Today I'm continuing my series for photographers in which I share tips for organizing and systematizing your workflow. And when I say "workflow," I don't mean it in the narrow sense of post-processing. I mean the entire customer experience and set-up of our businesses. If you're just joining us, click here to find a complete list of the posts in The Workflow Series and get caught up!
Today I'm talking about a very boring, but completely essential part of every wedding photographer's workflow -- the wedding photography contract. Bleck. But it has to be done. A contract is a must-have when it comes to weddings and the photographer/client relationship. It serves to protect both your interests and your client's interests, and it helps to make sure everyone knows what to expect up front before moving forward into a committed relationship (so-to-speak). It answers questions like: What can the images be used for? What happens if the photographer is injured or too sick to photograph the wedding? Which services and products are included in the fee? How is payment to be handled? How will we manage things if any disputes arise?
Much like many photographers out there, I started with a contract provided to me by a photographer friend, then customized it, and finally had it checked over by a lawyer. Having your contract checked by a lawyer is a great idea. It helps to make sure you have all your I's dotted and T's crossed, and that your contract will stand up in court if necessary.
I continue to tweak and customize my contract whenever issues arise. For instance, after waiting on clients forever to finalize their album design, and realizing that album companies continue to raise their prices over time, I added a clause to make sure to cover my added expenses if clients wait longer than 6 months to finalize their album. The price of the album increases by $500 if it has not been finalized by the 6 month mark. I've never actually had to charge a client for this, but it is great to be able to email them at the 5 month mark and point to this clause in the contract in order to encourage them to complete any remaining revisions and give me the "ok" to place the order. Whenever I have issues arise, I try to think about how I can tweak my contract in order to avoid facing these issues with future clients. Doing this consistently over time has definitely helped improve my workflow and client experience.
When it comes to getting the contract signed, I think it's important in this day and age to provide your client with the option to sign electronically. We use two different tools to facilitate this -- one for our associate clients and one for my wedding clients -- ShootQ and EchoSign. They both work great! ShootQ is great because it is an all-in-one studio management tool that provides so many services in addition to contract facilitation. EchoSign is much more bare-bones, but it gets the job done. And you get up to 5 signatures per month for FREE!
If you're just getting into business and need a contract, my two page contract has been reviewed by a lawyer and is available for purchase here for $39.99. You will want to customize it to fit your needs, but it's a great starting point!
I hope you've found this post helpful! If so, I would appreciate if you'd pass it on through Facebook or Twitter using the buttons below. To find out about more resources I offer photographers, click here!
Click here to read Part 13 of the series -- Getting to Know You Questionnaire
Today I'm talking about a very boring, but completely essential part of every wedding photographer's workflow -- the wedding photography contract. Bleck. But it has to be done. A contract is a must-have when it comes to weddings and the photographer/client relationship. It serves to protect both your interests and your client's interests, and it helps to make sure everyone knows what to expect up front before moving forward into a committed relationship (so-to-speak). It answers questions like: What can the images be used for? What happens if the photographer is injured or too sick to photograph the wedding? Which services and products are included in the fee? How is payment to be handled? How will we manage things if any disputes arise?
Much like many photographers out there, I started with a contract provided to me by a photographer friend, then customized it, and finally had it checked over by a lawyer. Having your contract checked by a lawyer is a great idea. It helps to make sure you have all your I's dotted and T's crossed, and that your contract will stand up in court if necessary.
I continue to tweak and customize my contract whenever issues arise. For instance, after waiting on clients forever to finalize their album design, and realizing that album companies continue to raise their prices over time, I added a clause to make sure to cover my added expenses if clients wait longer than 6 months to finalize their album. The price of the album increases by $500 if it has not been finalized by the 6 month mark. I've never actually had to charge a client for this, but it is great to be able to email them at the 5 month mark and point to this clause in the contract in order to encourage them to complete any remaining revisions and give me the "ok" to place the order. Whenever I have issues arise, I try to think about how I can tweak my contract in order to avoid facing these issues with future clients. Doing this consistently over time has definitely helped improve my workflow and client experience.
When it comes to getting the contract signed, I think it's important in this day and age to provide your client with the option to sign electronically. We use two different tools to facilitate this -- one for our associate clients and one for my wedding clients -- ShootQ and EchoSign. They both work great! ShootQ is great because it is an all-in-one studio management tool that provides so many services in addition to contract facilitation. EchoSign is much more bare-bones, but it gets the job done. And you get up to 5 signatures per month for FREE!
If you're just getting into business and need a contract, my two page contract has been reviewed by a lawyer and is available for purchase here for $39.99. You will want to customize it to fit your needs, but it's a great starting point!
I hope you've found this post helpful! If so, I would appreciate if you'd pass it on through Facebook or Twitter using the buttons below. To find out about more resources I offer photographers, click here!
Click here to read Part 13 of the series -- Getting to Know You Questionnaire
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