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Northern California Babies
When you offer a service & ppl want it for free ...
I know a lot of you ladies are talented in various ways - and we have several of you on this board that run your own business or offer a service such as int design, photography, graphic design, etsy items, etc etc etc.
Im curious how you handle people wanting a service (or item) for free. Do you do free stuff for family? Do you have a reduced rate for friends/family? Do you have a hard time stating this - or is it easy to follow thru on?
Have you had any bad experiences with mixing family/friends with business?
Any things you've learned along the way when dealing with this?
Any random thoughts or experience related to this would be awesome!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: When you offer a service & ppl want it for free ...
I know that I'm in the minority (at least according to the Etsy groups I'm part of), but I do things for free for my family and have done things for free for friends. It sort of depends on what it is on the friend front. If it's a ready made item and I just have to make a few minor changes (wording mainly), I'm more inclined to give a discount or offer for free. If it's a custom design that takes hours of work, I charge. It usually also means that I'm designing graphics or at a minimum licensing them which means it costs me money (both time and product).
And quite honestly, it really depends on who it is. If I had a family member who rarely contacts me and ask me to create something for them, I'd charge them. Same goes for friends. I don't mind doing stuff for free or even discounted if I don't feel used. It's when the random, distant cousin contacts me and says "Hey, I'm hosting a baby shower and wondered if you'd be interested in doing the paper products". I don't offer a discount or any freebies.
It's hard though.
There's a great flow chart that walks through the decision making process of whether to work for free or not. Basically, if you are a professional providing a service, you are undermining your service most of the time by working for free. I will sometimes do free work for close relatives, but it's usually small and on my timetable. I generally so not do business with friends, because I don't want to complicate my friendships. Sometimes trades work better with friends.
https://www.shouldiworkforfree.com/
DH runs an IT business. For family and close friends, DH will do the work for free, but obviously you have to pay for the actual equipment. And you're pretty much at the bottom of the list when it comes to having work done. The only person lower than friends and family is me! I RARELY get any work done (as seen by the fact that my wireless internet has not worked for several months and now my laptop has to be plugged in!)
With other family services (cousin is a photographer, SIL is a graphic designer), they will do the work for free, but you have to pay for actual "stuff". So my cousin is going to take preggy pics for me for free, but I will pay for the prints (plus, all his pics end up on here and FB, and I always site him, so it's also good advertising for him!)
In the end though, what we've learned is Family is Family and Business is Business. You can have business with your family, but make sure they understand up front what is expected of each party. Otherwise, you will be dealing with hurt feelings and irritating experiences with your in-laws (or whoever you are working with).
Thanks for the flow chart reminder! Ive seen that and love it. I do know that if *I* dont value my work, then I cant expect others too. So more often than not, free isnt a great option for anyone involved.
I struggle because I feel like my time is so limited these days that to do anything for free, costs me big time.
I don't have huge demand for my talents and am not in business to offer the things I do for fun (sewing, knittinghas been asked to do commissioned work but she doesn't like being told what to make so it doesn't work well. We won't be setting up an etsy shop anytime soon.
A friend of mine is a full time freelance graphic artist and does very well. She offered to do our wedding invitations and never mentioned charging us. She did them based on our rough drafts (DH is production artist). I don't recall discussing money but I think it may have been her gift to us? Anyway, we were annoying I'm sure and we didn't pay her.
My brother's are mechanics and one in particular is often hit up for "free" work. But when I can and when I ask (versus him offering) I always offer to pay them for their time. Unless they offer to do it for free.
One SIL is a hair dresser and does LOTS of free for family work.
Lots of people have skills and use those skills as their livelihood. If so, trades are fair game but outright asking for free stuff seems to abuse their time and ability to support themselves.
I'd say if it were me and people wanted something that I normally sell, I'd make sure to only agree to do it if you have the time to give away.
I have seen businesses integrate a return client/family-friends/referral program discounts. It shows good will to people in the fact that you recognize they choose you over other businesses, but it is still a form of payment that recognizes a value to your time. How much that discount is, varies by business and I'm sure it has a lot to do with the bottom line.
If you ever decide to do things for free, it should be your choice. I know it can put a stress on your relationship with others, and you have to decide how to handle each situation, but if you feel that you're in a good place to offer someone an extremely deep discount or to do it for free, go for it. I'm sure that it will feel good to make someone happy, and that's worth something too
But you have to know what your bottom line is, what your costs are, and realize if you're actually loosing money (i.e you're paying to work for them).
My only other comment would be, to be consistent. If you reach an agreement with an individual, set expectations early, and don't change them mid-way (unless you go from paid to free). That would put a lot more stress on you.
Also, in an ideal world, you should prioritize paid work over free work, and if you choose to do a free project, do it with the expectation that you will when you have more down-time. I don't know if your work is cyclical, and if so, can predict when you can handle a project on someone's behalf.
Good luck. It's a hard thing.
Photo by Zemya Photography
My perspective is a bit different, as I come from a direct sales position. In the beginning of my Creative Memories business, I felt funny about charging my friends full retail price for my products (especially because they were helping me get my business started). I asked the woman mentoring me and she said to set the expectation from the beginning that everyone pays full price because it's a business and that's how businesses work. Giving friends a discount or freebies (in my case) is money straight out of my pocket. So even though it was a bit uncomfortable, I have always charged friends full value, and when I have the occasional opportunity to give them an extra freebie or a bit of a discount from CM as opposed to straight from my pocket, I make sure to. I'm glad I've done it that way because I don't have to worry about being consistent, about who gets my "friends" discount and who doesn't, or feeling like doing business with friends is going to cost me.
On the other hand, whenever someone needs a contribution for a raffle donation (like a gift basket) or monetary sponsorship, I'm always happy to do it. That's part of being a businesswoman that I love- I can choose to give when I feel I have the means and motivation to do so, and not simply out of obligation.
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Haley Beth ~ March 3rd, 2011