3 Techniques for Extending an Ongoing Freelance Contract
If you work with local clients, you may prepare a long-term contract that would ensure an ongoing relationship with clients who are open to working with a contractor in the long run.
Most of the time, I’ve found contracts to be somewhat obsolete for smaller services since the legal fees and the time it takes to get something sorted out may exceed the expected amount dramatically.
Also, some customers simply don’t want to engage with long-term planning for one reason or another. Could be the lack of safety net on their end, varying work load and so on.
For example, we’ve just ended a retainer contract with a client mid-May for a project that was planned from Dec 1, 2016 to Feb 1, 2017. When February came in, the client kept sending additional tasks and requirements for future iterations. They couldn’t confirm the duration of the extended contract and this made our planning more hectic as well, but it was a good contract for about $6K/mo that was worth retaining for as long as possible.
They’ve emailed us earlier this month that we need to put it on hold as they’re reinvesting in internal activities related to their main product and they plan on reviving our contract in September. This may not be the case in a few months from now, but we’ll plan for some availability nevertheless and certainly reach out when the summer season is over.
We also collaborate with some freelancers that we work with on various projects. Two of them have been receiving a steady pay for a few months now but we don’t know how long we’ll keep paying them (depending on our internal planning and other things).
Being on both sides of the table, here are three suggestions that I have:
1. Ask your client directly
The best bet you have is having an open conversation with your client. It’s normal to ask for some long-term plan and understand what you can help them with over the next months.
You can phrase that in a way that focuses on the value you can provide and additional insight you can bring given the long-term partnership. The commitment in a one-time project differs a lot from a long-term work and a possible business relationship that may take a year or more may justify you studying the business in details or improving your skills in a direction that may be beneficial to your client.
Even if that’s not the case, you better know that early enough.
2. Try to negotiate an upfront cancellation notice
If your client is using up a lot of your time (30–40% or more), try to discuss the long-term milestones with a cancellation notice in mind. Smaller assignments are easier to replace, but if you’re working half-time for them, it may be problematic to find another stable client that would fill up your hours.
3. Utilize a discounted plan
While contracts don’t really work in some cases (especially international freelancing deals overseas), one possible scenario is offering a plan at a discounted fee if your client is willing to commit to a longer term arrangement.
This works out pretty well if the first two ideas are not applicable or your client isn’t willing to give you a straight answer. Here’s a sample opener you may use:
“Hey John, I’m planning my availability over the next quarter/until the end of the year and I’d like to share my retainer plans with you. You’re a great client and I’d be happy to allocate the time for you and avoid any work overlaps if you’re interested in some of the plans that I offer. A three-month contract comes with a 5% discounted hourly rate and I can give you an even better deal at 10% off if we sign it for the next 6 months.”
That could be rephrased and restructured depending on the case and you can align percentages and terms accordingly.
But there are four notable benefits:
- You don’t have to ask the question directly and potentially intimidate your client
- Long-term clients may be willing to take on the offer if they want to work with you longer
- You can add some extra clauses for upfront notices or even prepaid hours if you see fit (depending on the case)
- A contract interrupted immediately would give you the grounds to ask for additional compensation given the adjusted rate you’ve introduced (which wouldn’t have happened with an open contract)
Make sure that your conversation is as open, transparent and honest as possible. You want to deliver good value and ensure that you have the availability for your client without cancelling the arrangement for another opening. Regardless of their availability or ability to predict the workload, you can find a model that works best for both parties.
Originally published at www.quora.com.
