Hello! Would it be possible to get some tips and advice for writing out commission TOSs? I'm only just starting out with that and it seems really daunting.
Thank you!
it can be super daunting indeed! what i can say right away is you shouldn’t worry about writing THE perfect ToS on the first try; i still regularly update mine with almost every commission batch to reflect any issues i’ve run into, or if it becomes clear from my communication with my clients that something could use some clarification. just make sure you send your clients the latest version each time so they know under which ToS you’re currently operating! i attach my most up-to-date ToS to the first email i send to my clients so they have an opportunity to read it again and ask any questions they might have or pull out if they realize that something isn’t working for them.
my general advice is to think about what kind of questions your clients could have when they go into commissioning you, how you can make the process as worry-free for them and yourself as possible, what kind of potential issues you can imagine that could be avoided, and what kind of experience you would find easiest if it were you commissioning someone.
stuff i think is a good idea to cover in your ToS:
- prices (do you have flat rates, or do you have a base price list and the final price depends on the complexity of the commission/how many hours you spend on it?)
- what you can do and what you will definitely not do (if anything)
- payment (currency, what services you use, do you expect payment upfront or can your clients pay in installments, etc)
- do you allow full refunds? partial refunds? in what cases?
- how can your client use the finished artwork? can they print it out, use as an icon, use it commercially, repost it online, use it in derivative work?
- deadlines (do you work on urgent commissions and do you charge extra for that? when can your client expect the finished artwork?)
- what is your process? what kind of wips are you going to send your client? what kind of and how many changes/edits are covered by the price of the commission? do you charge extra for major edits? where is the line between ‘i did this thing wrong, the editing is on me’ and ‘my client had sent me incomplete/wrong references and is now asking me to basically redo the whole illustration’?
another thing i can advice on top of this (which is only tangentially related to writing your ToS): if you can, please don’t undercharge! i know it can be hard if you’re just starting out and not many people reach out to you, and i myself started with very low prices, but if at all possible, don’t charge pennies for your hard work. or at least slowly raise your prices! your time and work are worth being paid for. if you do backgrounds, please don’t throw them in for free! backgrounds and environments are tons of work, more often than not more so than drawing the character themself, so it’s only logical to charge extra for complicated backgrounds. if a client asks you for a lot of complicated edits, don’t forget that it’s work that also needs to be paid for! in my experience most people are more than understanding and offer to pay for the edits themselves, but it’s a good idea to have that aspect covered in your ToS. tl;dr: charge fairly! you’re helping out the entire industry by not undercharging, and you yourself will be happier if you know you’re being compensated well for your hard work.
i hope this is at least a little helpful! best of luck with commissions, and i hope you have the coolest clients that you have tons of fun working with!