5 Major Mistakes to Avoid in Your Content Creation Contract (If You Are a Content Creator)

Want to know what to look out for in a content creation contract? These are the crucial mistakes to avoid as a content creator.

Creating content for brands is extremely fun and exciting, and if you're anything like me, you are researching everything you need to ensure you have everything you need to protect your rights and boundaries. As a lawyer myself who drafts contracts for content creators like you, I am giving you all the tips you need to ensure you get a fair deal.

You will learn the critical mistakes to avoid in your content creation contract, regardless of whether it's a freelance content creator contract, YouTube content creator contract, social media content creator contract, or UGC content creator contract.

After learning about all these crucial mistakes to avoid in your content creation contract, you will be a pro and fully equipped to protect yourself!

This post is all about the major mistakes in a content creation contract that every content creator needs.

Crucial Content Creation Contract

Content creation contract: The Key Terms

Now you know what a content creator contract is, let's get to what you're here for; the essential elements you need in a content creator contract.

1. No clear scope

One thing you have to get down first is a clear scope. Sometimes a brand will say that they want you to create whatever you think looks great. That sounds great because you can let your creative spirit run wild. However, your client will likely also want the right to approve it before the client accepts your work and ultimately pays you (the remaining amount due). You could insert a maximum number of revisions that are included in the base price in the contract and ask for an additional fee for each extra round (which you definitely should). However, you don't want to do a dozen retakes. You want to get it right the first time, get paid fast, and move on to the next client.

Sometimes clients, especially those new to this, don't know what they want. They only figure that out once they see the first piece of content. But, it's up to you to guide them, so you can give them what they don't know they want or need.

Sometimes clients know what they want but don't include that in their contract. In any case, you need to specify a couple of things in your content creation contract. Want to know which essential criteria you need to set at the very least?

I have outlined exactly what you need to specify in your scope in this blog post: 7 Key Terms Every Content Creator Contract Must Have for Content Creators and Brands.

2. No (monetary) boundaries

More often than not, the client will require prior approval before accepting your content as the final product. That's fine, but not if there are no boundaries.

If you do not specify in your content creation contract exactly:

• the number of rounds of revisions is included in the base price;

• that after the last rounds, the content is considered accepted and delivered, meaning that you get paid (regardless of whether the client is happy or not); and

• that any additional rounds will cost your client more, i.e. a fee of [X] must be paid (in advance) for each round,

then that will mean that the client could:

• ask for as many provisions as the client wants, making you invest more time than what your time is worth;

• not pay you for those additional rounds you have not initially agreed on or did not anticipate; and

• never give you approval, and thus, never pay you for your content.

You want to ensure: (1) that you get paid; (2) by when you ultimately get paid; AND (3) get paid what you are worth! 

Clients can take advantage of you this way, and you need to protect yourself by setting clear (monetary) boundaries.

There are too many stories about clients not paying creators for their content. Luckily, there are websites on which creators expose clients that do not pay, but you want to avoid that risk altogether. That is why another boundary you should set is an upfront payment of at least part of the total price agreed. Ask for a deposit they have to pay upfront and make clear that you will not start working on the content before that.

3. No timeline for EVERY single step

What you'll see in (almost) every content creation contract is a deadline for the delivery of the content, the first version, that is. But a major mistake I've seen in some of these contracts is that no deadline is specified for the other steps, specifically the revisions.

You need to ensure that EVERY single step has a deadline. 

If a date is set for the first version, then set the date you need the deposit or full payment. Or state that you will deliver the first version a specified number of days after you have received the deposit or full payment.

If you are creating multiple pieces of content that will not be delivered on the same date, specify that date or number of days after the deposit that each piece will be delivered.

If the client requires prior approval for each content piece, then you need to specify for each content piece:

• the date or the number of days after the delivery of the content by which the client has to give its approval or feedback; and

• the number of days after receiving the feedback, you need to deliver a second version (if the first version is not approved.

These steps and timelines must be repeated if multiple revision rounds are agreed upon.

Then, specify the consequences if any of these deadlines are missed. If the client does not provide approval or feedback by the deadline, the client should be considered approved (and you should get paid the rest of what you are owed). A more friendly approach would be that you send a reminder after the deadline, and the draft is only approved after a specified number of days have passed after the reminder date.

4. Exclusivity

Sometimes, a brand may have an exclusivity provision in the content creation contract, meaning that you will not create content for other clients in the same business or niche. Their excuse could be that they don't want you to give that same piece of content you have created for the client to someone else.

You are a content creator hired to make content for the client to use on the client's platform. You are not an influencer promoting that client's brand on your own platform. So, do not accept exclusivity.

Understandably, a brand might not want you to give that same piece of content to someone else, but you do not achieve that with exclusivity, but with an exclusive or sole license or even transfer of the copyrights to the content. This concept brings me to the next major mistake to avoid.

5. Wrong license (or transfer)

By the content creation contract, you can give a client ownership of the content with an assignment or rights to use the content with a license. 

An assignment is when you transfer the ownership of the content to the client. That means the client can do whatever it wants with content, and you can do nothing about it. You might want to do that or not. If, for example, you are taking pictures of a coffee mug on a table for a coffee brand, you could assign the copyright. You will (or should) get paid more because you are giving them complete ownership to do with it as they will whenever and forever. You probably don't want to use that picture anyway. 

However, if it's a video of you sipping coffee with that coffee mug, then I do not recommend transferring the ownership of that content to the client because you will have no control over what that brand does with your face. Especially if the reputation of that brand changes and you don't want to be associated with that brand anymore, you will not be able to do anything about it. Also, if you want to become an influencer and gain a huge following someday, then that brand will, of course, promote their product with that video from three years ago WITHOUT paying you anything for that.

You could also give the client a license to use the content. Regardless of the type of license, which I will not get into in this blog post, you will, in any case, get paid (a bit) less than in the case of an assignment. 

But you can ensure that:

• the client pays you for what the content is worth;

• you can use that content if you agree to that;

• you can stop the client from using it for specified reasons (misuse of that content or use that is not agreed upon); and

• the client can only use that content for a specific term (and if the client wants to use it for longer, it has to pay you more).

It depends on the type of content and the price that you should give and what would be a major mistake.

Another major mistake regarding the assignment or license is when the content creation contract states that the client receives the ownership or usage rights of all the content you provide. That means the client can get those rights to the content that has not even been approved yet, so the client could use it without paying you in full. Those rights should only transfer to the client once you have been paid in full.

Make sure you avoid this and all the other mistakes I discussed in this blog post in your content creation contract.

Content creator contract template

If you want to ensure you avoid the five crucial mistakes I just discussed, then you need my content creation contract! My content creator contract template can be used as any other freelance content creator contract template for the creation of photos, videos or other media (not written) content, such as:

• a YouTube content creator template;

• a UGC content creator contract template; or

• any other type of social media content creator template.

This content creator contract template includes alternatives and explanations for each essential clause. That way, when drafting your content creation contract, you know which one suits your deal best (and you avoid making those mistakes). 

You can find the content creation contract template on this page.

Content creator contract pdf

Often content creators will receive a content creator contract pdf from their client instead of a (Word) version, so they can't change the clauses.  

The content creator contract pdf could have some client-friendly (and very creator-unfriendly) terms I just discussed. Content creators use my content creation contract to compare it with the content creation contract they receive from their clients. They then send one of my clauses as an alternative for a client to insert in their contract so that the client can change the creator-unfriendly provisions. 

With my content creation contract, you'll be a negotiating pro, so you won't make any of those critical mistakes!

This post was all about the key mistakes every content creator must avoid in their content creation contract.

Want to know about all the essential legal elements you need in your content creation contract? Then read this blog post on the 7 Key Terms Every Content Creator Contract Must Have for Content Creators and Brands.

You can get the Content Creator Contract template (which includes all the key terms you need for your agreement to avoid the mistakes we just discussed) here!

Are you giving someone existing photo or video content? Then you need the Media Release Agreement, which you can get here!

If you are a creator who gets paid to promote products for brands on your platform, like an influencer or YouTuber, you need to get the Brand Sponsorship agreement here!