The problem with the culture of many startups, freelancers and entrepreneurs expecting other people’s services for free are twofold.
One, you are devaluing someone else’s services and unlikely to build a good relationship and they are unlikely to focus on you as a cherished customer. Over time, the goodwill fades and they feel taken advantage of and resent it.
Second, it will come back to bite you, as the support of this culture will lead to others expecting the same from you.
It is a spiralling race to the bottom for all concerned where everything becomes devalued.
Pay people a fair value for their work. Bartering and a fair exchange of services are completely different, as are genuine one-off acts of generosity where someone offers to help for nothing in return.
