Ghosting sucks, and it stings way more when the person already paid you.

This episode comes from a question an HCA student asked me: she closes most people she talks to, but a few ghosted midway through her program.

Is it her, or her systems? I walk through the three things to check, in order, so you stop guessing.

What we cover:

• Why a ghosted client costs more than a ghosted lead: you lose the sale plus the result, the testimonial and the referral
• Why it hits your confidence, and why some ghosting is a normal part of running a program
• Check your program structure first: most of us were never taught curriculum design or client experience
• Milestones: little wins your client can hit predictably, using the mountain hike example
• Why a milestone has to be something you can deliver and prove (like shipping off a lab kit), not an outcome you can't control
• Why the first few weeks matter most: one study found students active in week one finished 78% of the time vs 17% for inactive students (observational data from a course platform)
• How I changed my own protocols: dripping them out step by step instead of dumping everything at once
• What I added inside HCA: business audits and one-on-one calls so people have a custom plan by the end of week one
• Check who you let in: the wrong-fit signs I watch for on a sales call
• Why "I need this to work or else" is a red flag
• What to do when someone says on your application that they can't invest
• Accept what nothing fixes: there is always a portion of clients who pay and never complete
• My own confession: the $2,000 NLP course I paid for and never finished
• A rough benchmark for HCA: around 5% ghosting is normal, 10% or higher means look at your program

Resources mentioned

• Ruzuku study on cohort vs self-paced completion: ruzuku.com
• Apply for Health Coach Accelerator (HCA): https://go.kendraperry.net/apply-hca
• Kendra's website: kendraperry.net
• Kendra on Instagram: @kendraperryinc