Two viewpoints on the issue can be found in these posts:
- A Little Bit About Responsibility at Freelance Writing Jobs
- How Low Can You Go? $3 at Web Writing Info
I don't know if work from home businesses that are in retail suffer from this problem. (If sales is your business, why not let us know? Is getting low pay a problem for you?)
Those who are willing to accept work for less than they are worth typically have two reasons for doing so:
- The other work is not available.
- They just want to give the client a taste of their work. They will raise their rate once the client realizes how talented they are.
My response to the first reason is this: yes, higher paying work is harder to find. You will have to really dig for it. You will have to spend an hour, or more, each day just looking for job leads. You will have to market your services.
My response to the second reason is that, generally speaking, clients who don't pay well seldom evolve into clients who do. If a client hires you to do a project for next to nothing, their purpose is not usually to see if they like your work. Their purpose is usually to get a bargain.
How can you get better paying freelance jobs? Sometimes it's just a matter of drawing a line in the sand and saying to yourself: "I won't go below this figure just because I feel that I have to. I won't accept professional work below this rate."
Then, go out and do your homework. Market your services like crazy. Troll the job boards. Send out queries. Do what it takes, but do it!
That's not to say that you should never do work for a low cost or for nothing. There are times that you might want to work for free or a low rate:
- You are entering a contest
- You are doing something for a friend
- You are doing something (like creating a business blog) to promote your business
- You are doing something you are passionate about
- You are doing something just for the fun of it
The main point here is that you shouldn't feel that you have to try and earn a living from low paying jobs just because you feel that those are all that you can get. There's more out there. There really is.
What about you? Is getting paid what you're worth an issue for you?
Leave a comment and let us know.
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I've had to deal with this issue in several 'creative' areas and it's not fun. People get comfortable expecting a lot of work for a little money, and it does absolutely nothing for our economy.
In the area of graphic & web design I've seen some upward inclinations, so hopefully that's a good sign for 2008 :)
Posted by: Dianne | January 8, 2008 9:42 PM | Permalink to Comment