Buyers asking for free samples

[debsdraws]

Hey there,

It has happened a few times now that buyers want me to make free samples for an illustration project.
I always decline because I don’t like to work for free and without any promises of actual paid work…
What is your opinion on this?
Is it even fair for them to ask free samples? Because they could walk away with your work without paying anything at all…

X Debsdraws

[Guest offlinehelpers]

Hey there,

It has happened a few times now that buyers want me to make free samples for an illustration project.

I always decline because I don’t like to work for free and without any promises of actual paid work…

What is your opinion on this?

Is it even fair for them to ask free samples? Because they could walk away with your work without paying anything at all…

X Debsdraws

Is it even fair for them to ask free samples?

if you’re watermarking your samples so the potential buyer can get an idea of what you’re offering then fair enough.

Because they could walk away with your work without paying anything at all…

That’s why it’s sensible to offer samples only with watermarks.

[debsdraws]

Is it even fair for them to ask free samples?

if you’re watermarking your samples so the potential buyer can get an idea of what you’re offering then fair enough.

Because they could walk away with your work without paying anything at all…

That’s why it’s sensible to offer samples only with watermarks.

Yeah but it’s not even that I’m afraid they will walk away with my designs, my problem is working without any promise of actual paid work…

[farooq129]

happens this to me much time,
after completion of sample Clients Fly away, without any comments
and never Message Back

[debsdraws]

happens this to me much time,

after completion of sample Clients Fly away, without any comments

and never Message Back

That’s exaclty what I’m afraid of… is it even legal within the rules of Fiverr?

[Guest offlinehelpers]

That’s exaclty what I’m afraid of… is it even legal within the rules of Fiverr?

It’s not whether it’s in the rules or not, it’s whether you want to do it or not.

Buyers can ask for samples, you can say ‘no’ if you want.

after completion of sample Clients Fly away

which is why you watermark your samples, IF you want to offer them. The sample you offer doesn’t have to be ‘their’ work BTW - if they ask for a sample of your work, that’s what you send them - a sample of your work.

[debsdraws]

It’s not whether it’s in the rules or not, it’s whether you want to do it or not.

Buyers can ask for samples, you can say ‘no’ if you want.

after completion of sample Clients Fly away

which is why you watermark your samples, IF you want to offer them. The sample you offer doesn’t have to be ‘their’ work BTW - if they ask for a sample of your work, that’s what you send them - a sample of your work.

Thanks for your response @offlinehelpers but I think it’s a bit harsh to say it this way, because these potential buyers imply that they will work with you after completion of a sample, and then they don’t, and everyone’s okay with that?

I hate saying no to potential buyers but also don’t want to do work they don’t want to pay me for…

[debsdraws]

It’s not whether it’s in the rules or not, it’s whether you want to do it or not.

Buyers can ask for samples, you can say ‘no’ if you want.

after completion of sample Clients Fly away

which is why you watermark your samples, IF you want to offer them. The sample you offer doesn’t have to be ‘their’ work BTW - if they ask for a sample of your work, that’s what you send them - a sample of your work.

which is why you watermark your samples, IF you want to offer them. The sample you offer doesn’t have to be ‘their’ work BTW - if they ask for a sample of your work, that’s what you send them - a sample of your work.

I’m not talking about samples of my work, but actual samples of the work they’re asking you to do!

I always send extra samples of my work if someone is unsure if they want to work with me, but that’s not what this topic is about, I’m sorry if I confused you.

[Guest offlinehelpers]

which is why you watermark your samples, IF you want to offer them. The sample you offer doesn’t have to be ‘their’ work BTW - if they ask for a sample of your work, that’s what you send them - a sample of your work.

I’m not talking about samples of my work, but actual samples of the work they’re asking you to do!

I always send extra samples of my work if someone is unsure if they want to work with me, but that’s not what this topic is about, I’m sorry if I confused you.

but actual samples of the work they’re asking you to do!

So don’t do them - it’s easy enough to say ‘no’! ☀️

[farooq129]

That’s exaclty what I’m afraid of… is it even legal within the rules of Fiverr?

its Not legal to do Sample First,

Actually, the Buyer ask from many Sellers todo a sample and in this method Buyer Work completed without any investment,

But for Graphics Designer when Buyer Request for sample then Protect with WaterMark

[debsdraws]

its Not legal to do Sample First,

Actually, the Buyer ask from many Sellers todo a sample and in this method Buyer Work completed without any investment,

But for Graphics Designer when Buyer Request for sample then Protect with WaterMark

its Not legal to do Sample First,

this is what I was wondering. Is there a way to alert Fiverr that people are trying to scam people out of their work?

[debsdraws]

but actual samples of the work they’re asking you to do!

So don’t do them - it’s easy enough to say ‘no’! ☀️

So don’t do them - it’s easy enough to say ‘no’! ☀️

I know how to say no, but it’s very hard because I really want to be a freelance illustrator, and you don’t become a freelance illustrator by saying no all the time.

And even if I say no, and therefore don’t get scammed, other people can still be the victim of their scamming…

[farooq129]

its Not legal to do Sample First,

this is what I was wondering. Is there a way to alert Fiverr that people are trying to scam people out of their work?

i dont think fiverr will Help Buyer in This Setuatin

[Guest offlinehelpers]

Here’s an older thread which will pretty much cover your question:

These days, I keep seeing buyers request saying “you must work first before they can order from you!” The Freelancing ideology is moving into fiverr… Soon… we’ll all be working for free! Because those Bloody buyers will only take all the samples they get and send it over to the Original job owners and get paid Huge amounts of Money for doing absolutely Nothing! I’ve personally worked for several buyers like this that would first request for you to design before they will place an order. Even a…

[debsdraws]

Here’s an older thread which will pretty much cover your question:

These days, I keep seeing buyers request saying “you must work first before they can order from you!” The Freelancing ideology is moving into fiverr… Soon… we’ll all be working for free! Because those Bloody buyers will only take all the samples they get and send it over to the Original job owners and get paid Huge amounts of Money for doing absolutely Nothing! I’ve personally worked for several buyers like this that would first request for you to design before they will place an order. Even a…

Thanks! I Haven’t read that topic yet, will do that right now ☀️

[catwriter]

its Not legal to do Sample First,

this is what I was wondering. Is there a way to alert Fiverr that people are trying to scam people out of their work?

this is what I was wondering. Is there a way to alert Fiverr that people are trying to scam people out of their work?

Actually, he gave you wrong information. I have asked Customer Support about buyers requesting free samples, and after some back and forth, they told me that it wasn’t against the rules. Buyers can ask, and some sellers agree to do small samples. However, there’s no guarantee that the buyer will really place the order, and with no order in place, there’s no guarantee of payment.

And even if I say no, and therefore don’t get scammed, other people can still be the victim of their scamming…

As far as I can tell, Fiverr doesn’t want to play a babysitter; they want each and every freelancer to decide for themselves whether they’re going to offer free samples or not.

So, all you can do is politely refuse, and ask them if they want you to send them a custom offer for a small sample. They usually leave after that, because they had no intention to buy, they just want work done for free.

[debsdraws]

this is what I was wondering. Is there a way to alert Fiverr that people are trying to scam people out of their work?

Actually, he gave you wrong information. I have asked Customer Support about buyers requesting free samples, and after some back and forth, they told me that it wasn’t against the rules. Buyers can ask, and some sellers agree to do small samples. However, there’s no guarantee that the buyer will really place the order, and with no order in place, there’s no guarantee of payment.

And even if I say no, and therefore don’t get scammed, other people can still be the victim of their scamming…

As far as I can tell, Fiverr doesn’t want to play a babysitter; they want each and every freelancer to decide for themselves whether they’re going to offer free samples or not.

So, all you can do is politely refuse, and ask them if they want you to send them a custom offer for a small sample. They usually leave after that, because they had no intention to buy, they just want work done for free.

@catwriter thanks for your reply. That makes a lot of sense. I will definitely use your tip in the future!

I feel very good about saying ‘no’ now 😛

[pm_studio]

I’ve done this before, from 5 buyers asking for samples, 3 of them bought my gig. Because I am a new seller here, there is no harm in trying harder. 🙂

[simplybright]

I get this a lot. I send them a short reply that isn’t really open ended - they can either order or move on. It saves time and I have roughly a 50% conversion rate.

“Hi there! Thanks so much for getting in touch. Unfortunately, I don’t offer any work outside of active orders. If you’re interested in moving forward with your concept, feel free to place an order through my gig page.”

[graphixunlimite]

Is it even fair for them to ask free samples?

if you’re watermarking your samples so the potential buyer can get an idea of what you’re offering then fair enough.

Because they could walk away with your work without paying anything at all…

That’s why it’s sensible to offer samples only with watermarks.

Samples help quicken the conversation and fixing the deal. Sometimes I provide watermarked samples from my previous works that match the buyer’s required quality or idea. But sample of the buyer’s specific project? It’s a big NO.

if you’re watermarking your samples so the potential buyer can get an idea of what you’re offering then fair enough.

I don’t agree. Suppose, I create an original design for 50 bucks and redraw an already created design for 20 bucks. The buyer can get my original design for free and get it redrawn by other artist for 20 bucks or less even though it is watermarked.

[Guest offlinehelpers]

Samples help quicken the conversation and fixing the deal. Sometimes I provide watermarked samples from my previous works that match the buyer’s required quality or idea. But sample of the buyer’s specific project? It’s a big NO.

if you’re watermarking your samples so the potential buyer can get an idea of what you’re offering then fair enough.

I don’t agree. Suppose, I create an original design for 50 bucks and redraw an already created design for 20 bucks. The buyer can get my original design for free and get it redrawn by other artist for 20 bucks or less even though it is watermarked.

Each potential solution will have its drawbacks. ☀️

[parii01]

Show them your portfolio or previous work sample just for convincing. But only do a new job after confirmation of order.

[xsidentity]

Hello.
It happened to me all the time that buyers text first and said they are not satisfied with previous designers or sellers, so they want initial work to be done on design  and then they will decide that i am worthy for placing the order or not.

No doubt, its tricky situation. Simply typing NO is not the solution all the times.
so I follow these steps.

1- Do Very initial Phase of design which require minimal effort or time.
2-Tell them right away that after the initial phase, they have to place the order.

3-Only Watermarking your samples is not enough.
4-Export your jpegs if any, at the lowest possible resolutions.
5-No color i.e only black and white samples.
6-Make a weird cut in the middle or deliberately erase some part of the image.
7-You can also send images in pieces.

If the buyers is not satisfied, its time to say Goodbye!

[re_skiptrace]

You are right. But you can provide any previous work as a sample. Thanks

[nsfhad07]

Give the sample with watermark