What Is a Digital Marketing Contract?
A digital marketing contract is a legally binding agreement between you, the marketer, and your client. It outlines the responsibilities of both parties while protecting the rights of each person. It is a finalized legal agreement between the client and a freelancer.
We all know digital marketing is a broad profession, you can specialize in anything from websites, branding, advertising, social media, or any other marketing service. Whatever the title is that you hold, every digital marketer needs a contract.
If you offer a broad range of digital marketing services, or maybe you're starting a digital marketing agency, it’s a good idea to get yourself a contract template. This way you’ll be able to easily edit what services you’re providing to the client while keeping your fundamentals protected.
All in all, a digital marketing agreement is your safeguard towards doing a job well and within your expected boundaries.
Note: Sign-up now for free to start editing your digital marketing contract template. It’s super easy to create, download and send, plus it’s been written and reviewed by top lawyers.
Why You Need a Contract for Digital Marketing
Along with it protecting your rights and interests, you’ll be able to set out all your key responsibilities within the contract. This will make sure that you’re not expected to pick up tasks that lie outside your specialty, causing you to underperform or undercharge. This is especially important when you work as a freelancer or independent contractor, rather than a full-time employee.
There are plenty of specifics that go into a digital marketing agreement that you may not be aware of at first. It will outline the responsibilities of you and the client, what the scope of work is, liability and dispute resolutions, intellectual property rights, access to confidential information, termination criteria, and much more.
Imagine just having a handshake agreement for all these terms and conditions! A contract will cover everything you need to do the job right, and protect you if there are any mishaps.
What Should Be Included in a Digital Marketing Contract?
If you offer digital marketing services to your clients, you need a solid agreement in place. But what should it include? Well, campaign-specific goals, objectives, milestones and metrics need to be clarified, and client expectations need to be managed. Without a contract to enforce this, things could get messy and fast.
So, here’s what you should include in your next digital marketing contract template to keep everyone happy and your project on track:
Detailed descriptions of the work
As with any marketing agreement, you need to be crystal clear about who the contract is between and the nature of the relationship. This helps to clarify the roles, responsibilities, and obligations of both parties involved. This means outlining what the job will entail, and basically what it is that you’re going to achieve. For example, in the digital marketing proposal template, you include that you'll handle the analysis of the competitive environment, you'll include that in the description or contract.
The cornerstone of every good digital marketing agreement is being specific about the subject matter. You should also name who’s responsible for delivering you the info to complete each task and project, and when you need it.
Timeline for deliverables
After you detail all your digital marketing services, you need to outline the project scope.
Use numbers and dates when talking about volume, timeframes, drafts, or iterations—otherwise, the scope could be open to interpretation and lead to friction or impact your ability to achieve your stated goals. It’s good to be as detailed as possible here—you don’t want a “scope creep” situation where your client keeps changing the project or adding on more work which means you won’t hit your targets or meet deadlines.
Payment details
This section will make or break a contract for many freelancers. You and your client need to agree on your payment terms, more specifically, how much and when you’ll be paid.
Most digital marketers will charge per hour or use a quotation template to charge a total amount based on the services provided. If you’re working on a long-term marketing campaign, you may wish to set up milestone or performance-related payments. These would be contingent on the delivery of certain milestones and have a monetary increase over time due to good performance.
However you want to structure your payment schedule, remember to use an invoice to get an upfront deposit before the work begins, discuss expenses and compensation, and agree to a timeframe for paying the invoices and any late fees that may occur.
Copyright and IP (intellectual property)
Some digital marketers will be creating the content themselves, so it’s a good idea to put in a clause around copyright and intellectual property rights. This will cover what the client owns, how intellectual property will be handled, as well as any permissions that are given to use the final product in your portfolio.
Confidentiality
Both parties will have to agree on the handling of confidential information. Confidentiality is important to protect your personal information (as well as the client’s customers) and company trade secrets. Setting up a non-disclosure agreement and non-compete clause will cover both party's rights and interests in this area.
Termination of contract
Every digital marketing agreement will include a section for terminating the contract. This is usually on a specific date or once a project is completed, but it’s also good to outline any other reasons why a contract can be terminated earlier.
Other factors
If you’re taking over your client’s social media accounts, using tools, or analyzing data, you’ll need them to grant you access. This can include their Google Analytics account or any other third-party software they may use.
Digital Marketing Contract Sample
We know many digital marketers need to visualize, so sign up now to Bonsai for free and see a sample of our digital marketing contract template. This is how the pros do it.
What’s the Benefit of Using Bonsai, Instead of Editing a Template Yourself?
When you create and edit your own template, you run the risk of missing out on important clauses that can affect your rights and the validity of the contract. Bonsai’s contract templates are vetted by legal experts and hundreds of other freelancers, so you can be sure all the necessary information is covered.
How to Create a Digital Marketing Contract With Bonsai?
Here are a few simple steps to follow for creating your own legally sound contract:
- Select your template
- Add your basic info
- Add your scope of work
- Add your payment terms and info
- Review and sign your final contract
After that, you've got yourself a fully fleshed-out and vetted digital marketing agreement. If you want to make any edits to the template, you can do so before sending it to your client.
It’s really that simple! You can also keep track of all your contracts and templates from your Freelance Dashboard.
Digital Marketing Contract FAQs
How much should a digital marketing freelancer charge?
As of 2021, digital marketers in the U.S usually charge between $50-$200 per hour. That’s a huge difference!
But it makes sense too. Besides experience, there are so many different marketing services you can offer a client. All of these can be dependent on the level of specialty needed, as well as what state or country you’re in, and even the company or client involved.
Do I need a contract for a freelance marketer?
The overall marketing industry is predicted to grow 10% by 2026, which means freelance jobs are likely to increase too. So, if you want security, legal protection, and clarity on the responsibilities of the different jobs you'll be getting—you need a contract. An agreement of this type is almost always beneficial, and by using a marketing contract template, you don’t have to spend a lot of time on it either.
What if I want to renew the marketing contract?
Renewing a contract will depend on performance satisfaction, project scope, or whether you're using clever techniques to get an extension. This is something both parties will need to discuss in advance of the contract’s termination date.
Fortunately, when you use Bonsai you can make this service totally automated. Once you have an account, you can set up automatic reminders for your client to renew the contract. Once they’ve agreed and signed, you’ll both receive an updated version of the marketing agreement. It’s that simple.
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