“Did my client disappear?”

If your primary job is to provide people with a personal service, you have likely experienced a disappearing client.

Sometimes no communication is worse than unpleasant communication.

At least with unpleasant communication you know where everyone stands which gives you a sense of direction.

Assumptions most often occur when no one is talking, leaving you as your only point of reference.

Assumptions create distance.

Distance does not help productivity.

Productivity is a fundamental necessity for success, especially in service industries.

With trust, it is likely that a person is untrusting of you not because of you but something else making them uneasy.

Discover what makes them uneasy.

Did something happen to them in the past that the current situation reminds them of?

Tell them you sense distance.

Remind them you are their partner and tell them again what being a partner means to you.

If you have an agreement with a client and they disappear it is natural to assume you may be the problem.

It must be your fault since they have stopped talking to you right?

Doubt it.

Most of the time if some one vanishes out of thin air, fear is the culprit.

Something has scared them.

You need to find out why they are scared.

You cannot do much with just knowing fear is the reason everything stopped.

That would lead to more assuming: “oh! You are afraid? Well don’t be afraid to buy now it’s a great time”

That isn’t a horrible thing to say, but what if that’s not what they are scared of?

You have to play detective when communication stops.

Not just to find out a general reason… to find the specific reason.

More importantly, you have to make it ok for them to be afraid and still move forward.