Why should marketing agencies have a written contract with video production vendors?
Hi, how are we doing today? This is Ravneet Oberoi, founder of French Fries Films and this is the first of a series of videos where I talk about the world of Video Production.
In this blog, we’ll talk about the relationship between a video production team and their most common clients – marketing agencies. Having worked with many agencies myself, it often bugs me that a formal written contract is often missing at the campaign closure meeting.
While I’m all for honouring verbal contracts and commitments, what you need to realise is that a formally penned down contract is as important to an agency as it is to the video teams. If truth be told, more important for marketing agencies actually.
Here’s Why:
Deliverables: A contract lets you clearly detail out the services the video production company is offering for the agreed price. List down in detail every task and activity to be performed by each party. Assign roles and responsibilities - who is providing the script, who is taking care of the pre-production and what are the timelines so that everybody involved is on the same page. Don’t forget to add the delivery formats needed - every social media platform has a different requirement. Get them all!
Payment Terms & Process: Make sure the contract also formalizes your payments terms which is so crucial to avoid any back and forth later. You don’t want any relationship to get sour because of money.
Freezes a schedule: You don’t want to end up in a situation where the video production company exceeds the scheduled time leading to overtime payments. Your contract holds them accountable and the burden of over shooting budgets doesn’t land on your head.
Limitation of Liability: Can’t stress this enough but you don’t want the video team to keep coming back to you for some “unforeseen expense required for the production”. It’s the video team’s job to plan in advance and create a budget that covers everything for a single one-time cost approval. The video production company must maintain appropriate insurance coverage to protect themselves of unforeseen risks at the time of production. and something very critical: The video production team must comply at its expense with all local, state, and federal laws and regulations applicable to the performance of the Services.
Control on copyright and usage: After a smooth partnership, you don’t want to get into a tussle on the ownership rights. The most important factor that a contract clears is who holds the copyrights and who could use the assets at what level. Be as specific as you can - are the copyrights exclusive, non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, transferable, worldwide license? Spell it out. Even if you think you don’t need it, trust me, you do!
Brand Guidelines: While feedback and customizations are expected from you at every level, your work gets a lot easier if there are brand guidelines in place. Share your pre-requisites with the contract and avoid multiple rounds of feedback for your own sanity.
Code of Conduct: Several agencies have a code of conduct to be followed by the supplier. These guidelines are shared verbally and often missed in the contract. Don’t make this mistake - get your guidelines added to the contract to maintain a level of discipline throughout the project and teams.
Background Checks: When working with a new agency, get a background check done for your sanity and safety. It usually consists of sex offender database check, and criminal history check, but your legal team can always advise you better. While it might seem a hassle, may I remind you that any responsible brand should only allow personnel who pass the basic background checks to perform services for them. So make that extra effort and ensure a responsible and safe work space for everyone.
That’s all for now!
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