15+ Crucial Content Creator Contracts for Full-Time Creators (Earning $5,000+ Per Month) (Part 1)
Want to know which content creator contracts you need as a professional creator? I’m sharing the key contracts you need to protect your IP, reputation and money AND earn more!
Becoming a full-time creator is a MAJOR accomplishment, and if you’re anything like me, you want to make sure you have all the essentials to protect what you’ve built and earn more. As a lawyer myself who drafts contracts for professional creators like you, I am sharing the key content creator contracts you must have to excel to the next level.
You will learn all about which types of content creator contracts you need with this complete content creator contracts template overview, explaining how each content creator agreement template will benefit you.
After learning about the crucial content creator contracts you need as a professional content creator, you’ll take your business to the next level and earn more!
This post is all about the essential content creator contracts you need to earn more and protect your content creation empire.
Crucial Content Creator Contracts
The ultimate content creator contracts template overview
1. Legal Pages for Your Website AND Social Media
The first one (actually three) of all content creator contracts you need is the legal website pages. These are (1) the (mandatory) privacy policy, (2) the terms of use, and (3) the disclaimers (for all your content.
I’m mentioning these first because I see them as the legal foundation for all creators and entrepreneurs.
Let me explain why each of them is essential.
Privacy policy
The privacy policy is crucial for many reasons, but here are the main ones:
A privacy policy is mandatory under most privacy and data protection laws, so you really don’t have a choice.
It’s mandatory for any form of data collection. Even if you do not have a website, but you’ve collected information from one or more followers for a giveaway, for example, you must have a privacy policy.
There are many privacy laws from different states, countries, and regions that may apply to you, even when you don’t live in those countries.
You can get hefty fines of $7,500 or more (from authorities in different states and countries) if you do not comply with these privacy laws.
To give you an overview of the different privacy laws that may apply to you in the US, EU and Canada, I have listed all the privacy laws that my privacy policy complies with on this page of my contract shop.
Terms of use
Terms of use are not mandatory, but they are designed to protect your business. Here are a few examples of how:
The terms of use lay down the rules for how your followers and website visitors may use your content and interact with you and your audience.
They state how people may share your content (with the proper attributions and only in a positive light), protecting your reputation.
They protect your intellectual property rights from thieves and copycats.
They limit your liability for negative outcomes and results people get from using your content.
They limit your liability for content and products you share from other creators and brands.
Disclaimers
Disclaimers are essential because they both protect your business and ensure compliance with laws. Here’s how:
The proper disclaimers protect you from mistakes or outdated information in your content, so people can’t hold you liable or responsible for human errors.
The right disclaimers will also protect you from risks in your specific niche.
Comprehensive disclaimers made for creators also include mandatory disclosures you have to make in case of sponsored content and affiliate links.
Want an ironclad legal website (and SM) bundle that includes all the necessities creators like you need?
Check out my Legal website Bundle on this page of my contract shop!
2. (Creator-friendly) Brand Sponsorship Agreement
The next, most essential one of the content creator contracts is a creator-friendly brand sponsorship agreement.
At this point, you probably have quite a few brand deals under your belt. You have reached a new level, and that is why you need a brand sponsorship agreement that will take you to the next level of protection and earning potential.
Here’s what my creator-friendly brand sponsorship agreement has (and what you need) to take you to the next level:
As a high-level creator, you have way more leverage and negotiation power than you did in the beginning. Therefore, your contract should include more forms of compensation than just a fixed fee. You should include more creative pricing mechanisms and strategies that will increase your income, such as:
Success fees (for if you reach a certain target)
Royalties (for if the brand uses your content on its own platforms or advertising)
Commissions (for every sale made with your link or discount code)
A bigger audience means bigger risks. You run a bigger risk of getting fined for breach of (influencer) marketing laws in different countries. So, your influencer contract template should include solid terms that protect you from breach of such laws, not only in your own country but worldwide.
You also run a bigger risk of getting claims for IP infringement and other third-party claims, like damages from faulty products of the brand that you promoted. That is why you need to ensure your contract protects you from all types of third-party claims.
As a big creator, you run an even bigger risk of reputation damage when the brand’s reputation changes. Therefore, your contract should entitle you to break up as soon as the brand does something you do not want to be associated with.
You have more brand deal opportunities than ever before, so you’ll need to ensure that, if you agree on exclusivity, you are not limited to the point where you can’t work with brands that are not even direct competitors. Don’t let brands limit your income potential!
Need a brand sponsorship contract? Get this contracts for creators template on this page of my contract shop!
3. Terms and conditions for digital products
The next one of the crucial content creator contracts you’ll need is the terms and conditions for digital products. Whether you’re selling a simple eBook for $12 or a $500 digital art piece, you need to have proper terms and conditions that will protect you from every angle. Here are some of the risks it will protect you against:
❌ Copycats who steal your content and create their ‘own’ digital products from your work
❌ Thieves who simply resell your digital products (at a higher price)
❌ Share bears who share copies of your digital products with their friends and families for free
❌ Opportunists who request refunds because they (supposedly) don’t like your digital products (but still keep and use your digital products anyway)
❌ Bad executors who claim damages from you because their outcomes and results are not what they had hoped for (even though they did not properly implement your strategies)
Need terms and conditions for digital products you’re selling? Get your template on this page of my contract shop!
4. Terms and Conditions for Online Courses
You may not only have digital products, but you may also offer complete online courses.
In that case, you’ll need terms and conditions for online courses.
Here are some reasons you need solid terms and conditions (like mine):
The T&C prohibit your students from giving free access to others (with their own login information).
The T&C will give a clear and transparent refund policy stating whether your students even have the right to refunds and, if so, exactly under what conditions.
The T&C should include a clear payment policy (like if students can pay the course fee in parts and, if so, whether they’ll get full access to the course or only to a part of it).
The proper T&C should include all the disclaimers you need for incorrect or outdated information, information from third parties, and outcomes and results of your students.
The T&C entitles you to revoke access from the course (without compensation) if your students don’t abide by the terms of your contract, such as if they damage your reputation or are mean to other students within your course.
Want a T&C template that includes all these protections? Get your terms and conditions for online courses on this page of my contract shop!
5. (Licensor-friendly) Licensing Agreement (for your existing content)
Brand sponsorships may be one of the basic ways to make money as a content creator. But when you become more popular and create more content, you may get more requests from brands and even other creators to use your existing content, like a photo or video you created.
In that case, you’ll need a licensor-friendly license agreement as one of your content creator contracts for the following reasons:
A licensor-friendly license agreement will ensure that the brand or creator you’re licensing content to will include the proper attributions so everyone will know it’s your work (and be able to find you).
In a license agreement, you can agree on what kind of compensation you’ll receive, like the following:
A simple one-time fee
Royalty payments
A piece of content from the licensee in return
In a license agreement, you can determine for how long that person can use your content.
With a license agreement, you will remain in full control of your content by determining exactly where (on what platform(s) and account(s)) and for what purpose the licensee may use your content.
With a license agreement, you can prohibit the licensee from giving the license to anyone else or even sublicensing your content.
Need a licensor-friendly license agreement? Get your template on this page of my contract shop!
6. (Licensee-friendly) Licensing Agreement (when using content from others)
As a professional content creator, you may, at some point, want to use photo or video content from others, like in the following cases:
If you’re a blogger, you may want a license to include someone else’s photo in your blog post.
Maybe you’re running a content creation course, and you would like to include content from other creators as examples in your course material.
Maybe you have your own podcast, and you would like to use someone else’s music or jingle in your podcast.
Maybe you have your own YouTube channel, and someone has made some really cool graphics that you would like to include in your YouTube videos.
Maybe you would like to use someone’s video clips in your own Reels or TikTok videos.
In all those cases, you want to ensure you have a licensee-friendly license agreement by which the other creator grants you all the rights you need to use their content for anything you want!
Need a licensee-friendly license agreement? When purchasing my license agreement template, you get both (1) a licensor-friendly and (2) a licensee-friendly license agreement. You get 2 of the essential content creator contracts you need in one! Check out my license agreement templates on this page of my contract shop!
7. (Guest-friendly) YouTube Guest Agreement (if you’re a guest)
When you become more well-known as a content creator, you’ll be invited more often to appear as a guest on other creators’ platforms, such as their YouTube channel.
This kind of collaboration can be a lot of fun and give you way more exposure, but there are certain risks you need to protect yourself from when guesting on someone else YouTube channel, such as the following:
❌ Misrepresentations of you or your brand (because of the way the YouTuber edited the video).
❌ Getting used for paid advertising by the YouTuber (when you have not been compensated for that).
❌ The YouTuber repurposes valuable content you provided for paid content, like a course (without getting compensated by the YouTuber!).
❌ Publications on any other platforms you have not given the YouTuber permission for.
❌ Claims from the YouTuber’s audience (for things you’ve said or been asked by the YouTuber to say, or even for things the YouTube has said)
This is why an important one of the content creator contracts you need is a guest-friendly YouTube guest agreement. With an ironclad YouTube guest agreement, you can mitigate all these risks and just have fun and focus on creating great content!
Don’t have a template? Get my guest-friendly YouTube guest agreement template on this page of my contract shop!
8. (Youtuber-friendly) YouTube Guest Agreement (if you’re having a guest on your platform)
If you have your own YouTube channel, then one of the content creator contracts you’ll definitely need is a YouTuber-friendly YouTube guest agreement.
Here’s why:
You’ll have full ownership of your YouTube video with the guest.
You’ll have the option to grant the guest a license to promote your YouTube video on their media (but for no other purpose, like using it for their (paid) online course).
The guest will not be entitled to any (monetary) compensation (now or in the future when your video pops off).
Or, if you do pay the guest, you’ll have clear and transparent payment terms so that it is clear what your guest will be paid and when (and not a penny more).
You’ll have full creative freedom to edit the video in any way you want.
And, just like with the license agreement, when you get my YouTube guest agreement, you’ll get both the (1) guest-friendly and (2) the YouTuber-friendly YouTube guest agreement!
Find out more about my YouTube guest agreement on this page of my contract shop!
Contract for Creators Template Shop
Missing an essential content creator agreement template? Get your contract template at my contract shop!
This post was all about the key content creator contracts every professional content creator must have to protect their valuable assets and earn more.
Want to know the other 7+ contracts you need? Read Part 2 in this blog post: 15+ Crucial Contracts for Influencers Earning $5,000+ Per Month (Part 2).
Want to know which content creator contracts you need as a beginner creator (earning $0 - $5,000)? Read this blog post on the 5 Essential Contracts for Creators Earning $0 - $5,000 Per Month!
