It’s Not Worth Working For Free For Future Opportunities

Whether you’re a small business owner or a one-man band freelancer, there are going to be times a prospective client comes to you to ask if you can offer your goods or services for free. They’ll promise you lucrative paid work in the future. Most of the time it’s not worth taking the deal. Here’s why.

Freebies image from Shutterstock

The clients that usually appeal to small businesses for freebies are usually ones that are trying to establish themselves. They’ll sell it as a mutually beneficial opportunity: they get much needed help in furthering their own businesses (which according to them, will be thriving very soon) and you’ll get to reap the rewards of their successes as they’ll become a loyal paying customer down the track.

Small business and entrepreneurial author, Andrew Griffith, who has had experience with would-be clients asking for free help, said that unless they have great credibility, comes highly recommended and have a proven track record of success, then it’s not worth taking up these “opportunities”.

His advice on small business blog Flying Solo:

“Here’s what I advise most people to do instead: why not get caught up in your own dream and make your business the success it should be by getting paid for the work you do today.”
 
“The bottom line for me is this — get nervous whenever a potential client tries too hard to sell you about how great their business will be tomorrow. If they’re not prepared to pay you for the work you do today, it’s unlikely they will value the work you do tomorrow.”

At the end of the day, you’re working towards making your own business more successful as well, so don’t compromise your dreams for the sake of somebody else’s.

[Via Flying Solo]