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jamestl2
02-13-2010, 03:38 AM
I recently had someone contact me for a freelance job (he asked me to develop a WP theme). And he paid me upfront immediately.

Then I'd say about half way through completion I emailed him asking how he liked the direction I was taking it in, what else he'd like to have on the theme, what styles he preferred, etc.

I didn't hear back from him until about a week later, and he was curious about why I stopped development. So I responded again with the same issues that arose, what direction he'd like to move in. I thought maybe he didn't get the email for some reason (despite seeing it in the sent section of my mailbox).

A few days go by, so I wrote another email just to see what was going on (didn't want to pressure him or anything, but still wanted to know where to go). I haven't heard back from him since.

Anyway, just not sure what I should do in this situation. I mean, he already paid me, and I was just trying to complete the project. I don't want to give the vibe that I do half the job and not finish it, and I also don't want to sound pushy, given that his schedule could be busy, but I haven't heard back from him since (this was probably a few weeks or so ago).

Steve B
02-13-2010, 04:37 AM
Call him on the phone.

Maybe he's terrible about checking e-mail, or his wife or kids are deleting them by accident, or they're getting caught in his spam filter, or he gets hundreds of unwanted e-mails every day and he accidentally deletes yours when he's deleting the junk. Just because you see it in your "sent" folder doesn't mean communication has happened.

If he doesn't answer his phone, send him a real letter.

vangogh
02-13-2010, 06:43 PM
I might try him a phone call too. It seems strange that he's not getting your emails, but it certainly happens. Maybe for some reason your email is ending up in his spam folder. It does happen.

I'd try looking for another way to communicate with him if you can.

Also how far can you still go with the theme without his feedback. If there are things you can do you might as well continue to work on those things while you try to get in touch with him.

nealrm
02-13-2010, 07:15 PM
Email is an OK method of communication but it has one huge drawback - until the person responds you don't know if the email even reach his inbox. If a client doesn't respond back in 24-48 hours I would followup with a phone call. Even if he doesn't answer, you know that the message was not delivered and you need to try again.

On the other hand, he could be getting the emails and something else is taking priority over him getting back to you. The next time you talk get a timeline. That will give you an idea if this is something he wants done in the next month or in the next 6 months.

Evan
02-15-2010, 12:29 AM
I agree with the others with a telephone call. You may get some instant feedback there, and get some true thoughts on it, because he may not have had time to develop all of his thoughts and put it "nicely" in an e-mail.

Try a few times if you do get his voicemail, and after that, you may wish to follow up by letter.

jamestl2
02-16-2010, 03:17 PM
Unfortunately I don't have his telephone number.

We mostly communicated via email (given that I was providing the service, and I never really needed to talk over the phone on projects before). However, he did called me once, but I didn't write it down for anything, as we were working under his schedule.

vangogh
02-16-2010, 03:58 PM
You can try searching for another way to contact him. He's likely listed in a phone book somewhere. You can even try seeing if you can find him online somewhere in one social community or another.

Otherwise all you can do is continue to email and do your best to work on the site without his feedback.

In the future definitely collect more than one way to contact clients. Most of the time email is fine, but you never know.