While starting out a business, especially in a development field such as web or software development, we often feel the hunger just to get things rolling we often seek out clients that we can do either free projects or extremely low budget projects with just to get our name out there. Lately I have become increasingly aware of the consequences of doing these projects.
The consequences lay not in the initial development of the project but the maintenance that comes along with any development project. Although it can be, and often is beneficial for you in the beginning, it has been my experience that once your business starts getting some traction and you start getting projects that actually pay you real money, those free clients are knocking at your door wanting something updated. Now, you have to take time away from your paid projects to spend time on the free ones which is perfectly fine, if you have the time. However, if you keep putting the changes off, or worse, start taking a significant amount of time away from your paid projects, it can be worse on your overall image because nobody likes the contractor who takes forever to get something done!
My advice: avoid free development projects at all cost and try and find another way to get your name out there, or, if you must do a free project, put a limited maintenance time frame on it.