You’re ready to level up, grow your team and scale your business. Congratulations on all your biz growth! 🎉
A huge part of stepping into our role as a CEO is identifying and delegating tasks that fall outside of our zone of genius. Maybe you’re looking to bring on a graphic designer, a virtual assistant, a content manager, or even an associate coach to support you in your business.
This is SUCH an exciting phase of business, and while it can be tempting to dive right into growing your #dreamteam, there’s a few things you’ve got to get in place before you make that first hire.
First things first: Always protect yourself by getting it allll in writing
Do not – I repeat! – do not start outsourcing without a written agreement. I’ve seen FAR too many coaches & online business owners get burned because they never bothered to get the terms and conditions solidified in writing.
The contract can be handled a few different ways:
- Either the Contractor will present the you, the business owner, with a contract
- As a business owner, you can have your own contracts which you present to the Contactor to sign
- OR, the Contractor will present you with their contract and you can provide the necessary changes – in order to make sure the contract serves and benefits you equally
Because unfortunately, sometimes people DO present a contract that they know doesn’t serve the other party – which is why it’s so important to go through the agreement carefully and make sure you understand all of the terms. Seeing you get taken advantage of is the *last* thing we’d want for you, friend.
That’s why we’re here to tell you all about the three must-have contract clauses you’ll want to pay extra special attention to when outsourcing and growing your team.
1) Content Ownership & Usage Rights
A lot of the time when online business owners hire contractors, they’re hiring an expert to create something for them. Whether it’s a shiny new website, some bomb new brand photos, or social media posts for the gram’, we need to understand our usage rights.
Essentially, who OWNS the content/product you’ve just paid to have created?
If a contractor is creating assets for you, and the contact doesn’t clearly state that the ownership will be transferred to you upon delivery, they retain the rights to everything they’ve created.
Take the example of brand photos. Say you hire a photographer to come take pictures of you for your website and promotional materials. Technically, if you don’t own the rights to the photos, the photographer could turn around and sell that work to somebody else, or even license it on say, a stock photo website. And just like that, anyone and everyone could start downloading and using YOUR brand photos. Not a good look 😳
That’s why you need to start thinking about *everything* you and your team create for your business as assets, and make sure your written contracts properly protect those assets.
2) Project Scope & Deliverables
Another BIG mistake I see when online business owners bring on contractors, is that they don’t clearly define the relationship and project. There is often confusion and misunderstanding around the agreement, leaving coaches with questions like:
How do I know that this relationship is successful?
What exactly is supposed to be delivered? And when?
Always remember: Clarity is king (or queen!👸🏽)
The more you can nail down exact details, the better.
And pleeeaase, make sure those details are in a written agreement. An email exchange or a phone conversation with a contractor is not enough.
If money is changing hands, it becomes *that* much more important to have a written agreement in place. You can’t get your money back if you can’t prove that the contract was breached or that the services were not provided as agreed to. So look out for yourself and triple check the project scope and deliverables clauses.
3) Employees vs. Independent Contractors
It’s super-duper important that both you and the person you’re hiring understand this one. If you’re hiring someone on a freelance/contract basis, you’re hiring them as an independent contractor – NOT an employee.
One of the biggest differences is that independent contractors are responsible for paying their own taxes.
When you hire a contractor, they are responsible for paying their own taxes, health insurance, taking care of their own leave and holiday, etc. Independent contractors are also able to complete work on their own schedule in their own fashion, as long as it meets your standards.
If you do not have a written contract that explicitly states their status as an independent contractor, your hire might be in a position to turn around and “Oh, I thought she hired me as an employee!”. And the last thing you want is to be on the hook for someone else’s taxes, sis 💁🏽
The simplest way to avoid these pitfalls?
Get a written agreement for EVERYONE you work with in your biz, no exceptions!
The legal stuff doesn’t have to be hard. At Coaches & Company we simplify legal and give you fully customizable, lawyer-created plug-and-play templates so you can grow your business with peace of mind.
If you’re in a season of growth and know you’re going to outsourcing soon, check out our Team Member (Independent Contractor) Written Agreements so you can stay protected while you build your empire! 💪🏽
Check out our ready-to-use, lawyer-approved, plug-and-play legal templates! So you can stay profitable AND protected ✨
Not sure where to begin? We’ve got you. Jump into our FREE 20-Minute Contract Crash Course to get the legal lowdown on everything contracts! (Heads up: It’ll forever transform the way you view your client relationships!)
*The information presented in this blog post is for educational & informational purposes only. This should not be a substitute for customized legal advice from a licensed professional in a private setting. If you need legal advice, please consult with an attorney. This is not a law firm.
