Before you begin
Bring one offer, one task you need help with and your normal price. No earlier business relationship is required.
What this lesson covers
- Request a specific introduction or feedback task.
- Document price, scope and responsibilities for work involving friends.
- Distinguish personal support, endorsement disclosure and paid labor questions.
Recommended preparation
01 / Key concepts
How it works
Friends can introduce a suitable buyer, test your ordering instructions or help photograph finished work. Those are specific contributions. An open-ended request to help with the business can create confusion about money, ownership and responsibility. Decide what help means before accepting it.
- Warm introduction
- A connection made with the permission of both people, based on a relevant need.
- Material connection
- A relationship or benefit that could affect how someone evaluates an endorsement.
1. Make the request easy to answer
Try: I am testing a small run of oak desk organizers for local office gifts. If someone you know is already looking, would you ask whether they want an introduction? Share a photo, size, service area and a way to contact you. Let the other person decline. Do not ask friends to hand over contacts who have not agreed to be contacted.
2. Keep the same written scope
For a friend's order, write the normal scope and price first. If you choose a discount, show it as a separate, deliberate amount and confirm that it fits your cost base. State materials, dimensions, revisions, timing and payment just as you would for another customer. A favor does not mean unlimited changes or priority over accepted work.
3. Separate support from reviews
Ask for honest feedback, not a required positive rating. FTC guidance addresses family relationships, gifts and other connections that may need clear disclosure in endorsements. Platforms may prohibit reviews from connected people or prohibit incentives entirely; disclosure does not override those rules. A friend can share an accurate introduction without pretending to be an independent customer.
Source: Federal Trade Commission — FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking
4. Define help and get qualified advice
Write down the task, time, pay or reimbursement, supervision and access to tools or accounts. Do not assume calling someone a volunteer or contractor settles employment obligations. Check the applicable rules before recurring labor arrangements. Use a trained operator for machine work, and ask a SCORE or SBDC counselor for business planning help rather than expecting a friend to provide specialist advice.
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration — Manage your business; U.S. Small Business Administration — Free small business counseling and local mentoring
Key points
- Request a specific introduction or feedback task.
- Document price, scope and responsibilities for work involving friends.
- Distinguish personal support, endorsement disclosure and paid labor questions.
02 / Worked example
Three useful requests to your support network
Illustrative scenario: a new shop needs a portfolio photo, an introduction and advice about its first month. Each request has a specific finish line.
| Need | Clear request | Boundary |
|---|---|---|
| Product photos | One agreed photo session of a finished piece | Agree permission, credit and any payment |
| Potential buyer | Ask whether they want an introduction | Do not share private contact details first |
| Business review | Bring budget and scope to a counselor | Use qualified advice for specialist questions |
03 / Business exercise
Apply the method
Use your own shop information or the illustrative scenario. Prepare drafts and check assumptions before making purchases, publishing posts or contacting customers.
- Write one introduction request with a clear customer fit.
- Create a normal-price quote for a fictional friend's order and show any chosen discount separately.
- Write a one-task help agreement covering time, expenses and permissions.
- Choose one unresolved question to bring to a suitable business counselor.
Common mistakes
- Promising permanent friends-and-family pricing.
- Requesting five-star reviews from people who have not bought the work.
- Giving account passwords or unfamiliar machine access to a helper.
Take it further
Build a small support map: an experienced woodworker, a business counselor and appropriate accounting or legal support, with a specific question for each.
Business action checklist
Record your evidence and next decision as you work through each action.
- Write one introduction request with a clear customer fit.
- Create a normal-price quote for a fictional friend's order and show any chosen discount separately.
- Write a one-task help agreement covering time, expenses and permissions.
- Choose one unresolved question to bring to a suitable business counselor.
04 / Review questions
Review the key decisions
Consider each question, then compare your answer with the explanation. Return to the worked example whenever you need it.
1. Can a friend describe a gifted piece as an ordinary purchase?
View hint
Would the relationship affect a reader's interpretation?
View explanation
They should describe the experience truthfully and clearly disclose a relevant connection when required. Check the platform's rules too; some reviews are prohibited regardless of disclosure.
2. Does an unpaid label make recurring production help uncomplicated?
View hint
Labels do not decide legal duties.
View explanation
No. Check employment, insurance and safety requirements for the actual arrangement before it starts.
05 / Project notes
Notes for your next project
Check off the topics you have reviewed and record the evidence, assumptions and next actions for your business. This is your personal learning record.
Record: Requested help, permissions, task boundaries, agreed expenses, normal price, chosen discount and follow-up date.
No notes recorded. Use this space for your observations.
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Check each topic above to mark the lesson as reviewed. You can browse any lesson at any time.
Put the lesson to work
Use the relevant tools below with your own figures. Dashboard destinations require sign-in and may depend on your plan. External social accounts and publishing are managed in their own platforms.
Sources & further study
WoodWorkCalc writes the exercises and illustrative examples. Named historical cases are attributed separately. These sources support the principles identified in the lesson; their publishers do not endorse WoodWorkCalc. Guidance and platform features can change. Sources retain their own copyright and licensing terms.
- U.S. Small Business Administration — Manage your business (opens new tab)
Business finance, marketing, taxes and employment topics; a starting point for questions that need local or professional guidance.
U.S. Small Business Administration. Manage your business. Accessed September 14, 2026.
- U.S. Small Business Administration — Free small business counseling and local mentoring (opens new tab)
Find SCORE, SBDC and other resource-partner support to discuss a plan and specific business questions.
U.S. Small Business Administration. Free small business counseling and local mentoring. Accessed September 14, 2026.
- Federal Trade Commission — FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking (opens new tab)
U.S. guidance on truthful endorsements and disclosure of relevant relationships or benefits. Platform review rules also apply.
Federal Trade Commission. FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking. Accessed September 14, 2026.