When working as freelance writer many clients want to see some examples of your work, which is normal. But sometimes, if they ask for free examples, there is a difficult situation to deal with.

What to do if a client ask you for a free writing example?

I have done some free examples in the past, and some of them led to good and profitable projects. However, I don’t believe in free tests, because there are people, I can’t say they are clients, that use these tests for their purpose and after that don’t hire anybody.

You need to create a portfolio of your writing, and this portfolio needs to have examples of many different subjects/areas/sectors. Once you have that, your future clients can have an idea about how your work will be. If they are so unsure about you, that still want a free example, maybe is better to suggest them to look for another person.

If you fell your client is trustful you can offer do a test for a lower price. Ideally this example shouldn’t be a good fit for the job. I mean, if your client needs a 500 words post and want and example, the example could be 100 words. It doesn’t make sense do a 500 words for a job that is write 500 words.

Other thing to take into consideration is the amount of work you will get after the example. For a single post, there is not a single reason to do an example. If the job is a small project, you need to make your client feel sure about you with your portfolio. Examples are ok, for a long term projects or projects that has a good amount of income involved.

First step to be a professional is that you value your own work. Always remember that.