Don’t go all quiet on me

Have you ever been ghosted??

For those of you who are unfamiliar, ghosting is when you abruptly end communicating with someone without any explanation.?

The mental health effects of being ghosted can be very challenging. ‘Ghosting’ often refers to romantic relationships but can also describe the disappearances from friendships and even the workplace.?

And it also happens with JV partnerships.?

Whenever I’m managing a product launch, a summit, a webinar, or any kind of promotion, I will always ask partners to confirm what dates they are promoting us.?

I explain to partners that it’s for their benefit. If I know when they’re promoting us, it helps us to track their performance and alert them in case there are any issues. For example, if a partner says they’re mailing for us on May 16, but we don’t see any traffic from them on that date, we can alert them that something isn’t working properly, and we can fix that problem.?

Sometimes I get ghosted.?

I get it. Some partners aren’t very good at managing their inboxes, so they might not see my messages. So I contact them via their other channels. But It doesn’t matter how hard I try to re-establish contact, they won’t reply to my WhatsApps, my calls, or my social media messages.?

Today I want to ask you….Have you ever ghosted a JV partner?

It's Ok! I’m not going to judge anyone.?

But I want to explain why ghosting happens, and why ultimately, it will undermine your business if you do it.?

It may be that you are trying to avoid an awkward conversation, and you don’t want to upset anyone.?

• For example, you suddenly realize that you have too many commitments, and can’t commit to that product launch you promised to support.?
• You may be promoting a number of partners at the same time, and have not yet planned your marketing schedule, so can’t commit to any dates.?
• Or, you may be weighing up two competing promotions that are taking place at the same time, and you haven’t yet decided which partner you're going to support .?

I’m sure you don’t want to hurt anyone.

Maybe you don’t think it’s necessary to discuss anything.?

In fact, ghosting is so common, maybe you feel it’s a justifiable way to exit a partnership.

But no response IS a response.?

If you don’t reply to messages, what you are really saying is….

“I don’t want to talk to you”.

The problem is that all the partners you've let down are talking to each other.?

Every time you ghost a partner, you are burying your reputation.

Again, and again, I have had business owners complain to me about other partners:

“I’ll never work with them again. They said they would promote me, but they disappeared without a trace”.?

So here’s my advice..

Honesty really is the best policy.?

We are all human beings and we make mistakes.?

It’s perfectly ok to say to a partner:

“I’m sorry but I can no longer commit to this promotion, I overlooked the fact that I have another commitment on the same date. Let’s work together later in the year”

Sometimes, life happens. Your plans change.?

And if you’re unsure what your commitments are, it’s perfectly ok to say:

“I don’t yet know what my commitments are, can I come back to you in a few weeks time?”

It’s even ok to say….

“I’m not yet sure if I can support your product launch. I have a tentative commitment around the same time. I will know what my plans are in a couple of weeks time. Can I come back to you then?”

In fact, the more transparent you are, the better your relationship will be.?

If you can be open with each other, it demonstrates that you trust each other.?

So be realistic.?

It's ok to share your plans (or change of plan) with your partners. They understand. They’re human.?

Don’t be scared of awkward conversations.?

Because it's likely that the only person who is feeling awkward is you.