Writing a Freelance Contract

Last week at the GR Freelancers Meetup, we talked about contracts. A lot of freelancers don’t use contracts at all when doing work for a client. For some jobs, a handshake is plenty, but contracts can be a really great tool for protecting yourself, as well as your client, when starting a new job.

Writing a contract for the first time can be intimidating, but your contract doesn’t have to be complicated If you’re stumped, something as simple as a pricing quote with a signature at the bottom is often enough to offer some protection to get started. Some things to consider including in your contract are:

• A description of work to be complete
• When the work will be delivered (deadline)
• How and how much you’ll be payed
• When you’ll be paid
• What happens if the payment deadline is missed (late fee, etc)
• What happens if the contract is terminated
• Ownership of the product during and upon fulfillment of contract
• Number of revisions or revision hours included on top of original work
• How change orders and additions will be arranged
• What happens when the contract is concluded