Creating A Contract! The importance of contracts and what to include.
IMAGINE IF YOU WILL…
Imagine this, you’re working on a logo project for a client and you’re almost done when they call and ask you to come in for a meeting to talk about some ideas that they have. You’re a little nervous because you’re in the final stages of designing their logo, but you agree to go talk. At the meeting you realize that the boss of the company is there. Up until this point you’ve been working with the creative director but now the boss wants to come in and change a LOT of things.
“We want to start over with one of your earlier sketches and take this logo in a whole new direction.” Says the boss “We’d also like to add a set of five icons to the design, that won’t be a problem right?”
At this point there are two ways these conversations typically go.
The first way is that you sit there stunned in horor not really knowing how to answer. You don’t want to do all that extra work now that you’re basically done and you know you’re going to lose money on this project. But can you say no? You and the creative director never actually worked out how many revisions the client would get or if they’d be able to get icons along with the design. You’re worried that asking for more money might make your client upset and that they might cancel the project all together, then you might not get paid at all!
Here’s the second way things can go. You smile at the boss and say, “Thank you so much for your input, I’m glad to see that you’re taking an interest in the branding for your company. I’d love to work on a new design for you, however the contract states that you would get 3 sketches, and 3 rounds of revisions on the design. Since this is the third round of revisions, there will be an additional cost for me to go back to the beginning and start over. According to the contract, at this point I’ll start charging my hourly rate of $120 for additional changes. The contract also stated that this job would only include a logo in two formats, but I think adding a set of icons is a great idea. Let’s talk about a price for those and draw up a new agreement for designing those additional icons.”
As you can probably tell, there’s a world of difference in these two scenarios and the difference comes down to whether or not you have a contract.
PURPOSE OF A CONTRACT
As a freelancer, it is absolutely necessary to use contracts in your work to protect both you and your client and to make sure that both parties are on the same page throughout the design process. There’s nothing mean about asking for a contract and requiring a client to sign one before beginning work (in fact, if a client is not willing to sign a contract, that’s a pretty sure sign that you SHOULD NOT WORK WITH THAT PERSON.)
A FEW THINGS YOUR CONTRACT SHOULD BE
FLEXIBLE- unless you only do one type of design project, it’s important to edit your contracts to suit the needs of each individual project. Each project is unique and different so make sure your contracts reflect that. Create a contract template or starting point, and change details in it on a project to project basis.
DETAILED- don’t worry about your contract being too long. Be specific. In my own contract I always try to be as detailed as possible and to spell everything out (even if it seems obvious) in order to make sure there are no misunderstandings.
SIGNED- this might sound obvious but sometimes I have people come to me with questions about how to handle a tricky client situation. The first question I always ask is “do you have a contract?” I’m always amazed when the answer is “well, I sent them one but they never actually signed it.” You should NEVER begin work on a project until the contract has been read and signed by your client. No exceptions. An unsigned contract does you or your client zero good.
BUILDING YOUR CONTRACT
Your contract should be unique to you, your design process and your needs. However, to help you get started, Here are some of the points I always make sure to include in my contracts. Also, when new things come up, add them to your contract! My basic contract has evolved over the years as I’ve gotten better and yours should too.
Project Scope: what actually is the project? What is the medium, what is the size, what is the copy? (Establishing the copy is especially important if you’re a hand lettering artist, you’d better know how many words you’re going to be lettering before you set a price.)
Price: What is the price of the project? How much will additional design elements cost? Is it hourly based or is there a set price?
Timeline: When is the project due? How long will you take for each revision? How long will the client take to send feedback? What happens if you or your client doesn’t meet a deadline? (Helpful hint! In my contract I have it so if a client takes over 30 days to respond with feedback the project is automatically terminated and I keep their deposit. Waiting around for client feedback stinks.)
Sketches and Revisions: how many versions of the design will the client get to pick from? How many back and forth revisions will they get? If they want additional revisions how much will those cost?
Meetings & feedback: how should the client send feedback? Do you charge extra for in person meetings? Do you have a consulting fee? If you or a client fail to attend a meeting does anything happen?
Supplies: is the client responsible for supplies costs? Or are supplies included in the price?
Travel: is travel part of the job? If so, is the client responsible for paying for travel expenses?
Production: does this job require any production like printing or manufacturing? If so, who is responsible for that? Are you as the designer only providing the design itself? Or the finished manufactured product? And if you are creating the final product, how will you get it to the client? Who is responsible for shipping costs?
Ownership: THIS ONE IS SUPER IMPORTANT! Who owns the rights to the finished design? What is the client allowed to use the design for and for how long? Can the client print the design on products to sell? Can the client use the design for marketing? Can the client sell the design to someone else? (Helpful hint! As the designer, you automatically retain the copyright to any design you create unless you expressly give the rights to the copyright of a design to your client in your contract.)
Cancelation: What happens if a client wishes to cancel a project? What happens if you want to cancel a project or can’t complete a project for some reason?
Payment: When is payment due? In what forms can payment be received. What happens if payment is not received? Are there late fees or processing fees? (Helpful hint, my clients are all required to pay a 50% deposit before I’ll even start working on their project and the other 50% at the end. If they fail to pay within 15 days of the project end date a 10% late fee is added.)
DON’T GET OVERWHELMED
Ok I know that was a LOT of information (and honestly you might want to include additional items in your contract beyond the ones I talked about,) but having a contract is 100% worth it.
RESOURCES
Here are some helpful resources you might enjoy while getting started building a contract for your freelance business!
AIGA’s LEGAL GIUIDES AND CONTRACTS
AIGA has tons of helpful resources and has some design service agreements that are awesome https://www.aiga.org/resources/business-freelance-resources/legal-guides-contracts
GRAPHIC ARTIST GUILD HANDBOOK: PRICING AND ETHICAL GUIDELINES
Not only does this book include some helpful contract information, it also includes standard industry pricing on all things design (which is really helpful if you’re not sure what to be charging. https://graphicartistsguild.org/the-graphic-artists-guild-handbook-pricing-ethical-guidelines/
A CREATIVE LAWYER
If you really don’t want to DIY your contract, it’s a great idea to get a lawyer! My lawyer is Brittany Ratelle, she specializes in legal issues involving creatives. https://brittanyratelle.com
DUBSADO
I use a program called Dubsado to manage all my contracts. Dubsado is awesome because I was able to create a bunch of different contract templates (one for murals, one for logos, etc.) and easily edit them for each individual project. I can also send the contracts to the client directly though dubsado which allows them to sign it digitally. (Back before Dubsado I would email my clients a PDF which they had to print off, sign and then upload again. This was a pain, but it’s a good way to go if you’re really trying to save money.) dubsado.com/?c=typeaffiliated (that one is an affiliate link by the way!)
I hope that this post has helped you get a better idea of the importance of using contracts in your work and has helped you get some ideas of things to include in your own contract! If you’ve enjoyed this post or have questions please leave your comments below!