Professional services include everything from freelancing to management consultancy. It does not involve the direct employment of the person rendering the service. Examples of such services include web design, writing, editing, software development, program evaluation, auditing, or lab analysis. As an independent contractor, you need a contract to protect you and your client when you offer professional services. A professional service contract is an agreement between the independent contractor and his/her client on a particular project. 

This contract helps protect your interest as a freelancer or consultant in a business relationship. However, for the agreement to effectively do so, it needs to contain specific clauses and information. If you don't know how to write one, you can use a professional services contract template. You need to know the content of a professional service contract to determine the best template for you.

What should a professional services contract template contain?

A professional service contract can also be called a professional service agreement. It contains all the details of the business relationship between the contractor and the client. You might be unable to put in all the necessary information, though, if you don’t know what is required. We have highlighted the content of a professional service contract. You will find more details in a professional services contract template. 

There is a slight difference between the contract of a freelancer and consultant. These are the features that you can expect to see in a freelance agreement. 

1. Work description

This part involves describing the work to be completed at the end of the contract. It should contain all the details to ensure that there is no conflict of expectation, and the freelancer can prevent scope creep. A professional services contract template usually has it at the beginning.  

2. Payment agreement

This section contains the payment amount for the work and when it has to be paid. It ensures that the freelancer gets paid as and when due. 

3. Relationship between parties

This clause indicates that the freelancer is not an employee of the client. A freelancer has certain rights because of this clause, like the right to give another person the work. 

4. Indemnification

This agreement is usually a hold-harmless clause, which means that neither party is responsible for risk like physical damage. It helps protect you in the case of an unplanned risk.

5. Confidentiality

This clause helps you protect your client as it bounds you to keep information about their business private. Some clients might even require a non-disclosure agreement. Ensure you are not doing anything illegal before you sign this agreement, though.

6. Severability

This clause ensures that even if one part of the contract becomes invalid, the rest of the agreement remains valid. It also ensures that the contract ends amicably for both parties. 

The professional services contract template for a consultant would have some slight differences from the one for a freelancer. Some of the clauses that you can expect to see are:

• Work description and payment agreement
• Agreement on expenses incurred: As an independent consultant, you mostly pay for your expenses, and your client pays for the project done. However, there are cases where your client has to pay for some expenses. Those expenses are clearly stated in the contract.
• Insurance requirement: If your service requires a particular insurance, it should be stated in your contract.
• Confidentiality: The confidentiality of a consultant protects both parties. Your clients will be bound not to reveal details about your specialized processes, machinery, or pricing. You also can’t disclose proprietary information about your client. 

You won’t find it hard to include all the vital details to your contract if you use a professional services contract template.