photo credit: iBjorn
Many businesses today receive some sort of contract that requires a signature to sign the deal. The signature is iron clad, binding you into ALL the stipulations of that contract. So when reviewing a contract it is important to remember some of the items below before you go signing away at the dotted line.
â—Negotiate. It never hurts to ask for a lower price or a shorter time period to get a job done. Always try negotiating rather than just signing off on the original offer.
â—Read the entire contract. Many people don’t like to read long drawn out boring contracts so they skim through the whole thing. This can prove to be very bad for you when something comes about that you didn’t realize you signed off on.
â—Define, define and define again. Make sure that the contract is clearly stated on time frames, price, tools needed, employees needed, hour’s of operation, etc.
â— Be innovative. Negotiating does not always have to involve dollar amounts. What non-monetary benefits can the parties offer each other to gain better terms? This can include a side service, co-promotion or marketing, partnering on a small project, or the potential for more lucrative contracts in the future. Creativity often greases the wheels of contract negotiation.
How has reviewing your contracts proved to save your company from a potential hazard?