call back a foundation director within 24 hours last month, they said they 'needed someone more responsive' and gave the gig to another freelancer. I was in the middle of moving and just let that one message sit, now I set a daily alarm to check missed calls. Anyone else lose work just because of a slow reply, not bad work?

2 comments

2 Comments

henry_anderson543d agoMost Upvoted

Man, that is brutal. A whole three year run gone over one missed call? So here's my question: did that director ever actually have a complaint about the work itself, or was it just about the 24 hour thing? Cause if the work was solid, that feels like an excuse to cut ties and hire their buddy or someone cheaper. I wonder if they were already shopping around and just used your voicemail as the reason to pull the trigger.

colegarcia2d ago

Had a similar thing happen back in my freelancing days. Client ghosted me for two weeks, then came back with a list of tiny nitpicks that had never come up once in three years of working together. Turned out they'd already hired their nephew and just needed a paper trail to make it look legit. The work was never the issue, the relationship was just over and they didn't have the guts to say it straight.