client ghosted me after i quoted $8500 for his CertainTeed shingle job

so i'm up here in zone 5 minnesota, where winters hit like a truck, and i finally land this decent-sized roof replacement gig for a ranch house. guy seemed normal, we walked the roof together, i measure it out at 1800 sq ft, spec out CertainTeed Landmark shingles 'cause they're solid for our snow loads, and hit him with a $8500 quote including tear-off, underlayment, and gutters. he nods, says sounds good, then poof, radio silence for two weeks. NGL, this is my third flake this month, and with hail season coming, i'm starting to sweat. anyone got tips on chasing these difficult clients without sounding desperate? saw a similar rant in the Roofing Pros fb group last week.

man, that sucks, had a guy do the exact same thing after i quoted a panel upgrade.

ghosting clients are the worst, feels like i wasted a whole day driving out there.

use housecall pro for quotes, it has automated follow-ups that nag them without you lifting a finger.

ugh, minnesota clients especially, they think twice with the weather but still bail.

screw these homeowners, they're ruining the whole industry with their flakiness.

been there, lost $2k in materials sitting around 'cause of one.

we all get burned by them eventually.

frustrated as hell, just had to eat a $1200 loss on a no-show last week.

same, feels personal but it's just business i guess.

never trust a verbal yes, get it in writing or a deposit first.

those big roofing corps are buying up all the good leads, leaving us scraps.

yeah, and now we're fighting over the ghosters.

don't quote without a signed contract, learned that the hard way on a $10k job.

watch out for the ones who say they'll call back monday, they never do.

reminder: always document the site visit with photos, covers your butt if they sue later.

customer thought his CertainTeed roof was invincible, called me yelling when it leaked after a storm.

psa: these cheapskates will cost you more in the long run, fire them early.

had a laugh when one ghoster showed up begging for a discount six months later.

ghosting after a walk-through? that's low even for roofing clients.

sucks man, the market's flooded with bad leads right now.

we're all in this crap together, insurance companies jacking rates too.

finally got one to pay up by small claims, worth the hassle.

client in my area tried to DIY after ghosting me, ended up calling back double the price.

tommy mello talks about this in his videos, says qualify harder upfront.