Sign on the dotted line: A ‘how-to’ guide for bloggers issuing contracts to brands.

As some of you might know, part of my freelance work consists of blog outreach so today I thought I’d chat about the legal aspect of running a blog; looking specifically at contracts: should we be issuing them to brands as bloggers? And if so, what the heck do we include in them?

Should bloggers use contracts?

One thing that we should all do (and are often guilty of not doing) is clarifying the terms of conditions with brands BEFORE we start work. This doesn’t always have to take the form of a contract (since an email can technically be viewed as a contract in kind) but you should be sure you have an understanding of what’s required of you and the key details before you get to work, NOT when its time to submit the invoice! It’s really important to think of your blog as a business and the legal implications of this.

Use your common sense here, if you’re being gifted a bar of chocolate, its definitely not worth drawing up a contract, but if you’re working with a brand on paid content or a long-term gifted basis; where there’s creative control required (rather than ‘we’ll send this and you can write about it if you want) and you need to deliver to a brief, you should be confident in establishing the following…

-The fee and payment terms (you can’t just add your own rules to the invoice after the work has been done; it needs to be agreed in advance or it reverts to the standard 30 days-more on that here)

-A brief for the content. For example, if its a sponsored post any key messages that needed to be communicated, if links need to be included, any particular ‘anchor text.’

–Whether the link is follow or no-follow. If you suspect the content is an SEO or link building opportunity, always clarify this!

-That full disclosure will be used in line with ASA guidelines. Of course, this is common sense, but it’s worth just adding a line or two in the vein of, ‘just a heads up, all content is declared as an AD upfront inline with ASA guidelines’ to your email.

-What social shares are expected from you.

-Due date.

-How long content will remain on your blog or an instagram post will stay on top of your feed

-If you need to report figures back to the brand after a certain period.

-Whether you give permission to the brand to use your images on their social media or marketing materials. This is a big one at the moment and worth thinking about if your images are a key selling point.

-Whether an exclusivity period is required (this will usually be specified by them so you don’t really need to ask).

Should I create a contract?

As mentioned above, you don’t necessarily need to put this in a formal document-although it might help to do so. Many lawyers agree a chain of emails CAN be legally binding but of course, a contract makes things a little bit more watertight. If you were to go to small claims court, use an invoice chasing service for late payments or were even sued, a contract outlines things clearly; and it’s also useful to go back to when working on a project to make sure the brand will be happy before you send the work over.

In blogger outreach, I personally use contracts for brands and bloggers when money changes hands for sponsored posts. I find it is helpful as it outlines things clearly so there is less back and forth and if a blogger hasn’t met the brief, I don’t need to scroll through 27 emails but just put ‘as per the contract, you need to…’ which makes it a bit less awkward. This will also work from a blogger perspective; if you need to give the brand a nudge re: using your image without permission or not paying, you can create a sense of formality by referring back to the contract. And of course, on the whole, I find it makes things a little more formal and serious so it, in theory, prevents time wasters (although not always).

Read: What to do when your invoice is overdue.

How can I use a contract?

It’s probably worth asking the brand if they have their own contract or if you’d like them to create one. Usually, PR agencies will have their own but smaller brands might not and might not be aware of the issues raised above, like intellectual property and links. If you feel a little bit odd, going all legal; you can keep things simple by creating an email that’s in the style of a contract, e.g.

‘Before we go ahead, I’d like to clarify a few things that I’ve bullet-pointed below. Would you able to reply confirming these points so I have it for my records’

and then list your point below. I’ve done this a few times and its a very clear way of doing things as you’ve got it all in the one email and the reply confirming ‘yes, we agree,’ essentially acts as a signature.

However, if you are working with brands on the regular, you might want to create your own contract. Make sure your contract covers all the points mentioned and every eventuality (Such as penalty for late-payments and a clause if work is canceled) is covered.

How can I create my own contract as a blogger?

Creating a contract is simple enough! Just use the bullet points listed above to create one. You can use sites like Docusign to help you get signatures or just ask the brand to sign via PDF or the old fashioned way (I hand sign and take a photo!).

I’ve also created a very simple brand agreement that you can use to help you get started and I’ll be sending out this to all my newsletter followers on Sunday; so sign up here if you haven’t already and keep your eyes peeled on Sunday!