It’s time to get serious. While social media management is a fun industry to be in and working for yourself is THE BEST THING EVER; you can’t just jump in head first without some contracts covering your butt.

 

The legal stuff isn’t the most exciting thing to talk about, especially to creative entrepreneurs! But if you don’t have a few contracts set up with your clients and contractors, you could be setting yourself up for some dangerous and expensive lawsuits.

 

Now, I’m not saying you have to drop everything and run to find a lawyer. Let’s be honest, you probably don’t have the budget to spend thousands on a lawyer to just set up contracts for you! 

 

Luckily, there are nifty contract templates out there to save you from the multiple migraines that were bound to happen and saving you hundreds (or even thousands!) of dollars of attorney fees.

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Client Contract

 

The number one most important contract - a client contract! This one is also specifically made for social media managers in mind (score!). Before starting any work for a client, send this contract to them to review & sign. 

 

It specifically outlines the services you provide and the cost to your client, who pays for expenses, a clause that outlines who owns the work you create, termination details (so your client can't walk away without a 30 day notice - I promise, it helps!) and more!

 

The best part is - you’re ready to send this contract out to your client within 5 minutes! Just a few easy fill-in-the-blanks and you're done.

 

Note: if you’re simply a freelancer, the Independent Contractor Contract might be better for you!

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Grab our Social Media Manager Client Contract template here!

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NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement)

 

An NDA is an agreement that basically protects your ideas and details of work. It’s typically used before hiring or entering into a partnership. When both parties sign, you mutually agree to not share the details of your work.

 

For social media managers working with clients, this includes confidential information like social account passwords, presented ideas, accounting information, etc.

 

That way, if you decide that it’s not a good partnership, the client isn’t allowed to steal any of your presented ideas or share anything about you; and on the other hand, you can’t share anything about the client.

 

This agreement is also handy when hiring independent contractors for your business (i.e. graphic designers, videographers, assistants). In case it ends up not working out with the contractor, you have a legal-binding contract that keeps information private!

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Grab our NDA template here!

 

Independent Contractor

 

And finally, the last contract any social media manager needs, especially if you plan on expanding your business, is the Independent Contractor Contract Template. 

 

If you start hiring for your business, you can’t simply just give them the job and start working immediately! For one, that’s illegal; and two, you have nothing to protect your hard-earned business. Most small business owners start off by hiring independent contractors, and those independent contractors need contracts! 

 

Similar to the social media contract, it provides an outline of services, a payment plan (whether that’s hourly or a retainer), a confidentiality clause to protect your business, and some more boring legal stuff! 

 

Again, it just takes a few minutes and you’re ready to send off your professional contract to your new hire! And let’s be real - it’s important to look professional in front of your FIRST employee.

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Grab the Independent Contractor template here!

 

With all that said, it’s important to cover your businesses assets right from the beginning. While it’s boring AF, the time and money it would take you in legal fees in the future is worth the investment now!