Due to the immense advancement in web technology and increasing business sites on different search engines, people are hiring SEO writers to expand their scope of business. This job helps people to optimize and rank their businesses on top. To be more professional with this business, it is favorable to form an SEO contract template.
It would be helpful for both consultant and client to understand expectations in the business relationships. Moreover, the requirements will be clearer in a documented form. The article explains how to write an SEO agreement with key elements.
What is and Why do you Need an SEO Contract?
SEO contract is necessary when a user does it for the client as a freelancing duty. It seems intimidating, but it is a legal contract related to the SEO duties signed by the user and their client. It involves the details and responsibilities that a specialist may provide and the pay they get in return for their services.
The search engine algorithms and services are continuously changing due to technological advancement and internet marketing dynamics. Hence, it is always on the safer side to document the mutual understanding between the consultant and the client about how the SEO services are going to be offered.
There are several reasons why it is important for the consultant and client to sign an SEO agreement:
- The client gets an outline of what he will be provided. He no longer contacts the consultant on a regular basis in case of any confusion.
- The contract holds credibility in legal matters if any fraud or scam occurs with any of the parties.
- The requirements of clients, the assistance of consultants, and the decided fees are mentioned. These details will be helpful if any conflict occurs between both parties.
- The consultant can add information like the company’s name, logo, branding, and past SEO work as a reference.
- The consultant’s credit card form will be displayed that can be easily returned if needed.
Key Elements Include in SEO Contracts
As the SEO contract template at CocoDoc needs to be factual and lawful in all circumstances, it is necessary that the provided data provides useful information in an SEO contract. In otherwise case, it would be unusable to generate the contract. Some key elements that should be included in the contract are discussed as follows:
- Information about your Company: As a consultant, you need to provide full information about your company about the domains that you have mastered and the servings that you have provided. It should be kept in mind that the contract might be viewed with a few other contracts. Hence it should hold a unique perspective.
- Case Studies or Work Examples: The contract should contain the case studies by a consultant, testimonial quotes, and other examples. It is like a reassuring section about your abilities to be an SEO writer for different companies.
- Pricing Definition and Structure: Whether you have a basic rate, blended rate, commission structure, or flat management fee, you should provide enough detail that satisfies the client. As pricing is a sensitive part of the agreement, you must settle for any structure after knowing its pros and cons.
- Legal Details and Contingencies: In most cases, you need to write the legal details to include in the agreement. While in other cases, there can be unique contingencies built in the contract. So, it is essential to write down important legal details and other possibilities.
Quick SEO Agreement Tips
As the earlier explained points are mandatory and important while writing an SEO contract, there are a few pointers that can be chosen for adding within a contract.
- As SEO is a constantly changing industry and the SEO strategies keep on changing, you should add general promises and deliverables. This is important in a way that the client will not put allegations in any unusual case.
- Consider adding information about the annual automatic price increase for potential renewals.
- Include provisions and penalties if the client fails to pay fees in promised time duration.
- You can add an option of discount in fees if the client pays in advance.
- You should consider being 100% accurate and factual about the services that you mention in the contract.
- Be clear in the sample SEO report for clients about the services that you will outsource or hire other freelancers for.
- Carefully establish the contract length. Identify what length will be suitable for you and your client.
- You may add different references and links to your profiles on the contract. It will be considered as evidence that you are original with your dealings.
- You can add your reasons to the client for pausing the contract for a specific time duration.
- At last, consider taking a lawyer review before finalizing the contract by your side. The lawyer will check the used legal terms and finalize the contract.
How to Fill Out SEO Agreement?
It is important for users to understand how to fill out the SEO agreement and enter the required details with efficiency. This helps them develop a perfectly-looking agreement that can offer them maximum positive results.
- Client’s and Consultant’s Details: The first portion of an SEO agreement contains the details of both client and consultant. The client will mention his complete name, company name, email address, complete address, and phone number. Similarly, the details of the consultant will also be required in the form of their complete name, city, state, company's details, and phone number.
- Payment: In this portion, the client agrees to clear the SEO payment within the given time. If he fails to do so, he will be charged a penalty by the SEO consultant. All the incidental charges related to SEO services that are beyond the provided package will be approved by the client. In case of terminating the agreement or violating any rules, the client agrees in advance to pay full fees.
- Terms and Conditions: The terms and conditions section of the agreement requires both consultant and client to agree on the conditions set by opposite parties. These conditions may include that the fees are non-refundable, and the consultant is not responsible for the low ranking of a few keywords due to complex algorithms.
Moreover, the consultant warrants to the client that there are no obligations or interests that would affect or limit the performance of any part of the agreement.
Conclusion
The article has concluded about how to write an SEO contract template and the reason why it is required to sign the agreement. Moreover, the key elements that are to be added to the contract to make it more credible are also defined. There are a few tips explained that could increase the impact of the agreement. Lastly, the article has enlightened the procedure to fill out the agreement. Besides, you might be interested in other agreement templates at CocoDoc.
