Time to Hire a Team?

Watch out for these common pitfalls when it comes time for you to hire a team.

There comes a point in every coaching business (and really any business for that matter) that you can no longer go it alone.  You NEED to hire out for support, whether this is a virtual assistant, an online business manager, a graphic designer, web designer, ads manager, or other contractor - you need help to grow and get to the next level.  

When this time comes you want to legally make sure your bases are covered, and that your content and cash are PROTECTED.  Here are a couple of different things to keep in mind to ensure this new relationship runs smoothly (and in turn, your business grows like you want it to).

NEW HIRE RED FLAG ALERT  🚩    

If you are about to pay for services and your amazing new hire does not send over a contract for you to sign, this should give you pause.  It’s not to say they aren’t amazing and great at what they do, but it means they haven’t taken the time to legally protect their business and therefore, are leaving you without protection as well.

Contracts are meant to protect BOTH parties.

A services agreement define the terms of the relationship, answering super important questions like what is due and when, how is payment made, and what happens if someone wants out.

So, if you find that your new hire doesn’t pass along a contract, you should either provide one (it’s handy if you have one on file, I sell independent contractor templates that can be used for any of the above) or require that they get one in place before moving forward (send them over HERE, we have exactly what they need as a Service Provider).

COPYRIGHT ISSUES WHEN HIRING A NEW TEAM

So you just invested a chunk of cash into a new website, a fabulous VA, or a copywriter for your sales page, and you’ve got a contract for them to sign (or they give you one to sign). 

AWESOME!  Go you. We love #growth.

But there is one super important thing you need to make sure you have in your agreement to ensure that you actually OWN what is being created for you. That is a clause regarding intellectual property and who owns what. 

You want to make sure that clause clearly states that the service provider (that is, VA, designer, copywriter) does not own the content and all copyright is with you, the client.

This type of clause is important for a few reasons. 

✔️ One is if you have a logo designed and absolutely fall in love and want to register a trademark for that extra brand protection - you MUST own it. If your designer still owns the copyright, you cannot trademark it.

✔️ Another is that what if down the road you have 30 blog posts that your VA wrote at your direction, you decide to turn it into a book that becomes a #1 seller on Amazon, you make a ton of money,  and all of a sudden that VA comes out of the woodwork claiming that SHE wrote it and she should get half the money. All of the sudden you are in a lawsuit.

I’m contacted all the time by people that have been burned because they hired for services and just talked about what was provided or had some email exchanges.  Protect your investment and make sure an agreement is in place!

OTHER CONTRACT ISSUES

You want to make sure the contract you sign with your Service Provider includes LOTS OF DETAILS on what they are delivering, when, and how you are paying (and when).  Our Destination Legal Contract Templates include an attachment where you can outline all of these terms, almost like a Scope of Work.  Some of the biggest issues that I see come up are because the parties had different expectations going into the relationship of the work that was supposed to be done and when. 

Hiring is an exciting and necessary step to becoming a 6-figure business, trust me, you won’t get there without the help.  Just make sure you are crossing off the right steps and protecting your business, content, and cash along the way!