I've noticed an interesting trend over the last several years, working with small businesses and non-profits and their websites.
I get contacted because they have been dissatisfied with their current web designer. Best part had been: it was free. Church members volunteer because they want their church to have a good website, and businesses often compensated with barters and trades, giving away some small service so the web designer will work for free.
I thought these volunteers must have really been jerks to drop off like that.
My opinion has changed.
As I started getting into business on my own, I did a couple of projects as part of barter agreements, over craig's list. Yes, I was working for free, receiving some barter but no payment for my services. This is what I found out:
When they got something for free, they expected to get everything for free.Suddenly, my free clients were the most demanding people I worked with, constantly barraging me with e-mails about additional work to be done (which wasn't part of the bartering agreement), and wanting the work to be completed yesterday (while I was still waiting for them to provide access information).
This sense of entitlement probably creeps up everywhere when we get things for free. When I managed the doctor's office, the most manipulative and abusive patients were on Medicaid - getting their medical care for free. People are unsatisfied with their churches where every benefit they receive is totally free of charge. Once married and in a "free" stage of relationship where you don't have to buy the other person's affection with gifts and dates and poems and appearance, many become much more critical.
Not everyone on Medicaid, not every church-goer, not every spouse is like this, but it's a trend I'm noticing.
- What does this mean for soup kitchens and charity?
- What would this mean for socialized government-run health care where everyone is essentially on Medicaid?
- What am I critical of, or have excessively high expectations of that I get for free?
- Do I now totally avoid doing work for people for free?
The problem with doing website work for free is that website work is rarely a one-time thing. If I'm not mistaken, your current contracts involve creating specific aspects or components of an existing webpage, not the entire site.
A web-"site" is not designed to be static - the information on the site should always be changing. So when someone wants to barter for a website, they assume the service is ongoing. While I don't think you should write off charity/discounted work, it's probably important to provide a clear understanding upfront about what is and is not included (i.e. - "Once the sites is up, it's on you.")
That's only partially true. For all website work that I've done, there's a contract, detailing what will be done.
Perhaps people don't think through this if they are getting something for free.