Important Clause in Blogging Contracts

When I wrote about eight important principles in negotiating contracts, I mentioned a recent negotiation I undertook for some blogging work I'm doing. What I didn't mention is a clause that is of particular import in this line of work: traffic payment triggers. Many sites base their pay at least in part on traffic. Often, certain thresholds of page views result in a bonus. But accompanying bonuses can be an expectation of minimum traffic levels, below which a writer does not get paid.

I can understand trying to give writers incentives to pull in more traffic, and they can work to everyone's benefit, but there is a bottom line degree of marketing that the site owner must do. Yet, because many sites have implemented such a demand, there is some expectation of this being "reasonable." Obviously it isn't; asking writers to help create increased success is one thing, but expecting them to guarantee traffic unfairly shifts a responsibility of the business owner to the contractor.

I did find a negotiation strategy that worked. In the contract was also, as one might expect, a termination clause, giving either party the right to end the association with a certain amount of notice. I argued that as I am a professional writer, I must be paid if I'm producing the required work, but as the company could terminate the agreement without cause, it was free to do that should the traffic not meet its minimum expectations. Had they said no, I would have walked, even though there was an exemption for a number of months, as they realized that the site was still ramping up. Because I had already been doing some work during the negotiations, and they had seen a building of traffic, they were probably disinclined to have me leave. If they were happy to see me leave, then it was a relationship that wouldn't have lasted long anyway.

In contracts for online work, remember that practices are still developing, and writers overly anxious for exposure and an outlet have often encouraged ones that are simply untenable for a professional. Don't get outraged. Instead, Break apart the roles as laid out in the contract, contrast them to accepted basic business customs and look for other protections that the contract gives the publisher.