Are you a creative freelancer and struggling with the legal side of things?
How to deal with revisions for clients? What constitutes intellectual property and how do you maintain the security thereof? In this blog we will take a look at some of the legal requirements connected to creative folk. How to handle all the behind the scenes details so that you can work more harmoniously with your clients. To do this you would develop your client contracts and on-boarding process.
What is a creative Freelancer?
When we say creative freelancer we are generally talking about graphic designers, copywriters, blog writers, website designers and even ghostwriters. Any service or product that would fall under a more “creative” category.
As these kinds of services are becoming more and more in demand, it is important that when you offer web design, graphic design and content creation that you are fully aware of your rights and what should be made known to the client before even commencing.
What’s the deal with revisions when you run a creative business?
If you are a freelancer offering creative services such as web design and graphic design you will soon discover that you will not get it perfect the first time round and will often have to do what are termed “revisions” on the work you have done.
But the question is how you can avoid ending up doing revisions for free?
We have seen an increase of designers and copywriters who have ended up in this scenario because they have not clearly defined what is included when it comes to revisions. You could do this in your contract terms and conditions.
For example:
If you are designing graphics for a client as the sole project, it is imperative that you have a contract or agreement in place that clearly states that the price you are charging includes “x” amount of revisions at no extra charge.
Thereafter the client needs to be made aware that once they exceed the predetermined amount of revisions, they will be invoiced at whatever the agreed fee is for each additional revision made.
Protect your intellectual property
Intellectual property refers to something which you either own, created yourself or is a brand which you own and is trademarked. It could also be something which you purchased the rights to from the original creator as well as trade secrets.
Now it is a given that you would give away the end product which you have created, but what about the methods you used to actually get to the end product or any of the elements that were used therein.
Ask yourself the following:
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Will I need it again in future projects
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Is the process or method something that I need to use on a regular basis
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What if I want to use some of these things in my portfolio
If you answer “yes” to any of the above, then that would be considered your intellectual property and you would have to make it clear in your contract or agreement.
You would have to mention that although the client receives the end product, you retain the right to use the same methods or elements again in future projects for other clients. Businesses should also consider the effect that Brexit has had on intellectual property rights.
Copyright and where you stand if you’re a creative business
Copyright protects the creator of something, especially when it comes to creatives. Creative writing and copywriting for instance definitely need copyright protection.
Designs also need copyright if you wish to keep them from being used by other people. Again this is something that would need to be explicitly mentioned in your legal documents. You can do this in your client contracts.
Generally, you would need to register and apply for a trademark for anything you have created for your business and wish for others not to use.
In the UK copyright occurs automatically. There is no need to register or pay a fee. This does take the guesswork out of things.
It is very important that you, as the creative, are also aware of what can constitute copyright infringement.
Copyright infringement can occur in the following ways:
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Utilising images that are copyright protected in your content creation
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Music used in content without permission of the owner/creator of the music
- A presentation or speech incorporates copyright video footage without acknowledgement
Branding and social media
A good way to make your product uniquely yours, and avoid others stealing or using it without permission, is to put your brand and logo on any images used.
Most people are using social media marketing as a way to boost business. There are ways to ensure that things are always legally sound. Make use of things that make the content you use free of any legal implications.
We always recommend seeking legal advice from professionals when it comes to being compliant. Especially so when it comes to copyright protection.
If you need more guidance or insight into what legal documents you require to protect yourself and your client, please feel free to get in touch with us.
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