Scope, milestones, revisions, ownership and what happens if it stops. Half a page, and it prevents most disputes.
6 minute readNearly every dispute in commissioned work comes from one of five things being unstated. None of them require a lawyer, and writing them down takes about ten minutes. An exchange of emails that both sides agree to in writing is enough for most projects.
Not “a website” — the pages. Not “brand identity” — the marks, the formats, the file types, whether a one-page usage guide is included. A list of deliverables is the only defence against the two-sided version of scope creep, where you assume something is included and they assume it is extra.
Write the list, send it, and ask them to confirm it is complete. If something is missing they will say so now, while it is free.
The standard shape is half up front and half on delivery, and for most projects under a few thousand that is fine. Longer work is better in thirds: on start, at an agreed midpoint, on delivery. The midpoint matters more than the split — it is a scheduled moment where both of you have to look at the thing and say whether it is going well.
Agree payment terms too, in days. “On delivery” means different things to a freelancer and to your finance department, and the freelancer's version is the one that keeps them working.
The number matters less than the definition. Two rounds is normal. What causes trouble is the difference between a revision and a new brief: changing the headline is a revision, deciding the page should target a different audience is not.
Say it plainly: “Two rounds of changes within the agreed direction. A change of direction is a new estimate.” Nobody objects to that sentence when it is written before the work; everybody objects to it afterwards.
The usual and fair arrangement: copyright transfers to you on final payment. That protects both of you — you get what you paid for, they are not left with nothing if payment does not arrive.
Two details worth naming. Whether they can show the work publicly, which almost always they can and should, since it is what will get them the next job — and if you need an embargo until launch, say so and give it an end date. And whether anything is licensed rather than owned: fonts, stock, plugins, a photographer's images. Licensed components stay licensed, and you need to know what you are inheriting.
Projects get cancelled — budgets vanish, priorities change, people leave. Agree now what happens: usually that you pay for work completed to the last milestone and receive it as it stands. That one sentence turns an ugly conversation into an administrative one.
The reverse case is worth a line too. If they go quiet, what is your remedy? For small projects, holding the final payment is remedy enough. For anything larger, an agreed check-in cadence means you find out in week two rather than week six.
Scope: Pricing page copy — headline, three plan descriptions, FAQ of six questions, one comparison table. Wordpress-ready, delivered in a shared doc.
Price: €2,400. Half on start, half on delivery, payable within 14 days.
Timing: Draft by 28 April, final by 8 May.
Revisions: Two rounds within the agreed direction. A change of direction is a new estimate.
Ownership: Transfers to us on final payment. You may show the work publicly after 12 May.
If it stops: We pay for work completed to the last milestone and take it as it stands.
Six lines. It is not a contract and it does not need to be — for most commissioned work, a written agreement both parties confirmed is enforceable and, far more usefully, prevents the argument from starting.