How long to wait before follow up

[cyberlord]

I quoted a price to an ad agency a while back and was wondering how long I should wait before sending a follow up email. I don't want to seem anxious but I don't want to wait too long in case something happened and my photo was neglected or something and lose out on the deal. I am kind of curious as to what they decided on of course.

How long does it usually take for a client to make photo decisions and negotiate a price?

Thanks.

[mjs1973]

I was in the same situation as you a couple of weeks ago. I sent some photos to an agency, along with a price. I never heard anything back, so after about a week, I sent them another email. I did get a response from that follow up email, and now I'm waiting to hear if their proposal was accepted.

A lot of agencies are working under tight deadlines, and have higher priorities to deal with. I think it's reasonable to send a follow up letter, email or phone call after a week or so.

As far as how long it takes for someone to make a decision, that could be anywhere from a day or two, to months. It all depends on how many people are involved in the process. The more people who have to see it, the longer it will take.

[masdog]

Don't send an email as a follow-up. Generally, it is better to follow-up with a call unless they give that as the only contact method.

[cyberlord]

We've been using email from the get-go so that was the method I used to follow up.

Good idea though.

Thanks

[Asylum Steve]

I quoted a price to an ad agency a while back and was wondering how long I should wait before sending a follow up email.

Yeah, a touchy subject sometimes. You don't want to appear too anxious, but just let it go, and you may come across as apathetic, and that will hurt you in the long run. You want to be enthusiastic without seeming pushy.

It's best to ask when submitting. Just a general query about when a decision is expected to be made. No one takes offense to that. Sometimes the agency will be vague, sometimes they'll be more specific. That'll give you a starting point for a follow-up.

Most of these people pretty well have their act together, but occasisonally things fall through the cracks. Contact info may get lost, they may be interested in your work, but get distracted by other projects.

Polite follow-ups keep you on their radar, and remind them of your interest.

As for method, email is actually preferred by a lot of businesses now. Phone calls are much more of an immediate distraction. Email accomplishes the same thing, but is less intrusive on their work time.