Should Freelancers Ever Work for Free?

When is it Forbidden to Freelance for Free?

The company says that they can’t afford it- You look up a company to find that they have over 50 employees, a private office and a fancy espresso machine in the background of photos but they say they can’t afford to pay you $100 for a blog post? One of two things is going on: either they are liars and can afford to cough up your fee or business is so bad that they can’t bear any expense except electricity. Would you want to work for either? It may be tempting to secure any offer that comes your way but make sure you research the company to see that there’s some benefit to working with them. You wouldn’t want to wake up and see yourself associated with a business that went under or got caught in some shady business dealings all because you said yes to a simple social media post.

The company says that they’ll pay you later- As a freelancer I’m sure you’ve heard one of these before: “We’ll pay you after we see your work” or “We do our accounting at the end of the month so we’ll pay you then” or “I’m going on vacation for the next six months so you’ll hear from us after.” What do they really mean when they say these things? “We don’t value you or your work.” When you let yourself get pushed around as a freelancer you’re essentially devaluing your business, and if you don’t value yourself why should an external company? We’re taught in our capitalistic society that free = no value. How many of those free e-books that you’ve downloaded have you actually read? How many of those free 20% Bed Bath and Beyond coupons do you have stuffed in your junk drawer? Make sure before you start any project that you have something in writing about the amount you will get paid and when payment is due by to protect yourself. Don’t become pushed around and forgotten about like that free metro newspaper left on the subway.

The work takes more than an hour of your time- They say time is money so why would you spend your precious time not getting paid? If it is a small piece or service that you can accomplish in under an hour then there’s no harm, no foul, but if the work takes time away from other projects that you can actually get paid for then why bother? Also remember that money provides major motivation in helping you create a project you can be proud of. Why would you put your heart and soul into an article about waiting at the doctor’s office when you’re not passionate about the subject and there’s no reward at the end? You get what you pay for and if you aren’t paying anything then the work won’t be anything special. This creates a lose-lose situation as not only are you not getting paid but you’ll be putting out sub-par work that can hinder your ability to get actual paid work in the future.

We know that asking to be paid fairly is an awkward conversation whether it’s asking a down and out friend to pay back the money you lent them, your unemployed roommate for their rent check or to get paid for your work. Know that you aren’t alone: only 43% of workers have asked for a raise according to a recent PayScale survey. We, here at Invoice Home want to make the conversation about getting paid easy. Simply create an invoice from our 100+ template designs, fill in the amount you need to get paid as well as your terms for getting paid and send it to your clients through email. You don’t even need to make eye contact with the person you are asking money from as they can pay online through PayPal or credit card! Never let your hard work go unpaid again with our invoicing and payment software.