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Friends always want a discount for your freelance work

  • robertman11 Level 2
    • 9

    Write the reason you're deleting this FAQ

    Friends always want a discount for your freelance work

    If you associate with people in the same niche with you, or a similar niche that could benefit from what you offer, you'll probably be asked to provide your services for a discount. For example, I have a friend that does social media marketing for clients. He just gets the clients and outsources most of the work. We were having beers one afternoon and he wanted to use me but wanted a steep discount for continued services. This isn't the first time this has happened with my friends.

    Because they are your friend, they expect the discount. Because you are their friend, you feel obligated to give a discount (plus, any work is better than no work, right?).

    Since we are friends, why shouldn't they pay me more? Isn't that the same thing as me giving them a discount only in reverse? I need to make a living and feed myself too, just like they want more profit margins from their outsourcing.

    How do you handle these conversations?

    #Friends #Discount Freelance
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    anwebservices

    anwebservices

    It is very common for most of us and i was telling same thing to my friends "Why wouldn't you pay me full price or even more" Friends always want a discount for your freelance work At the end we spend most of these money together anyway LOL. But i guess it's just the way it is...
    10 years ago

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    robertman11

    robertman11

    What did your friends say? I bet they didn't want to pay more and even got mad?
    10 years ago

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    anwebservices

    anwebservices

    They didn't want to pay more, but i am also asking for favors in return so we get by Friends always want a discount for your freelance work
    10 years ago

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    hitmeasap

    hitmeasap

    This has been very common for me. It wasn't until my brother, who has nothing to do with online work, told me that he would never help a friend with renovating their house for instance, during his free time, if he wasn't paid properly. He adds about 50% - 100% of his hourly salary and he's made it very clear for his friends that if they are in need of his expertise, they'll have to pay both his salary and more, because of his free time. Since then, I'm still giving my friends discounts but it doesn't occur as often as it used to.

    Like you said above, he should pay you more, as that would be discount in reverse.. but if you actually told him that, how would he respond to that? - That's what you'll need to find out.


    Best Regards,
    hitmeasap
    10 years ago

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    idealmike

    idealmike

    Ah the age old mates rates discount dilemma!! I know exactly what you're saying, and sometimes, if you value your friendship, you'll give them a discount because of that, but your argument in that as a friend, they should pay you more for it is valid also. However in the real world that never happens because people will always want to get things for cheaper and never pay more than they're worth regardless to how close you are or how long you've known them.

    It's fine to give your mates a discount, but at the same time, you're trying to make money yourself. As you've pointed out, any work is better than no work to keep the cash flowing. But some mates seem to want bigger discounts than you would usually give and then still expect you to give them extras in the provided service as well. That to me isn't fair and isn't what true friendship is about. At the end of the day, you're trying to run a business or a service and you're not running a charity and they should understand and appreciate that. And if you were true friends, they shouldn't look down on you if you refuse to give them a discount for a service either. And if they do, and they no longer wish to be friends with you after that, then they probably wasn't that good a friend in the first place!

    You have to weigh up whether it's worth saying yes to a discount and getting a sale and keeping the money coming in, or saying no will mean that you will loose them as a friend. That's probably unlikely for your really close friends, they'll probably just purchase anyway if they really need it because it's often better to buy something from someone you know, rather than from someone you don't know, even if there isn't any discount provided by you. At the end of the day, that's the benefit they get buying from you in that they'll be buying it from you and know they wont get ripped off.

    The other drawback to offering a discount is that if they purchase that service again from you again, they'll probably expect a discount then as well. And then again on other subsequent times. So it can mean that you wont make as much money selling your services to your friends as you would your normal clients that you get elsewhere. This is fine if you're happy with that, because if you really like your friend and really value your friendship and don't want to jeopardize that by saying no to a discount request and would rather get a sale just to keep the cash coming in and keep the peace as they say then provide them with a discount. But just don't let them take advantage of you!

    Sometimes though, I'm so close to some people, I can say no to a discount just for a laugh and they'll still pay the full amount. Sometimes I'll just say no to a discount because I know I can get away with charging them the full amount without worrying about loosing them as a friend. But those kinds of friends are rare and if they still want to be your friend after not giving them discount, you should probably give them one! Friends always want a discount for your freelance work
    10 years ago

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    EliteWriter

    EliteWriter

    That is a very interesting question. I feel you made a really good point there. Unfortunately it is something that happens often and not just in freelancing. They expect you to favor them, and it is not fair. I never went through it thankfully in my line of business. So, I would suggest that if you would rather not give them a discounted rate, you could simply say that you are far too busy to handle what they are trying to give you. I would rather devote my limited time to someone who is willing to pay at my rates than devote it for what my friends need. It is not about friendship but about business after all. Another option could be to tell them that you are in partnership with someone else and he will not be willing to offer such a discount. Obviously these may be lies, but at least you can possibly manage to make your friend realize that you cannot do it. You have every right after all as you are going to be the one who is working and you deserve to set your prices as you deem fit.
    10 years ago

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    TommyCarey

    TommyCarey

    I actually just had a friend sign up for a new web design through my company and I gave him a $2,000 discount. Normally I charge $5,000 for what he wanted but I only charged him $2,000.

    After we agreed on the money, he sent me 50% up front and we agreed he would pay the remaining 50% upon completion, which is normal. When we're about half way through the design he was asking for about 10 new features that we didn't discuss in the beginning and he didn't want to pay for them. What am I suppose to tell my designer and programmer "You need to work 40 extra hours and not get paid for it" that wouldn't have gone over well. So I told my friend it would be an extra $1,000 (was giving him another discount) and he said no, I requested this in the beginning. He also wanted me to optimize his pages, which I did since it was fairly easy. But after I was done with that he wanted me to rank him for credit related keywords.... for free Friends always want a discount for your freelance work

    In the end we didn't do the 10 additional features because he didn't want to pay for them, he got free on page optimization and he didn't want to pay my company for off page optimization since he didn't understand what exactly it was.

    A few weeks ago I found out he hired someone to do the 10 additional features and he got charged $3,500 for them. I guess he should have just gone with us lol Friends always want a discount for your freelance work


    Thanks,

    Razzy
    10 years ago

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    Barida

    Barida

    I don't see anything bad on that as long as they are good friends to you. I bet that if you step your foot in their business, you will as well want a reduction in prices of what you want to buy. Just try and use them to do mouth to mouth to spread the good news of the products that you sell.
    9 years ago

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    Corzhens

    Corzhens

    This reminds me of a friend in social media who sells customized items that are crocheted. She makes bonnets and hats and other kind of wear. One time I posted something related to her business and joked that I want a crocheted bonnet. She sent me a message asking for the size of my head. She added that it is for free. I know the cost of her products and I refused the offer.
    8 years ago

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