A Response to Spec Work Requests
At first glance, you may find the idea of skimming through yet another designer’s writeup on spec work a bit redundant. I can hear your collective sighs from here. It’s like a hot rolling gust of tired frustration, with a slightly bitter aftertaste.
Bear with me though, I think you may actually find this one useful.
What is Spec Work?
‘Spec Work’ is common parlance for speculative work, or working on speculation. Merriam-Webster’s defines speculation as: “the assumption of unusual business risk in hopes of obtaining commensurate gain” and “a transaction involving such speculation”.
In plain language, if you are asking designers to work for you with only the possibility of payment, and no contract or obligation of payment, you are asking for spec work.
Even more simply put: “do this work for us, and maybe we’ll pay you.”
Obviously, this is separate from volunteer or pro-bono projects, where it is clear from the outset that no payment will be involved.
Common Arguments
Arguments and anecdotes about spec work are a simple web search away, but to summarize, most center around an inherent lack of ethics, a lack of respect for the profession/person, and the fact that spec work by its very nature results in hurried, vapid concepts with no strategic advantage for the client. And while the arguments made by organizations such as No-Spec, GDC and AIGA are perfectly well based in fact, to the client these arguments have little context and at worst, can make designers look like touchy, pretentious jerks.
How to Respond to Spec Work Requests
The design industry’s governing bodies do provide sample letters to help guide our responses. Unfortunately, they all seem to miss the mark in some way, focusing on the damage to the designer rather than appealing more respectfully to the client’s point of view. Or, they’re just way too long to hold the client’s interest.
Reality check: the challenges of the shopkeeper are not the customer’s concern. In a perfect world, where everyone respects everyone else and all is ethical and honest, yes. But in our world, no. I’m not saying the client doesn’t care, but in the end the consumer’s primary interest is simply in getting what they need, under conditions most advantageous to them. They don’t need to hear your problems.
So then, how to respond to spec work requests without “being a d**k about it”?
Tips for Crafting Your Response
- • Remain at all times professional, level-headed, and respectful.
- • Formulate your response around the client’s concerns.
- • Neutralize the reasons you feel the client opted for spec work in the first place.
- • Keep it as short as you can (this one is difficult, as there is much to explain).
- • Stay calm. Spec work requests are incredibly insulting, but you need to rise above.
- • Again, do not let emotion taint your response. It’s tacky and counterproductive.
- • Keep your bridges burn-free with a reasonable counter-offer.
Sample Letter in Response to a Spec Work RFP
Below is a more generic version of the last letter I sent in response to a spec work RFP. This prospect contacted us out of the blue, on a personal referral from one of our oldest (and happiest) clients. Names have been removed, as the intent here is not to insult or embarrass, but to educate and assist.
Hopefully this will be of use to others who are increasingly finding themselves in the position of being asked to work without promise of payment.
Dear Prospect X,
Thank you again for approaching us with this opportunity.
I have reviewed your RFP in detail, and I am confident that under the appropriate conditions we could deliver an exceptional new website for Company X. Unfortunately, we are not at liberty to work on a speculative basis. Our working hours are carefully planned, and as such our time is reserved for our paying clients. More importantly from your standpoint, spec work is simply not conducive to quality.
Our workflow process has been crafted over several years of practice, and optimized to ensure the best possible result for our clients. Our designs are highly strategic; working through the appropriate phases of discovery and blueprinting are integral to preparing an informed and effective design presentation. Your website is important, and its composition deserves adequate time and effort.
We stand by our reputation, the quality of work in our portfolio, and our flawless history of satisfied customers. If you would like to commission us to create the visual design for your website before you commit to hiring us for the remainder of the project, I would be happy to accommodate such an arrangement.
I look forward to the possibility of working with you.
Best regards
Is it perfect? Of course not. We will continue to tweak and improve it as time goes on.
The Prospect’s Response:
Thanks for the note.
We will classify your response as not willing to abide by the terms of the RFP. If your feelings change before the deadline to indicate acceptance please let us know.
Regards
Our Affirmation:
Prospect X,
Thank you for your reply.
Our industry and governing bodies are firmly against spec work, and our company policy regarding the same is not going to change.
We wish you the best of luck.
Kind regards
Despite the prospect’s dismissive response, we remain respectfully unwavering. My use of the word “luck” in closing was not without meaning. So too, was use of the phrase “company policy” in response to the prospect’s reference to “feelings”. Some concepts are universal enough to hold their own weight… namely, paying the people who work for you.
Now, although the response in this particular case was not positive, others certainly have been. It is important to note that many prospects simply don’t know any better (understandably) and will respond positively to a patient and respectful explanation. Still, others are committed to the idea of having people work for them without compensation, unconvinced that the quality of the work will suffer as a result. In these cases, only lessons hard-learned through doing things the wrong way first will change their minds.
In all situations, designers should continue to respond accordingly. The more that people stand up for what is right, the more ubiquitous their message becomes.
