The Setup: Desperation Meets the “Offer”
Every freelancer knows this scenario. And if you don’t, you will — because potential cheapskate clients have a radar. They know when you’re desperate to get your foot in the freelancing door, and they’ll email you right when you’re at your most vulnerable.
It’s always when you’ve been turned down by 10 potential clients, can’t find work on gig sites, and bills are stacking up.
Then ping — a message lands:
Need a Freelancer for X Thing You Know a Shitton About.
You open it and…
“Our budget is a little tight for this article, but we’ll put your name on it and tell everyone about you and you’ll rake in clients because of our amazing reach. You’ll get so much exposure, you won’t know what to do with yourself.”
Work is work, right? Maybe a big following will pay off. Maybe this one free article leads to ten paying clients.
Spoiler: that’s exactly the pressure point these Notportunities exploit.
Why It’s Getting Worse with AI
If exposure gigs were bad before, AI is turbocharging them.
Here’s the new playbook:
- A client runs a rough draft through ChatGPT or another AI tool.
- They know it’s bland or factually shaky, so they hand it to you for a “polish.”
- Instead of paying for your professional skill, they frame it as an “opportunity” — “Once you edit this, you can put AI Content Editing or AI Post-Processing on your resume!”
Here’s the ugly part:
- They undervalue human skill and try to gaslight freelancers into thinking their contribution isn’t worth money.
- They’ll say: “It’s just light editing,” when you’re really rewriting garbage-in/garbage-out AI content line by line.
- Or they’ll claim: “We gave you the draft for free, so we shouldn’t have to pay much for you to clean it up.”
AI is a tool, not a replacement for human labor. Accepting these gigs confirms a dangerous narrative: human creativity is optional and it’s definitely not worth paying for.
The New Spin: “Exposure to AI Work”
Here’s the line you’re about to hear:
“We can’t pay you, but this will be amazing experience for you! You’ll get to work with AI content, and that’s the future of writing. Imagine how valuable that will look on your portfolio!”
Translation: “We want you to clean up our AI sludge for free, but we’ll dress it up like we’re giving you a career boost.”
They’ll pitch it as:
- A chance to “get your foot in the AI/writing door.”
- An opportunity to learn prompt engineering.
- A resume builder for future clients who want AI-savvy freelancers.
Don’t fall for it:
- It’s not real training — it only teaches you how willing people are to exploit writers.
- It won’t impress serious clients.
- It locks you into low-value work. Say yes once, and you’ve signaled you’ll do AI cleanup for exposure again and again and again and again until you’re living under a bridge.
Experiment with AI on your own terms and own the results. Don’t let “AI exposure” become the new Notportunity.
Why Freelancers Consider Notportunities
When you’re new or desperate, “exposure” can feel like:
- A way to build a portfolio.
- Networking with someone “influential.”
- A placeholder until “real” paid work comes through.
- Proof to friends/family that you’re getting clients.
It feels like a step forward. But unless someone else is paying all your bills while you “build your client list,” you’ll get buried in Notportunities while FINAL NOTICES stack up. And yes — neither the electric company nor your internet provider accepts EXPOSURE as payment.
Why Clients Push It
- “We don’t have the budget right now, but we’ll remember you later.”
- “This will get your name in front of thousands of people.”
- “Everyone else on the project is donating their time.”
- “If you do well, we might have paying work for you in the future.”
Spoiler: they almost never do.
The Harsh Reality: Exposure Won’t Pay the Bills
- Electric company? No.
- Landlord/mortgage? No.
- Grocery store? Nope — your byline doesn’t cover food.
Every unpaid gig steals time and energy you could’ve spent chasing actual paying clients.
How It Hurts All Freelancers
- Devalues freelance work by signaling clients your skill isn’t worth money. (The minute someone pays you for something, you are a professional.)
- Creates a race to the bottom where clients expect talent for free.
- Reinforces the myth that “passion” should replace payment.
Every “yes” to exposure is another “no” to fair pay.
What To Do Instead
- Trade for money — even low rates are better than nothing.
- Build your portfolio with personal projects you fully own — articles, blog posts, case studies.
- Say no politely but firmly: “Thank you, but I only take on paid projects.”
- Network smart: freelance communities, direct pitching, reputable guest posts.
- Value your time: if you wouldn’t recommend a free gig to a friend, don’t take it yourself.
Freelancing means trading skill for money — not for “likes,” “shares,” or vague promises of future work.
If you’re still tempted by exposure gigs, remember: clients know what they’re doing. They get your talent for free while you get… nothing.
The truth is simple:
If they truly respected you, they’d find the budget.
Example:
Job Posting: AI Cleanup Guru (Unpaid, Amazing Exposure!)
- Must rewrite ChatGPT garbage into readable human prose.
- Compensation: none — but we’ll tell our 300 followers how awesome you are.
- Bonus: you get “experience” and can list it as AI Content Editing on your resume.
(Tagline: Notportunity included.)
Read More Amazing Articles
- Ethics in Freelance Writing: How to Build Trust, Credibility, and Long-Term Success
- From 0 to 10,000: How to Build a High-Quality Twitter (X) Audience as an Author
- How to Create an Ethical Freelance Writing Contract: Protect Yourself and Your Clients
- 7 Creative Writing Prompts to Spark Your First Fiction Story
- Do you need money to publish a book?