{"id":167540,"date":"2017-09-10T13:00:14","date_gmt":"2017-09-10T13:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/premium.wpmudev.org\/blog\/?p=167540"},"modified":"2017-09-06T04:58:58","modified_gmt":"2017-09-06T04:58:58","slug":"wordpress-biz-contract","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wordpress-biz-contract\/","title":{"rendered":"Why It’s Time to Protect Your WordPress Business with a Contract"},"content":{"rendered":"

Any business transaction you make should have a contract attached to it. And, if you should happen to encounter clients who aren\u2019t \u201ccomfortable\u201d with the terms of the contract, well then\u2026 Danger, Will Robinson<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It doesn\u2019t matter what the price tag is for each project or individual task you take on with a new client. What matters is that losses that result from unpaid bills can quickly stack up if you don\u2019t have the right form of protection in place.<\/p>\n

Namely, a freelance contract.<\/p>\n

You want your WordPress business to succeed, which is why you don\u2019t leave anything up to chance. You take great pains to build your client list<\/a> and continually streamline your processes<\/a>. You brush up on the latest and greatest ways to use PHP<\/a> in your workflows. You even get sneaky and white label the backend of WordPress<\/a> in order to leave a lasting impression with clients.<\/p>\n

So, if you\u2019re truly dead set on succeeding, then it\u2019s time to start treating this like a serious business. An onboarding contract is a crucial part of that.<\/p>\n

Why Should You Use a Contract to Onboard New Clients<\/h2>\n

Just to be clear: a contract isn\u2019t just to protect your payment. A contract can provide clients with certain assurances and set expectations properly\u2014for both sides\u2014from the get-go.<\/p>\n

Contracts work just as well for individual assignments (like a total website build) as they do for long-term work (like ongoing WordPress maintenance). And this formal agreement will also help bolster your status as a professional developer and full-fledged business with every new client you take on.<\/p>\n

If this is your first time creating a freelance contract or you\u2019re concerned with the quality of the one you\u2019re currently using, here are some of the things you can (and should!) define within it:<\/p>\n

Scope of Work<\/h3>\n

First things first: you must spell out the scope of work. That way, if you should happen to forget the original terms agreed upon or your client should claim that you owed them five revision rounds in each phase instead of two, you can reference the original scope.<\/p>\n

Deliverables<\/h3>\n

Since this is for WordPress development, you should also clearly state the deliverables owed to the client. Obviously, you\u2019ll deliver the completed website, access to the WordPress admin, all final design files, any branding or style guides created, and so on.<\/p>\n

Revisions<\/h3>\n

This may seem like a minor detail, but it\u2019s an important one to include as revisions can often become major budget breakers. Define how many revisions are allowed for each stage of work, task, etc., so clients can\u2019t ask for more than what they paid for later on.<\/p>\n

Due Dates<\/h3>\n

Every contract should have a firm start and end date. And, if you\u2019re working in phases, you should include specific deadlines for each. Of course, stipulations should be added in case the client disappears, an emergency arises on your end, or some other situation pops up that prevents any of these dates from being met.<\/p>\n

Payment<\/h3>\n

Payment terms must be clearly defined. This includes:<\/p>\n