The Roadmap They Want You to Commit To
New stakeholder. Wants 6-month deliverable commitments you can't make.
Based on real client experiences, but anonymized and dramatized to protect identities and confidential relationships.
On a renewal call, the new VP at an international travel operator says: "We like working with your agency, but I need a clear 6-month deliverables roadmap to take to my CFO, or we can't justify the retainer." Your original champion left two months ago. Six-month commitments depend on data and budget you don't control.
- 01Client is 14 months into the retainer, broadly satisfied with results
- 02New stakeholder inherited the relationship (didn't choose your agency)
- 03You can't honestly promise specific deliverables 6 months out — the work is iterative
3 minutes to navigate the impossible ask. Over-promise → destroy trust later. Under-deliver → they cancel notice now.
High-wire act. You can't give them the shape they're asking for, so you reframe what "proof of commitment" looks like for an SEO retainer. The best response flips the script into an ask of your own.