Heads up! To view this whole video, sign in with your Courses account or enroll in your free 7-day trial. Sign In Enroll

How to Freelance

Well done!

You have completed How to Freelance !

Sign up for Treehouse Back to Library

Different Types of Contracts

2:28 with Pasan Premaratne

The word contract brings to mind a long, legal document with vague clauses but that’s not the only kind out there. In this video, we are going to take a brief look at the different types of contracts and which ones can really protect us.

This video doesn't have any notes.

Related Discussions

Have questions about this video? Start a discussion with the community and Treehouse staff.

Sign up

    Related Discussions

    Have questions about this video? Start a discussion with the community and Treehouse staff.

    Sign up

    It's important to understand that contracts can come in various forms 0:00
    and you don't have to create a dreaded long document that's hard to understand. 0:03
    The most basic form of a contract is an oral agreement. 0:09
    An example of this is if you are assigned to a project over the phone and you agree to do it. 0:12
    This type of agreement is legally binding, 0:16
    but in cases of dispute, it's really hard to prove anything. 0:19
    Oral agreements could work if you have a longstanding relationship with the client, 0:22
    but almost always, written agreements are preferred. 0:26
    A letter of agreement or engagement is a second type of contract 0:30
    and one that's quite common because of its simplicity. 0:33
    This document includes a description of the project, 0:37
    what the client needs and by when, 0:39
    how the client uses the project, and how they should pay you. 0:41
    There can be additional terms, but at its simplest, that's what the letter of agreement covers. 0:45
    A combination of a project proposal and a quote is essentially a letter of agreement 0:49
    and forms a sufficient contract to start work, 0:54
    but it doesn't cover most of the clauses that offer you protection in case things get nasty. 0:57
    When working with larger clients, you may receive a purchase order, or PO, 1:03
    that both assigns your work to you and indicates payment for the work. 1:07
    This document can function as a contract and you will need to sign off on it before work can begin. 1:11
    Freelancers should be careful with such contracts. 1:17
    Since they are boilerplate documents that aren't customized to the work that you're doing and the parties involved, 1:20
    they tend to mostly protect the client and not you. 1:25
    Then, we have working contracts; working contracts are what we're used to seeing in terms of contracts— 1:29
    multipage documents full of legal language and plenty of clauses. 1:35
    These types of contracts usually come off as very intimidating and can cause a lot of friction if not executed properly. 1:39
    That's not to say that these contracts should be avoided— 1:46
    if you put together a working contract with clear, concise language 1:49
    that's devoid of any convoluted terminology, it can serve as a great tool for the project. 1:52
    These types of contracts tend to be more common with complex projects and large clients, 1:58
    or simply clients you have never worked with before. 2:03
    When creating contracts, the use of boilerplate contracts are okay, 2:06
    but care has to be taken to customize it to your needs. 2:10
    Boilerplate contracts are usually multipurpose and filled with generic terminology 2:13
    that apply to a wide range of projects. 2:18
    If you use a boilerplate contract to get started, 2:21
    make sure the document you end up with is mutually beneficial for both parties. 2:23

    You need to sign up for Treehouse in order to download course files.

    Sign up

      You need to sign up for Treehouse in order to set up Workspace

      Sign up