To think people should charge (and be paid) a decent amount for their skills?

[thequeenmary]

Just been on one of those websites where people advertise freelance services. Some of the people on their were advertising valuable services (e.g. copywriting or webpage-designing) for what must work out for them as less than the minimum wage, e.g. designing a whole site for £50 or writing 5 x 500 word articles for £20. I understand that people are keen for work, and if they are just doing it as a sideline it may not matter to them that they don't make a living wage, and also people are just trying to undercut each other. But it just makes a buyer's market, doesn't it?

I have also heard that some magazines just don't hire freelance photographers anymore because they have people willing to do it for free. This must have a negative effect on full-time freelancers surely?

Similarly, the government back-to-work schemes, zero hours contracts etc. It seems that people's labour is being increasingly devalued, which is a bit scary.

But what is the quality of the work like?

SIL had a website designed, no idea what she paid for it, I proof read it and sent her back a list of corrections - including the domain name spelled incorrectly.

Local paper seems to have done away with reporters and relies on Joe Public uploading stories which are then tinkered with

Yep, it's terrible. You get what you pay for as well, guaranteed the quality will be terrible. However, some people are prepared to work for peanuts. I'm not, and I do fine, there is a market for quality, you just have to go out and find it.

Hard to know, Holly - I'm sure you get what you pay for with these things, but the whole system still puts pressure on people to try and undercut each other

(would like to know what actual freelancers think, I may be wound up over nothing!)

I think zero hour contracts are immoral.

I agree Owlina, completely.

There are even adverts on the tube now saying 'Use your skills to volunteer and design us a website' from the Mayor of London. Um, no, that's not how it works. Someone performs a service and then YOU PAY THEM. That's capitalism, thought Tories loved it...

I am an actual freelancer - I recognise that there is always a market where cost is king, and there is always a market where quality is king. I pitch myself at the quality end. Even if writing SEO articles (which I'm guessing is the 500 word articles you're referring to) paid £££, it's bloody boring work so I'm not interested. I'm only interested in work where I can build a long-term relationship.

Some people like Poundland, some people like John Lewis, but as long as I'm not wasting time pitching to people who look like John Lewis but then turn out to be Poundland, it's all OK.

Yeah Wilson I guess it's a different league. Yes it was SEO articles. Not quite sure what they are, but it sounded complicated. Guess it's not...

I'm a freelancer too. And I've found that whenever I've dropped my prices (for whatever reason) the client has turned out to be much more trouble than they're worth -- really demanding, query everything, pay late. I now quote my fee and if someone baulks at it, I just wave goodbye.

And Google can tell a rubbish SEO article when it crawls it, so why people keep asking for this sort of stuff I have no idea.