Why you should never work for free

As an outdoor enthusiast, I know exposure as a bad word. Getting cold and wet in the outdoors is likely to kill you quickly. But in the freelance world, exposure is seen by some clients as a form of currency. Working for them will supposedly give you exposure, which is apparently all you really should be asking for. Well, that kind of exposure kills too.

Taking that job for free will cost you the opportunity to find a different piece of paying work. It might also deprive another person of a paying gig because now this client knows they can get away with bullying freelancers into low-returns work.

In my experience clients who try to talk my rate down, want things done in a shorter timeframe, or try to get more work for the same price, are the ones who subsequently want more revisions, extra hours, additional training, or expect me to be a life-long support line for unrelated questions.

The only clients worse than this are the ones who want you to do work for nothing. Don’t do free work for people who could but won’t pay. No matter how tempting they make it seem.

You will end up hating them, hating yourself, and hating the work you do. That almost guarantees that it won’t be your best work.

Worse still, they won’t appreciate the work because it cost them nothing. Don’t be surprised if they don’t end up using it, or if they demand a bunch of changes or follow-on work.

Common arguments for why exposure is good

The people who try to persuade you to work for free are probably pretty good salespeople. They’ve convinced someone to give them some first- or even second-round funding. They are trying to sell their idea to a customer base as well. Now, they are using the same sales pitch on you. Unfortunately that’s all it is. A sales pitch.

“We’re growing so fast, your work will be in front of millions of people.” The number of people they say will see your amazing work is an inflated number based on crazy projections aimed at pleasing investors. And will any of those visitors actually know it’s your work?

“But it’ll only take you ten minutes - that’s nothing.” Yeah, ten minutes and over twenty years of experience. That’s a lot. Plus it’s never just ten minutes.

“You’re new at this. I can see you've got some potential, but you need me more than I need you.” Yup. I’m so inexperienced that you have sought me out and asked me to do my obviously not-very-good work for you. This is the slimy pick-up artist technique known as "negging," designed to make you think you have something to prove. It’s not very professional.

“You don’t understand; this is how we work with all our suppliers, until we’ve tested them out.” Indeed? So you were given office space just for the exposure? Those fancy laptops were a gift because Apple needed the exposure? How are my services any different from your landlord or your tech supplier?

“We’re asking five different people to submit this piece of work, then we’ll choose the one we like best and use that person for any future enhancements.” You mean there’s the potential that all my work would be wasted? Why would I bother investing my best effort in that situation? Do your due diligence up front, and if you still feel that I’m the best match, then I’ll work closely with you to give you what you need. For a fee.

There are other ways to get exposure

If you solved an interesting problem on a previous piece of client work, ask that client whether they want to write an article or do a conference presentation with you about it. Even if you initially worked under a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA), once the product is out there, they'll probably be happy to gather more publicity. That's instant exposure, quite possibly with the marketing effort of the client organization behind you as well.

If you really want to work for free, choose a worthy cause and volunteer or do pro bono work. You still get the exposure, and somebody who couldn’t pay for your expertise gets input that will help them further their cause. The work you do for that client is very unlikely to be under NDA, so you can talk about it all you want, add it to your portfolio, and use it as a way of pulling in other (paying) client work.

This type of client is typically overjoyed that you’d even consider helping them out, is highly respectful of your time, and is very likely to talk highly of you at every opportunity they get. That’s the sort of publicity that you want, and it also leaves you feeling better about the world and better about your own abilities.

There are other ways to get paid

Let’s say you really want the job that offered to pay you in exposure. For some crazy reason, you think it really will be good for your career or portfolio, and you’re prepared to put up with all the out-of-scope change requests and lack of appreciation that will be coming your way.

If this is an established company, can they pay you in product or services? The wholesale cost of software or a subscription might be minimal to them. Even the wholesale cost of physical products is way less than the retail value. Paying you in product is a way to give you something of value at little cost to themselves.

If this is a startup, ask for equity. If they say no, then it’s clear they see value in their business, which means there’s sufficient money to invest in the work you’re doing for them. If they say yes, then either they really are desperate, or they recognize that your contribution is worth some ownership stakes in their new venture. Just remember, an equity stake means that you are invested in the business, so it might be harder to say no to future requests.

Whatever you do, make a contract

In any of the cases above, the only way to ensure that everybody in the transaction knows what is expected of them, what the scope is, and what the output will be, is to have a contract in place. Contracts aren't about money, they are about expectations.

When you work for free, or for some form of non-financial compensation, this contract is the only thing that puts constraints on your work and limits your liability. Even if you’re not getting paid in the traditional sense of the word, there’s still a transaction. You are getting something in return. Make it clear what that thing is.

If it’s equity, how many shares? What type of shares? When will they vest?

If it’s goods or services, what quantity, what length of subscription, what level of service? (And now work out whether it’s worth the tax hit you’ll take on the full market value of that item).

If it’s “exposure,” where will this exposure be happening? What form will it take? For how long will the company continue to promote you? What rights do you have to talk about the work you did for them, and what parts are covered under NDA?

If you’re doing charitable or pro bono work, the contract is a way of stating what you will do, by when, and for how long, so that expectations are set up front. It’s also a way of communicating what you expect your client to provide for you, in what format, and by when, in order for you to be able to be successful.

If nothing else, the creation of this contract will help you (and your client) see the inequity of a situation. And if the client is not prepared to enter into a contract, it really is time to walk away.

It’s about respect

Remember: you have a skill set that clients want. If they’re talking with you about performing work for them, they think that your skill set is a good match for their company. Paying you for that work is a sign of respect. Without that respect, the client-freelancer relationship is out of balance, and not in a good way for you.

Have you got your own story about potential clients wanting you to work for exposure? Share the outcome in the comments!