This can happen and I wouldn't call it unusual. (Companies do this to interviewees all the time, let alone consultants. That is rude. You're supposed to tell a

This can happen and I wouldn't call it unusual. (Companies do this to interviewees all the time, let alone consultants. That is rude. You're supposed to tell a candidate if they're moving forward or not, because many candidates can't afford to just sit around; they aren't in the business of running a long-term sales cycle, like consultants are.) Consulting leads who have found you on a message board are just shopping. You're offering a product, they kicked the tires a little, they decided not to buy today. These were cold leads, and busy people, so I wouldn't take it too personally. This is how sales works. You now share a bond with every other salesperson in the history of civilization. One thing you can do is: follow up. This is what books like Get Clients Now! will tell you: The secret to making sales is to follow up, and to create systems for remembering to follow up. Give it a week or two, then write back to these folks: "We spoke the other week about X, and I wanted to make sure that you found what you were looking for. Are you still looking for help or all you all set?" It's okay to keep this very short. It's just a reminder, a sign that you still care. One reason why you follow up is that a lot of these shopping expeditions just sort of get lost in limbo. Maybe the problem receded in importance for a month. Maybe they're short on runway and are hunting underneath the sofa cushions for loose change. Maybe someone just forgot.