My Best Client Has Gone Silent

[J.A. F]

I have some concerns about a client with whom I’ve been working for a little over three years.  We’ve been working together consistently in that time.  We haven’t had a formal contract in “My Jobs,” but I’ve continued submitting things to him through Messages and he has been consistently, promptly paying, and everything has been going more or less smoothly in this manner.  He has been the best of all my clients.  But lately he has been slow to respond to my messages about completing our latest project and moving on to the next.  It’s very critical that I turn the payment for the latest one around this week and immediately start the next one, and he hasn’t been answering messages, and it’s making me very concerned.  He has never been so slow to communicate in the past and it’s worrying me.  I don’t know what’s going on.  Upwork Messages is the only way I have of communicating with him, and he hasn’t said anything to me since last Tuesday.  I’m seriously wondering what I can do about this.  He’s been an important source of income for me and I want to keep working with him.  I’m about to finish my latest project with him in the next couple of days and I’m concerned about his not getting in touch with me.  I need to get things moving in the next five days or so.  What are my options if he doesn’t get in touch? 

[Joanne Marie P]

Hi J.A.F,

Sorry to hear that. Can you please send me a PM with the clients name or contract ID so I can check? Thank you!

[J.A. F]

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

And thank you very much.

[Lisa D]

How can I go about it to private message a potential client for some information without leaving the concept UpWork.? Without exchanging my Connects? 

Silence sometimes is around UpWork not removing certain posts over 20 days - is it still in need. Does the potential client still need the work, rush? 

I'll have to make sure they have my Skype?

Let me know.

[Prachi T]

If you don't have a formal contract with him, how has he managed to pay you until now?

[J.A. F]

He's continued to pay through Upwork, evidently by not closing the original contract but continuing to pay through it.  

[Petra R]

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@J.A. F wrote:

 We haven’t had a formal contract in “My Jobs,” but I’ve continued submitting things to him through Messages and he has been consistently, promptly paying,

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 How has he been consistently, promptly paying without a contract?

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@J.A. F wrote:

 What are my options if he doesn’t get in touch? 

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 Through Upwork - none because without a contract there is no protection of any kind.

There are two scenarios which offer a degree of protection (you get paid automatically if you do things right

• hourly contracts, where you track your time properly
• fixed rate contracts where the funds for the current milestone are in Escrow.

Anything else means if the client vanishes you have worked for free.

[Melanie M]

1. How are you working and getting paid without a formal contract?

2.  I'm not surprised you haven't heard from the client if he/she is in the U.S., as it is a holiday week. As for myself, I have had houseguests since last Wednesday and am just now getting around to checking on my contracts/messages. Perhaps your client is in the same situation?

[J.A. F]

He's continued to pay through Upwork, apparently by not closing the original contract.

He just got back in touch this evening and it is as you surmised; the holiday had him occupied.  Everything's good.  

[Prachi T]

That's great!

With all due respect, I think you should just take a deep breath and relax and wait for a few days at least the next time you feel a client is trying to avoid you. I am saying this from your two other posts besides this one which is about unresponsive clients who eventually contacted you and all was good. A little patience wouldn't hurt

Also, if you are working on fixed-price basis for the client, it's always better to have funded milestones before you start working. That way, even if the client really becomes unresponsive, at least you'll be sure to get paid for your work.