BOOTH ATTENDANT CONTRACTS
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DISCLAIMER - I am not a lawyer nor am I pretending to be. This post is meant to help you wrap your head around the importance of having a contract and some key sections you should DISCUSS WITH YOUR LAWYER TO SEE IF THEY FIT YOUR BUSINESS. You should always consult a lawyer to create and or review any contracts you have. ALSO, EACH COUNTRY, STATE AND PROVINCE VARY ON WHAT IS ALLOWED TO BE CONTRACTED OUT VS. EMPLOYEE SO PLEASE CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL LAWS AS TO WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH YOUR BOOTH ATTENDANTS.
I GET THIS MESSAGE FAR TO OFTEN and i'm going to breakdown what goes on in my head while i'm reading it.
“Hi! I am a new photo booth owner and I found your site and fell in love with it and your brand. Did you make your website yourself?”
... Oh! you love my company that i worked super hard to build, go on.... Why, yes! I did make that website myself, but after hiring pros to get me started. This is such a nice note, what a kind person. #bffs. Then comes the next line....
“Can I pick your brain on a few things? ”
son of a motherless goat!!!!!
We were off to a good start. we could have been friends, but now you have to go and say something like "can I pick your brain". Why don't you just say "I don't value you enough to actually pay for this crucial information which would propel my business into the future so much faster and in the long run save me a lot of money, aggravation and probably tears "
“I would love to one day get to your level of business. Where do you get your backdrops and props? ”
Okay, so, maybe i over reacted a bit, they just want to know about backdrops and props. I love sharing about all the amazing vendors i deal with and because i also want them to succeed i want to let everyone know about them! of course I will tell you where i get these things from.
“We want to have employees work our booth just like you do but need a contract. Could I possibly see your contract to see how you do it? Do you also have a contract that you send your clients when they want to book you that you can send me too, please? I would be so forever grateful, you have no idea. I feel completely overwhelmed by all this and just don’t know where to start. Lawyers are so expensive. ”
this actually breaks my heart to read. I am all for helping out and sharing, after all #sharingiscaring but this is wrong for so many reasons and i want to take a second to list them out.
my business is completely different then yours
i probably live in a different country then you with different laws
yes, lawyers are expensive, you know how i know that? because i paid a laywer to review my contract that they made for me. to protect me and my business. why do you think i should pay for you?
You know what I would love to see from someone some day? This.
“We want to have employees work our booth but need a contract. Do you have any insight on where I could possibly start to build my contract? Are there any key clauses that you feel are important that a new booth owner wouldn’t think of? I have looked at a few sample contract but I’m not sure what I need besides the standard contract stuff like job description, compensation and termination. I would love to be able to go to my lawyer knowing what I want so I could save some money. ”
What this says to me is:
I am a responsible business owner that will go see a lawyer because i value myself and my business
i have done my home work and feel confused and overwhelmed but a little push in the righ direction would really help.
This would be my answer.
I would be happy to help you with clauses you should review for your contract with your booth attendants. Contracts can certianly be overwhelming and expensive but nothing is more expensive then a bad contract or no contract. Contracts make FOR happy relationships!
Here are some sections/clauses you should look at TO SEE IF THEY FIT THE NEEDS OF YOUR BUSINESS. PLEASE MAKE SURE TO CHECK WITH YOUR LAWYER ABOUT WETHER YOUR ATTENDANTS CAN BE CONTRACTORS OR IF THEY NEED TO BE EMPLOYEES.
description of services
IT'S IMPORTANT TO INCLUDE THE DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES so THAT THE CONTRACTOR/EMPLOYEE UNDERSTAND WHAT IS EXPECTED OF THEM. THERE SHOULD BE NO SURPRISES.
PAYMENT FOR SERVICES
HOW WILL PAYMENT BE RECEIVED? WEEKLY, BI-WEEKLY? IF THEY ARE CONTRACTORS WHEN DO THEY NEED TO SUBMIT INVOICES?
WORK PRODUCT OWNERSHIP
BECAUSE COPYRIGHT LAWS STATE (IN CANADA AT LEAST) THAT THE PERSON THat CLICKS THE BUTTON IS THE OWNER OF THE IMAGE THIS CLAUSE WILL TRANSFER THAT OWNERSHIP TO THE COMPANY.
CONFIDENTIALITY
JUST LIKE A NON DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT, THEY CAN'T LEARN EVERYTHING ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS THEN TURN AROUND AND TELL IT TO SOMEONE ELSE.
NON COMPETE
THIS CLAUSE IS TO ENSURE THAT YOU DON'T TRAIN YOUR ATTENDANT AND TEACH THEM EVERYTHING YOU KNOW ONLY TO HAVE THEM TURN AROUND AND START THEIR OWN BOOTH BUSINESS. WHILE THIS CLAUSE DOesnt ALWAYS HOLD UP IN COURT IT AT LEAST SETS THE STAGE. ALSO YOU CAN'T MAKE IT FOREVER... IT CAN ONLY BE FOR A CERTAIN PERIOD OF TIME.
NON SOLICITATION CLAUSE
SIMILAR TO THE NON COMPETE CLAUSE THIS ONE HOLD UP WAY BETTER IN COURT. THIS CLAUSE STATES THAT YOUR ATTENDANTS CAN'T GO AFTER YOUR CLIENTS TO OFFER THEM PHOTO BOOTH SERVICES as their own company.
OPERATING TERRITORY AND TRAVEL EXPENSES
I LIKE TO OUTLINE HOW FAR WE EXPECT OUR ATTENDANTS TO DRIVE. WE HAVE A RADIUS OF OPERATIONS AND ANYTHING OUTSIDE OF THAT THEY GET PAID EXTRA - MILEAGE, GAS AND TIME.
DRESS CODE
OUTLINING A DRESS CODE IS IMPORTANT IF YOU HAVE A CERTAIN STYLE YOU ARE LOOKING TO ACHIEVE WITH YOUR BOOTH. THIS CLAUSE CAN SOMETIMES BE THE TIPPING POINT TO DEFINING AN EMPLOYEE VS A CONTRACTOR BUT THIS IS AGAIN SOMETHING TO DISCUSS WITH YOUR LAWYER. WE OPERATE AS BLACK TIE UNLESS OTHERWISE REQUESTED BY OUR CLIENT SO IT IS OUTLINED QUITE WELL IN OUR CONTRACT AS TO WHAT WE EXPECT OUR ATTENDANTS TO WEAR.
DO YOU HAVE A CLAUSE IN YOUR CONTRACT THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADD TO THIS LIST? ADD IT IN THE COMMENTS OR EMAIL ME!
#SHARINGISCARING