My contract hassle cost me a steady gig

Honestly, everyone says freelancers must have contracts for every job. But I had a client who needed a simple website fix. I sent my standard contract, and they got really nervous. They said it made the job feel like a big deal, and they just wanted it done fast. We wasted three days emailing about terms, and they ended up hiring someone else. Maybe it's just me, but for quick tasks, that formal stuff can ruin the trust. Now I only bring up contracts for projects over a certain price, and I have more clients sticking around. It's scary to go without, but sometimes being flexible is better.

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3 Comments

paulperry6mo ago

Have you run into clients who just freeze up when they see a contract? That's such a common headache with quick jobs. I switched to a short email summary for fixes under a few hundred bucks. It feels less scary for them and saves everyone time.

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ruby_fisher16mo ago

Doubt it's the contract itself spooking people. Maybe they just hate legalese or got burned before. Skipping written terms feels risky even for small jobs. What stops someone from claiming you never discussed the scope or price?

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blair_webb306mo ago

How do you handle scope creep on those quick jobs without a contract? I had a client ask for "just one more tiny thing" five times on a simple fix, and it turned into a whole new project. My basic contract has a clear scope section that stops that.

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