Loading Twitter

Twitter

When you say let me pick your brain, they hear let me pick your wallet – the plight of the talented

17 August 2009 | austin social media, social-media | 5 Comments

social-media-pick-pocketThere’s no such thing as a free lunch

More and more often in this economy businesses are stepping out into the talent pool looking for knowledge and help to gain a competitive edge, and the collaborative environment we know as social media is the perfect breeding ground for just this very activity.

Ask any freelancer what the biggest problem they’re facing in business today is, and they’ll likely tell you that it’s those that begin sentences with “let me buy you lunch.”  Although lunch is important and there is a high likelihood that they’ll be hungry around noon that day, there is an even greater likelihood that they’ll also be hungry the next day, and the week after as well, and your $10 hour of time may have cost them a lunch with an actual paying client.

I’ll make you a STAR

Sure, you as the lunch buyer (brain picker) feel you’re doing the freelancer a favor, you offer exposure, you offer big project with big recognition, but what you’ve completely missed is that you’re sitting in front of the talent- you came to them, you asked them, they were referred to you (yes, I said referred- that’s a hint.)

I’m not saying freelancers don’t love lunch, or desire coffee or a beer, but what I am saying is that if you multiply you (the brain picker) times 100 or so in a month, you begin to see the time suck that brain picking really is on the freelancer, that if every brain picker offered the freelancer a minimum of their hourly rate for their time plus lunch, it might just be the freelancer that can afford to buy you lunch.

Proposals used as game plans

Brain picking is coming in more ways than just lunch or coffee, it also comes by way of the all powerful ‘job proposal’ on the project you discussed over lunch-  where you already know what the freelancer charges but you asked for it anyway, that he/she will ultimately labor over for hours?  Not the simple one, but the very detailed one that actually uses the creativity of the creative to pull together for a cheaper, much less experienced freelancer to actually half-assedly execute- yep, that one little lunch is now looking like 10-15 hours plus the benefit of seeing their strategy, or design laid out for the world to see, all for the price of lunch.

Seriously, this is a wake up call for those that continue to use this practice to obtain creative intellectual property (ideas and concepts) using these tactics to stop stealing and start paying- at least for the consultation.

Budget constraints cut both ways

Ultimately, the brain pick is reaching critical mass due to the recession and budget constraints coupled with the ease of social media to target and connect with influential and talented freelancers- everyone gets it.  But there are a few things you can do as the project manager to make sure your relationship outlives the courting and proposal period:

A few tips on working with freelancers

  • Offer to pay a consultation fee as well as buy lunch or coffee
  • Be honest about your budget constraints up front
  • If your intent isn’t actually to hire them, why spend their money
  • Shop, research, and read all you can before offering to meet, know what you’re asking for
  • Only compare apples to apples, but be upfront that you’re working on an orange budget
  • Be satisfied with a general proposal or offer to pay an hourly rate on detailed proposals
  • Better to work with your freelancer on price cutting rather than cutting your freelancer
Get our Twitter updates via SMS by texting follow NewMediaLab to 40404 in the U.S.
Get blog updates by subscribing to our RSS feed or get our RSS by email.

5 Comments for this entry

  • Andrea Schulle
    August 17th, 2009 on 11:16 am

    Benn – thank you for writing this! As a freelancer myself, I am running into this more and more. And while I would like to help everybody, I still need to feed the fam and keep the kids clothed. Oh and simple things like running water and electricity too :)

    The tips you offer at the bottom of the article are priceless! I would also add that before you even consider contacting or working with a freelancer, you truly understand what this means. Know that a freelancer will work their butt off for you, but you are not their only client (hopefully!). And we may not work on your time clock either. Mine often reads 11 pm to midnight when I am working. Set deadlines.

  • Vicki Flaugher
    August 17th, 2009 on 11:59 am

    I see your point but I sort of disagree. For me, I have a standing offer to exchange an hour of my time for lunch. It has gotten me thousands of dollars of business, amazing referrals/testimonials, and raving fans. But, to your point, I don’t do proposals. Any specific needs beyond getting to know each other is on a hire basis. I leave them with one big a-ha that makes them want more and then that’s it. I ask more questions than I answer and it allows me to decide if they are a good client for me. I can see how it won’t work for everyone and if you aren’t able to walk away from a client who you’ve met with but actually isn’t a good fit, it’s not a good idea. Thanks for your input.

    Vicki Flaugher

  • steven noreyko
    August 17th, 2009 on 1:34 pm

    Great tips… but can we please remove the word “Freelancer” from the current lexicon?

    Freelancer includes the word “free” and I’ve got a huge problem with that. I’m an “Independent Business Owner” thank you very much!

    “Freelance” has the implication that you’re a fly-by-night operator or doing it part-time. It does not connote the individual is actually a business professional.

    So yes – great tips. I wish people would be this considerate when they call me for a commercial photography quote. Often I get calls where they don’t have any idea what they actually want/need from the job.

  • Michael Hanley
    August 18th, 2009 on 6:46 am

    I enjoyed this article. As a Non-Profit executive for the Boy Scouts, I have used the “Pick your Brain” method time and time again to recruit volunteers for projects. It got to where no one would have coffee with me, or when someone else set up the meeting and I walked in, a look of abject terror came across the prospects face.
    I then began to have coffee or lunch with people for no other reason than to really have coffee or lunch or to inform them as to the results of their efforts which helped a great deal.

    Then, as an Auctioneer specializing in Charity Benefits I found myself on the other side. People would ask ME to coffee or lunch, quiz me on my ideas for the right way to organize and conduct there Benefit Gala, thank my sincerely, and go find a Board member to conduct their Auction for free. ( Leaving Thousands on the table I might add). Or they would spend the meal trying to prevail upon me to work for them for free because it’s “For the Children”.
    The Tips make great sense. Be up front. Go ahead and say:
    “We don’t ever pay anyone for this service and we need free help beacause we are a great cause.”
    I may not be able to help you but I can point you to someone who can.

    Thanks for writing this!!

  • Sheila Scarborough
    August 18th, 2009 on 4:05 pm

    I’ve found our Jelly Coworking Round Rock to be a good setting for “brain-picking.” I’m there on most Fridays so I tell prospective pickers, “Hey, happy to talk to you; meet me here on Fridays and buy me all the coffee & lunches you want.”

    One guy took me up on it, and we had a very nice meeting. Others? Crickets….which is fine. Saves me time and annoyance.

    All this led to my SXSWi panel proposal, Drawing the Line Between Free and Paid.” Your thoughts there are most welcome, and thanks also for this post.

Leave a Reply