What is the right thing to do?

[MrsMargoLeadbetter]

I think I know the answer but it would be good to hear opinions...

I am a marketing freelancer. In my niche there are a couple of key networking orgs.

Org 1 is run by somebody I really like and 'get'. They often support me by offering speaking opps at their well received events. I also feel the organiser has become a friend in a way and they confide in me about their network a little.

Org 2. I don't know the organiser at all but they organise well attended events. Org 2 has suggested that they might be interested in swapping entrance (which is normally £000) to a forthcoming event for some consultancy from me in helping them build up their profile etc.

I feel loyal to Org 1and feel that working with (as opposed to paying for straightforward entrance) with Org 2 would put me in a difficult position.

However, the person who runs Org 1 could potentially be in competiton with me in the near future if they change their employment. So there is a little of me that feels I should look out for myself.

I don't need to attend Org 2's event. I just happen to be free and thought it would be good to go. I could also do without paying the normal fee.

WWYD?

[Xmascountdown]

Hiya, it's a tricky one. Some will argue there's no real loyalty in business and mixing friends with business doesn't really mix etc. However, in my business, if someone's been good to me/helped me along the way, I've always remained loyal to them, no matter what. It's done me no harm at all. I once opted for loyalty to a small client rather than ditching them for a big name client - they remain my client today, pay me within 12 hours of my invoice (every time!), have grown substantially and treat me very well. I always feel pleased that I chose loyalty at that point at the start of my business rather than ditching them when a apparently better opportunity came my way. People told me I was making a mistake but I didn't think so. All a bit beside the point to your OP but hope it helps a bit. Also, as an aside, be wary of swapping skills for free entrance. I no longer do this. You may get given a LOT of work to do and end up resenting do it 'for free'. If you want to go to the 2nd event, you could pay the high entrance fee, be there in your own right, not as payment for your work, and hope to recover the cost of the fee in due course when paid work comes your way as a result of your attendance there. Just my thoughts.....

[MrsMargoLeadbetter]

Thanks for your response and thoughts xmas.

A good point about giving stuff away for free. I find myself with some downtime after a number of hectic months, and my default is to find something to do with that time!

I also share your thoughts on loyalty. I am generally very ethical in what I do, which is why this didn't sit well.

However, the decision has been made for me. They came back and said they couldn't drop their price or afford my day rate. I think they were hoping I'd be very cheap, so they'd get days and days of my time in return for a reduced entrance to their event.

As an aside I did see them asking for help on peopleperhour.com a few months and were offering less than the min wage an hour for a task....They are either very tight or their events don't make as money as you might think!