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Earlier this year, we contacted a fair few of our customers to find out what we could provide to make their jobs easier. As a result, we've been progressively filling the Documents & Tools section of our site with handy resources that folks like you have suggested. Our latest addition - a white-label email newsletter design contract. As we're all short on time, we've provided it as both an editable Word document and as a madlibs-style web form that you can fill out and print in 30 seconds!

A contract can seem like a very daunting pile of difficult and arcane words, especially if you're just getting started with offering design services to your clients. Often, it can be very tempting to leave one out of the process altogether, especially if you're doing business with someone you know personally. However, as anyone who has been in a jam over money or deliverables can tell you, it's best to have any arrangement put into writing, even if it's for pro-bono work. Signing even the most bare-bones contract can protect you from unrealistic expectations from all parties involved, or even potential legal troubles.

Thanks to Andy Clarke's 'Contract Killer', we've adapted one of the best design contracts we've seen to make it not only relevant to email newsletter design, but easy to read and complete, no matter where you are.

What does and doesn't this contract include?

This contract includes the following designer-friendly provisions:

• The expectation that the client will provide all necessary collateral to complete the project
• Revisions to your design are limited to two rounds
• No obligation to test your design in old or marginal email clients, unless otherwise specified
• Protection from legal liability should use of your newsletter or design result in damages
• The right to display your work in a portfolio, or in websites, magazines and books
• And much more...

What's NOT included is a payment schedule. This is something you will have to create yourself and provide with the contract. Understandably, we can't tell you how much to charge and when...!

Thank you to all you fine folks who suggested creating an email design contract. Our thanks extend to Andy Clarke in particular, for providing a great template to work with! To start using this email newsletter design contract, scoot over to our download page now.

Important legal stuff: This contract is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike license. That means you’re free to re-distribute, translate and otherwise re-use it as long as you mention Andy Clarke and link back to this article. Make sure you have this contract thoroughly inspected by your own legal folks if you intend to use it, as Campaign Monitor and Andy Clarke are in no way liable for damages, losses or confused and angry clients as a result of using either the web form, or Word document versions of this contract.