People always take advantage of and exploit me as a freelancer

[zibby]

It's just a story I want to share, being a freelancer and having far too many experiences of being taken advantage of and exploited.  

I'd love to hear your thoughts on my story and if you have any similar experience to share, thank you!

I'm a freelance publicist mainly working on films and film festivals. In the past 2 years, I worked on a film festival co-organized by a film company (I worked there full time before becoming a freelancer, so we have already had a very good rapport and trust) and a NGO (I also have already known some of the people working there in previous projects). The film festival, together with a summer carnival consisted of a series of activities and art installations, were held annually in a cinema and an art & luxury shopping mall (where the cinema was located in). So I was responsible for the publicity of the film festival, which was my area of expertise. Since I'm a freelancer and they're people I've already known and worked with, we didn't really go through detailed discussion or to meticulously list out my job duties one by one, nor did we sign any contract. Everything was based on rapport and trust. 

Soon after I began working on the project on the first year, I started to realize more and more about the dominating role of the mall in this project, since they were the biggest sponsor of the film festival. I had to report to the mall directly and also head in weekly publicity reports and plans to them. And what they cared about was not media coverage of the film festival, but of the mall itself, and so they were focusing more on the summer carnival part. Anyhow, I had always been promoting the festival and the carnival all together, I never separated them when I pitched to media. I also wrote pages and pages of press kit and press releases detailing the mall activities and installations for them, despite the fact that they failed to provide me with any photos or information that I could take reference from. So I thought I was already performing the duties that I was asked for, but the mall was asking more than that. It was just a week before the installations were all set up and the carnival ready for kick off that I was asked by the mall what my plan for media tour and interviews was (they were using the same standard and expectation based on many of their other much bigger scale activities/installations which involved internationally known artists that actually have news value). They didn't even plan for a photoshoot - to take PR photos of the installations so that we could send out to press later on - because they assumed I was responsible for that too. So at the end of the day, I arranged the photo-shooting, had another round of pitching with the PR photos, and also lined up a few media interviews for the less-known local artist, despite not being able to arrange a media tour due to the lack of preparation time and also news value - all of which were outside of the job scope I expected at the very beginning.

This project was handled by another publicist, whom I've also known from work, the year before. She told me she was responsible for the film festival part only, and the mall hired a PR agency to handle the mall activities part, which was the usual practice (malls always have their long-term PR agency partners). So having to take full responsibility for mall publicity was completely out of my expectation, and I believe it could be due to some kind of deal between the NGO and the mall, like increasing the sponsorship budget (and thus cutting cost on hiring a PR agency and shifting that workload to me), which the NGO had never mentioned to me before. I later had a talk with the NGO guy and told him that these were not what I expected I had to do, but since we're already half way through the project, I would do it anyway but frankly told him that I didn't even have the media connection and contacts that were needed for pitching for malls, so I would do whatever I could do but the mall and him should lower their expectation. And I was nice (or stupid) enough to not asking for extra pay since I have always been very bad at fighting for my own rights, especially when I was working for my previous boss, and a NGO which always said they're doing all these for charity cause and they're not making any profit out of it (though I'm 100% sure that they wanted to, and that's why they're serving and pleasing the mall in order to get more funding).

Then in the second year I worked on this project, though we were still not preparing or signing any contract, I had written an email detailing the scope of my duties which everyone agreed on before I was officially aboard. I also requested for a pay raise if I were to be responsible for mall publicity, which later on the NGO guy told me he had talked the mall out of shifting that workload to me so that I could focus on the film festival part. It was true that I didn't need to work on any media tour or interview regarding the carnival, but I was still pitching media both the film festival and the carnival as a whole, as well as writing press kit and press releases for them (because I had to use these for pitching too and theirs were written so badly that they're completely unusable). But later on, a few weeks before both the film festival and the carnival would be kicked off, the NGO guy kept asking me many times what celebrities and influencers I had invited to the film festival kick-off, and whether I would be able to get them go to the carnival to take some photos and post on their social media. Every time he asked,  I just secretly rolled my eyes and made no promise, until one time I was so annoyed that I bluntly said on a meeting, 'Why do you think the celebrities and influencers would endorse the mall free of charge?' I mean, they all have a price. I don't think he's naive enough to not knowing that celebrities and influencers surely would charge you for just one post on their facebook or instagram, and what he was asking for was 100% brand endorsement. I believed that this was also a secret deal between him and the mall, perhaps when he was lobbying for a bigger funding, that I would be able to get these kind of free publicity for them. This was his usual tactic. 

I refused to make any promise, just said I'd try (which I didn't). But the story didn't end there. During the summer carnival, there were a series of activities and workshops organized by the NGO, and the NGO guy had always been asking the people who hosted those activities or workshops to do it for free, since, of course, they are NGO. I just kept myself out of these and tried not to get involved, since I didn't think it was right or fair to ask people to work for free even though you're a NGO, and also because it's out of my job scope. Later, very close to the end of the carnival and all the workshops that were involved, the NGO guy started to ask me for media coverage that had mentioned one of the workshops and its instructor. I would say certainly there were, but it was only mentioned in a small box or byline in some articles because there were several workshops in the carnival, and then the carnival was just a part of the film festival that I pitched to media. I sent him the coverage anyway, and I was wondering why he specifically only asked for coverage of that particular workshop. Soon the truth was revealed. It just happened I had a friend who was working as the assistant for that workshop instructor at that time, and one day she told me her boss was asking her if I had arranged any media interviews for her to promote her art school. That's when I realized it was highly possible that this was also one of the secret deal the NGO guy had made with that instructor, that in order to have her hosting the workshop for free, he had promised her that she would in return get publicity for her and her art school. 

At that point I was furious because he once again set me up, making promises on behalf of me in order to get what he wanted. And at the end of the day, he did get what he wanted and I was the one who had to pay the price or take responsibility, performing extra duties without getting extra pay. And the fun part was, he didn't even have the guts to tell me about all these promises he made to people, but just subtly or casually hinting them little by little, hoping I would eventually give in and do what he asked for. He knew exactly that arranging interviews for that instructor, promoting her art school, was far too obvious to be something completely unrelated to the project itself, that he could hardly find an excuse or induce me into doing it. And so he just gave up, hoping that the instructor would forget about it, but then when she asked, he just gave her those articles that slightly mentioned her and closed the file. I mean, it's just beneath contempt! 

At the end, I arranged a few interviews for that instructor, but totally kept the NGO guy out of this, telling my friend that I was only doing these for her and for her boss because I felt sorry for her boss for not getting what she was promised, although it's completely not my responsibility. I'm just so tired and angry of people who exploit others, even if, and especially when, it is in the name of charity causes. And I have had enough of people taking advantage of me too. 

All these have turned me off so much that I have been turning down jobs alike, especially when it involves working with NGO and charity, since so far I have never had one pleasant experience working with any one of them. They are too good and too entitled in exploiting people. And I don't understand why there are always people not feeling a bit ashamed in asking others to work for them for free!

Edited September 10, 2020 by zibby

[Wiseman2]

Unfortunately whatever field you're in, some people want freebies. Whether it's professional advice, "taking a look at" something, etc. Just tell them to go through your office, organization, etc.

[salparadise]

Okay, I'm not going to go into a lot of detail–– it's the principle that matters. I ran a creative agency for years, and one of the early lessons I had to learn was that there is an inherent tendency for clients to minimize assignments at first, then once the price is agreed upon it starts expanding. It expands as much as you will allow, always with the presumption that the price is fixed. You need to quit blaming the clients for this because it works like gravity–– always pulling in a predictable direction, and it's never the direction that benefits you. Yes, I know that you want to please and have happy clients, but if you're soft on boundaries they'll exploit it.

The solution is to produce written quotes/estimates that include tight specifications and clearly state what deliverables you are responsible for. Then, when they want to expand the scope you simply produce a change order, which is an amendment to the original quote/extimate, that includes the price for the additional work. You send the change order immediately, and if no response then it's accepted. It becomes part of the deal and they're responsible for the cost, no wiggle room.

You have to start thinking of your time and professional capabilities as tangible items, not some gaseous matter that exists in the air without form. You're not that different from a tire dealer––every sale is for a specific number of items, and either includes or excludes mounting and balancing. If they want an alignment as well, it's a separate line item. If they want a fifth tire to replace the spare, the multiplier changes. When you do the paperwork it fixes the expectation as well as the cost. It prevents difficult conversations after the fact... or at least it gives you a solid justification for the final invoice.

If you have to charge by the hour due to not being able to predict what is involved, do it like a lawyer. Keep specific notes on every  billable moment. Bill by the quarter hour not the minute though. A six minute phone call is .25 hour. Keep the apprized of the accumulated time, and bill against a retainer whenever possible.

Another tip... when dealing with slippery characters like politicians, religious organizations, and non-profits (or anyone who is not known to you), get part of the money up front and bill against the retainer. When the retainer is expended, make them ante up again. You do not want to find yourself in the position of trying to collect after the fact for work that has already been done with these types of clients. They have a built-in justification for seeing you as less worthy of getting paid (God's money or whatever), and they are... well, slippery.

[zibby]

1 hour ago, salparadise said:

Okay, I'm not going to go into a lot of detail–– it's the principle that matters. I ran a creative agency for years, and one of the early lessons I had to learn was that there is an inherent tendency for clients to minimize assignments at first, then once the price is agreed upon it starts expanding. It expands as much as you will allow, always with the presumption that the price is fixed. You need to quit blaming the clients for this because it works like gravity–– always pulling in a predictable direction, and it's never the direction that benefits you. Yes, I know that you want to please and have happy clients, but if you're soft on boundaries they'll exploit it.

The solution is to produce written quotes/estimates that include tight specifications and clearly state what deliverables you are responsible for. Then, when they want to expand the scope you simply produce a change order, which is an amendment to the original quote/extimate, that includes the price for the additional work. You send the change order immediately, and if no response then it's accepted. It becomes part of the deal and they're responsible for the cost, no wiggle room.

You have to start thinking of your time and professional capabilities as tangible items, not some gaseous matter that exists in the air without form. You're not that different from a tire dealer––every sale is for a specific number of items, and either includes or excludes mounting and balancing. If they want an alignment as well, it's a separate line item. If they want a fifth tire to replace the spare, the multiplier changes. When you do the paperwork it fixes the expectation as well as the cost. It prevents difficult conversations after the fact... or at least it gives you a solid justification for the final invoice.

If you have to charge by the hour due to not being able to predict what is involved, do it like a lawyer. Keep specific notes on every  billable moment. Bill by the quarter hour not the minute though. A six minute phone call is .25 hour. Keep the apprized of the accumulated time, and bill against a retainer whenever possible.

Another tip... when dealing with slippery characters like politicians, religious organizations, and non-profits (or anyone who is not known to you), get part of the money up front and bill against the retainer. When the retainer is expended, make them ante up again. You do not want to find yourself in the position of trying to collect after the fact for work that has already been done with these types of clients. They have a built-in justification for seeing you as less worthy of getting paid (God's money or whatever), and they are... well, slippery.

Thank you! You have some very good advice here!

I have also produced written quotes and signed agreements (including writing black in white that they had to pay a certain % of service fee up front, and to settle the balance within 30 days upon completion of the job) with clients that I didn't know in person and worked with for the first time. I wanted to protect my rights because I didn't know what kind of people or companies they were. But since many of my clients have been within the circle of people and companies that I've known from work (when I worked full time), and the fact that in this industry people tend not to have written statements or be very specific or stick to rules (yes, while I'm writing this I realize why it has been one of the most exploitative industries), I have been rather easy-going and lenient with them. It was certainly very stupid for me to always believe on mutual trust and respect, and trust that everyone is good and treats people fairly, all of which obviously have always been my one-sided belief and standard. Business is business. 

I've always thought that it would seem petty if I meticulously list out the scope of my duties and state clearly that I'd ask for extra money if I'm requested to do extra work, especially when I'm working with people that I've known or maybe called "friends" personally. But so far, most of these people have been taking advantage of me, though there are a few exceptions. Actually, from last year, I've started to produce very specific written quotes, even to people/companies that I'm close with, because I have lost trust on people. And I learned it the hard way how important it is to set boundaries. There is a very thin line between being nice and being weak. 

When you mentioned about charging by the quarter of hour, I recalled one time when I worked on an audio transcription project for the first time, which also turned out to be a very exploitative one, I had to make phone calls and send emails to the client in Israel sometimes after work because I was the project manager, and I was not paid for the time I spent on doing these - I didn't even think that I should be paid for those extra hours. I think I was just to used to be exploited, because I didn't know how to set boundaries, that I didn't know what kind of rights I deserve.  

[zibby]

1 hour ago, salparadise said:

You have to start thinking of your time and professional capabilities as tangible items, not some gaseous matter that exists in the air without form.

Very well-said! I have to write this down on my wall

I know this is very right, but I have encountered some clients, while I was working on translation projects, who refused to pay more when they asked me to work on some urgent pieces and requested for a very short turnaround time, because it just seemed they could always find someone cheaper (maybe of lower quality but they just didn't care). Say there was one time when a client whom I had worked with for a year asked me to work on several pieces and said that I had to return the translated piece the very next morning once I received the original piece (even if it was already evening when I received it), without mentioning a higher rate. I replied by asking for a higher rate for short turnaround time, then she just said she would find someone else and never contacted me again.. Although I didn't even slightly regret it, sometimes I just feel so dispirited that it is so hard to be treated fairly and with respect for your time and ability. But still, I would bear your words in mind, learn to set and stick with my own principles.

[salparadise]

2 hours ago, zibby said:

It was certainly very stupid for me to always believe on mutual trust and respect, and trust that everyone is good and treats people fairly, all of which obviously have always been my one-sided belief and standard

A few may be intentionally exploitative (in which case you should probably fire them), but most simply see things from their own perspective rather than yours. They see things in a way that benefits them without ever thinking they’re not being fair to you. They see themselves as good and right just as you see yourself. 
 

In my business we called it scope creep. You do the paperwork to make it objective rather than subjective. It puts everyone on the same page without you having to speak. It prevents misunderstandings and uncomfortable negotiations. It looks professional because it is professional.

You need to be seen a good guy by the clients, therefore you want to avoid disagreements and unpleasant topics. The paperwork establishes your terms by default. There is no downside other than a bit of anxiety over whether there might be pushback initially. 

Edited September 10, 2020 by salparadise

[Dork Vader]

Well as a business owner I never do anything based on word of mouth or verbal agreements. Everything is a signed contract and in writing.. I think you'll find no matter what industry you work in people will want things for free or something. People will always try and push boundaries and people will always try and take advantage of those who allow it.

[Shining One]

I started adding a "Rescoping" line item to my invoices for this very reason. It covers the time spent redefining the scope of the project and putting it into an updated contract. Sometimes I end up having several of those line items in a single invoice.