6 Crucial Terms Every Content Creator Contract Template Needs to Generate MORE Income

Do you want to know what you need in your content creator contract template to get the most out of your brand deals and make more money? These are the critical terms you need as a content creator.

Creating content for brands is extremely fun and exciting, and if you’re anything like me, you want to get the most out of your deals and earn more income. As a lawyer myself who drafts contracts for content creators like you, I am telling you everything you need in your content creator contract template to earn more!

You will learn the key terms you need in your content creator contract template, regardless of whether it’s a UGC content creator contract template, YouTube content creator contract, freelance content creator contract, or another content creator agreement.

After learning about all these essential terms for your content creator contract template, you will be a master dealmaker and earn the most from your brand deals!

This post is all about the essential terms a content creator contract template must have to earn more money.

Ultimate Content Creator Contract Template

Content creator agreement

This blog post is for every content creator that creates content for brands to use for the brand’s platforms. This blog post is not for influencers who brands sponsor to create content to publish on the brand’s platforms.

The terms I will be talking about can be applied to any type of content creator agreement, such as the following:

• UGC content creator contract template

• Social media content creator contract

• YouTube content creator contract

• freelance content creator contract

Now, you know whether this blog post is relevant to you as a content creator. Let’s get right into the essentials for your content creator contract template to earn the most!

1. License vs assignment

Usually, you will license the right to use the content you created for the brand. You still remain the owner of that content; thus, you can decide what the brand may do with your content. 

Sometimes, a brand may want 

I recommend licensing over assigning if the brand does not explicitly ask for an assignment, especially if the content includes you or your voice. However, suppose the brand will pay good money for the project. In that case, it might be worth assigning your rights to the picture, especially if it’s a photo or video of something you would not use yourself for other purposes, like a video of a marshmallow floating in a cup of hot choco. I know; that’s a random example. 

You’ll probably be asking, “what would be a reasonable price to ask for an unlimited license or an assignment?” That depends on a multitude of factors, like the content itself, the brand, what the brand will likely use the content for, and the industry standards, which may change over time.

If you do choose to assign the right, make sure that your content creator contract template includes a (royalty-free, irrevocable and perpetual) license for you to use that content for your portfolio.

If the brand asks for an assignment, suggest an unlimited license instead. If it concerns a photo, for example, it’s unlikely that the brand will use it anyway for more than 3 to 5 years from now. When you tell a brand that it will probably only use it for so many years, it will likely choose an unlimited license, as it is cheaper than an assignment. What is a reasonable price for an unlimited license? That also depends on multiple factors, but tripling the fee for the estimated usage period would be a good place to start if you are licensing a photo. If the brand does not want to agree with that, then the brand can continue to pay you for the term the brand uses the license.

In the case of an unlimited license, you can still control what the brand can use the pictures for, which brings me to the following essential term.

2. Usage rights & timeframes

Why is it so important that I can control what the brand uses the content for? This may be one of the most critical factors for earning more money. 

During your initial communication phase, during which you discuss the brief for the content, you need to ask the brand what precisely the brand will use the content for. Is the brand going to use it for its Instagram page or multiple Instagram pages? Is the brand going to use it for its website and in its newsletter? 

Your content creator agreement should include clauses stating the exact use permitted under the license. An example for use on social media from my content creation contract template is the following:

“the profile page of [brand name] with the handle “@[name]”

The brand may want to use that same content for other platforms or advertising. Well, that’s not what you concluded the contract for, so you can ask for an extra fee!

3. Fixed fee vs royalties

Depending on the content created and what the brand will use the content for, you might want to ask for a fixed fee or a recurring fee for the time the content is used (called royalties). 

This is the second biggest reason you want to license your content instead of assigning it. The first is, of course, having control over the content and protecting yourself through that control. But, if you assign the rights, you can only ask for a one-time fee. If the brand uses the content for advertising or other purposes (not discussed), you can’t ask for more money. The brand is the owner of the content and can do whatever it wants with that content.

A fixed fee is often negotiated if a brand wants to use the content for a one-time placement on its feed on TikTok. However, if the brand wants to use the content for advertising, you should definitely ask for royalties for each month or quarter that the brand uses the content for advertising. This is another reason you want to discuss with the brand what the brand will use the content for.

Your content creator contract template should have both options. 

4. Pricing structure for edits

When you give a license to a brand for one or more pieces of content, you want to explicitly state in your content creation agreement that you do not allow the brand to edit that content. Why? Because that’s your money-maker! Let me explain.

Let’s say you are creating long-form content for a brand. In the case of a YouTube content creator contract, that could be a video of 10 minutes or longer. In the case of UGC for TikTok, that could be a 45 to 60-second video.

The brand might want short-form content, too, like 15-second clips of the 60-second TikTok video or several 30-second clips of the YouTube video for YouTube Shorts. That is where there’s an opportunity for more money. 

During the initial conversation, you can present this as an option for the brand. The brand will likely be interested in more content. You can offer a fee (usually a percentage of the base fee) for each repurposed piece of content you deliver.

Even if the brand does not want that at first, ensure your content creation contract template includes a pricing structure for repurposing content. You never know when the brand will change its mind!

5. Price increases

If the content is going to be used for a longer period, say more than one year, you want to incorporate price increases in your content creator agreement. 

If the content is going to be used for TikTok and, thus, it’s a UGC content creator contract template, price increases might not be relevant. That kind of content is usually not used for that long. 

However, if you are creating a YouTube video for a brand (so it’s a YouTube content creator contract), that content will be on YouTube for more than a year, especially if it’s evergreen content. The same goes for content for a brand’s website. That’s when price increases start becoming interesting.

You can include price increases for inflation, which are called price indexes. That is very normal in any other long-term service agreement. People don’t even blink an eye at that. When the inflation rises, and say there’s a 6% increase, and you get paid $1,200 a year, then that means you get an extra $72 next year for literally doing nothing!

Ensure your content creator contract template includes a price index (if it’s relevant to your content).

6. Success fee

If the brand is using your content for advertising and it’s a big brand, you could add a success fee to your content creator agreement. For advertising, brands will track how many people have clicked on the ad and how many sales are made. So they know exactly how well your content has performed. If you are confident (based on your experience) that your content will generate a certain number of clicks or sales, you can include a success fee, usually a percentage of the base price, if that number is hit. There you go, more money without doing anything extra for it!

Also, this keeps you and the brand communicating with each other. When the brand comes up with another idea for a content piece, you will be top of mind! Another job opportunity and more money for you!

Free content creator contract template

You might be looking for a free content creator contract template. If you can’t pay for a content creator agreement, then make sure you insert everything in this list!

If you can afford to invest money into a content creator contract template, mine is super affordable and includes all the essential terms I discussed!

You can get yours on this page of my contract shop!

Content creator contract pdf

Sometimes a brand will send you a content creator contract pdf (instead of a (Word) version), so you can’t change the clauses.  

That content creator contract pdf will likely not include the terms I discussed that would be in your favour and earn you more money. That does not mean that the brand can’t insert these clauses! Content creators use my content creator contract template to compare it with the content creator contract pdf they receive from the brand. You can send one of my clauses to the brand to insert in its contract. 

With my content creator contract template, you’ll be a negotiating pro and earn lots of money!

This post was all about the key terms every content creator contract template must have to earn the most from your brand deal.

Want to know about ALL the essential terms your content creator contract template needs? Then read this blog post on the 7 Key Terms Every Content Creator Contract Must Have for Content Creators and Brands.

Want to know which mistakes to avoid in your content creator contract template, so you don’t lose your hard-earned cash? Read this blog post on the 5 Major Mistakes to Avoid in Your Content Creation Contract (If You Are a Content Creator).

Are you a UGC creator and need a UGC content creator contract template? Then read this blog post on the 5 Essentials Every Social Media Content Creator Contract Must Have for UGC Creators.

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!