I got a question about working for free from a copywriter named Drea Fecht a few days ago. And I actually don’t know that I’ve shared my thoughts about the subject with you before. So I want to go on the record today and share how I think about free work.
You may be surprised to hear that I do not always think working for free a bad idea.
In fact, working for free is how I landed a client worth $163,360.
So let me share the question I got from freelance copywriter Drea Fecht about doing free work — followed by my response.
Drea Asked
So I have a potential client looking to hire a full time copywriter (contract position) and they want me to write a sales page as a test. They haven’t off[ered] to pay me for my time.
I haven’t asked for payment (yet) but I want to because I do have another client and a side hustle while building my business.
Would love your thoughts on this.
And Here’s How I Replied
Hey Drea, that’s a tricky one.
First, how good is the opportunity? If it’s an A+ position that pays great and you would enjoy, I would just do the test for free. (Assuming it’s a typical sales page and not a 10,000 word sales letter or something.) Show them that you’re interested in the role enough that you will happily invest in the relationship and doing the test for them, since the reward of getting the position will more than make up for it.
If it’s just an okay opportunity, then I would probably tell them you’re okay to do the sales page as a test, but that you explicitly do not and will not transfer the rights to the copy to them. You will continue to own the rights to the sample and they will not be able to actually use the copy — since the project is only a test. Then tell them if they do want to and plan to use the copy from the test project, then it’s not a test project. It’s an actual project. And in that case, you would ask they respect that writing copy is your profession and you would expect them to pay for your work.
Good luck! Let me know how it goes.
So now you see that it’s not always a bad idea to work for free. It may actually be a great idea — if it means you wind up signing a lucrative client who pays you well over many years.
And it’s up to you to figure out whether the risk is worth the reward.
Now Let Me Show You How To Make Freelance Clients Come To You — Like Clockwork — Using A Simple, 30-Second Conversation…
All the details are inside my free business blueprint 30-Second Referrals.
With this free PDF, you’ll discover how to use a simple, 30-second conversation to get two referrals from every single client you sign. (I’ll even show you exactly what to say during this conversation with my word-for-word script on page 13.)
That way, you can make clients come to you like clockwork. And you can fill your pipeline with more new business than you can handle.
But there is a small catch…
30-Second Referrals is only available to members The Freelance Like A Pro email list.
So enter your best real email below to join us and claim your free copy of 30-Second Referrals now. (And you’ll get my members-only emails to help you run a more profitable and stress-free freelance business, too.)
Enter your first name & best real email (no aliases)
100% Secure. No Spam.
Thanks for the freelancing guide and the emails that you've been sending out — the 30-second referral method is so stupidly simple, that it's genius!
Connor Inch, Freelance Copywriter