This is a guest post contributed by Nidhi Kala. Nidhi is a freelance writer for SaaS brands in marketing, e-commerce, and remote work and specializes in writing long-form blog posts. When she is not working, you’ll find her exploring new calligraphy scripts and creating bespoke calligraphy gifts.

“Just one more small change.”

Have you been the victim of these words? If you’re a freelancer, probably too many times to count. Getting trapped in an endless revision loop is a hurdle most of us freelancers have faced.

When a client is pushing more changes or adding additional work, you have a few options: push back and say no, charge additional for the time spent, or continue working with them even if it violates your agreement. The overall goal is to make a decision that prevents burnout and resentment, and keeps you from losing money.

But what if we could learn to manage and prevent scope creep before we let it get that far? Before we have to make those difficult choices.

I’m going to teach you how to protect yourself and your freelance business by sharing my best practices to prevent scope creep.

What is Scope Creep?

Scope creep happens when a client adds work to an ongoing project that was not agreed to, without increasing your pay. For example, your client might ask you to do more revision rounds or take on extra tasks outside of your outlined scope of work.

I’ve been in this exact place. I took on a content project to ghostwrite 10 LinkedIn posts and one newsletter each month. Even though the client and I agreed and kicked off with a contract in place, the scope of work slowly started shifting. Eventually, I was managing their entire LinkedIn profile, all of their emails, and their WhatsApp community—and was still being paid the initial amount we agreed upon.

This happens to many freelancers without them even realizing it.

I learned how to protect myself, and want to share the three simple, yet powerful strategies I’ve used personally (so I know they work) to prevent scope creep.

1. Understand Your Client’s Needs Up-Front

Every project and client is different, so leave the assumptions out of it and make sure you gather the details in advance. This will help you understand expectations, deliver the right work, and get clear on exactly what needs to be done and what success looks like. In turn, you can create a clear contract and proposal so you’re aligned out of the gates.

Do this up-front by setting up a discovery call or onboarding questionnaire. Use this opportunity to ask questions, explain your workflow, and create processes for change requests that may occur during the project.

Be ready with a set of questions that you’ll ask the client. Here are some example questions that you can pull from:

• What exactly do you need from this project?
• Do you prefer weekly, biweekly, or monthly calls?
• How do you prefer to provide feedback?
• Have you worked with freelancers before this project? What went well? What didn’t?
• What are your expectations from me while working on this project?
• What does success of this project look like?
• Are there any additional needs that may arise down the road?
• Are there any other team members who will be involved?
• How quickly will you be able to provide feedback on my work?

Asking these questions helps find alignment and makes your client really think through what they need from you.

2. Always Use a Contract

After you’ve gathered the details, make sure you always have a crisp and clear contract in place. This is your safety net. Use your contract to communicate the exact parameters of the project. Outline, in this written agreement, exactly what is included in the project scope and other expectations around meetings, communication, and payment. Your contract should include:

• Name of the parties involved
• Your scope of work and deliverables, including the number of maximum adjustments and additional requests allowed
• Price, payment terms, and penalties for late payment
• Deadlines, especially if payment is tied to product milestones
• Copyright ownership rights
• A termination clause for both you and the client, stating how many days’ notice is required to end the contract
• An indemnity clause
• A signature by both parties

Having an airtight contract in place will give you a document to refer back to if scope starts to increase. I know contracts can feel stressful and confusing, so if you need a template, Harlow has you covered.

3. Set Project Boundaries and Stick Up For Yourself

My client initially wanted me to write 10 social media posts and two newsletters every month. Slowly, the scope of work expanded and the client asked me to work on strategy, and manage their social media profile and email list. It took me a while to even realize the scope had shifted and I should be asking for more money. Once I did, it was nerve-wracking to bring up the issue and right the course.

But that’s also why I had a contract in place and information gathered up-front. These components were exactly what I needed to stand up for myself and create project boundaries. It can seem easier to just take on the extra work, without setting a boundary or asking for more money, because you want to keep the client. But working without being paid is not the way to grow your business— and doesn’t respect the value of your work. If a client asks you to do work above and beyond the scope, use your contract and early conversations to set a boundary. If it’s a new task or too many revisions, this is your opportunity to be clear with the client about how much the extra work will cost and if you have capacity to take it on in the first place.

A simple phrase to keep in your back pocket: “I can do that, but it is outside of our agreed-upon scope of work. Would you like me to estimate the additional cost for you?”

Avoid Scope Creep and Get Paid for Your Work

Always prioritize transparent communication, gathering details up-front and airtight contracts with your clients. Scope creep is a quick road to burn-out and resentment, and neither of those things lead to a thriving freelance business. You deserve to be paid for the work you do—so protect yourself ahead of time and then stick to those boundaries!

Pricing and packaging are hard to nail down as a freelancer. No way around that.

Often when you start out freelancing, you don’t have the confidence yet to charge what your work is truly worth. We often set our rates too low and sell ourselves short.

This was true for Samantha and me when we first started freelancing. We were charging hourly and quickly realized that the value we offered was being lost as the hours were tallied up.

The good news is that while pricing and packaging your work appropriately and accurately is challenging, you are your own boss. You run your own business and you can shift things whenever you want to!

So if you don’t feel properly compensated for your work and you want to start charging more, it’s time to make a change. We’re going to guide you through how to reposition your packaging, and raise your rates confidently so you can get paid more.

And, we’re living, breathing proof that these steps work.

Shift your mindset from selling services, to selling outcomes.

Repeat after me: the work that you do is important. You don’t simply complete tasks, you help push businesses forward. For example, you’re not selling 3 blog posts for $1,000. You’re selling an outcome: content that’s going to increase traffic to your client’s site and ultimately lead to more revenue.

If you read that and are having a hard time figuring out the outcome and value you’re selling, try this:

Look back on your last five clients. What was the outcome of your work together? What value did they get from that work? It can even be helpful to look through past emails to see what exact words and phrases they used to describe your work.

Use this to build your outcome-based elevator pitch. The goal is to be able to explain the value you provide, in 2-3 sentences. Use this as the basis for sales calls, proposals, your website, and more.

For example, your elevator pitch might be: “I’m a content marketing and SEO expert with more than 2 years of experience working with early-stage startups. I help you scale organic traffic and revenue through optimized on and off-site content.”

From there you can detail exactly what the actual tasks and processes are to fulfill that outcome.

Position yourself as an expert partner.

It’s important that you not only think of what you offer this way but that you communicate it clearly to your potential client as well. When you start communicating the outcome and the actual value of your work (I.E. more website traffic, HR processes that impact the bottom line), it’s easier for you to charge a higher price and get paid what you deserve. It’s all about positioning!

That’s all well and good, but you may be wondering: what do you even mean by “positioning”? Great question! We’re talking about the way you refer and speak to your skill set and the overall value you’re bringing.

When you’re speaking to a new client, or putting together your proposal, be cognizant of the language you’re using.

For example, you might use language in your proposal like:

• Together we’ll build a paid marketing strategy to…
• Your in-house designers and I will partner on the creation of assets…
• As your social media strategist, I’ll work closely with your existing team…

Notice how this language alludes to you partnering, rather than simply doing.

Make the change from hourly to retainer- or project-based pricing.

While this isn’t the right move for everyone, for many freelancers retainer- or project-based pricing is a way to distance yourself from explaining what goes into every minute that you’re working. What you do is worth more than the hours you put into it.

As the popular saying goes, “I’m not charging for the 10 minutes it took me to do this, I’m charging for the 10 years of experience I brought to it!” This is another powerful shift that starts with you (knowing the value of your work!) so your clients can understand it too.

What’s more, clients may not understand how much work goes into something you’re creating (remember, they’re not the experts in this, you are!). Rather than justifying what you know to be a reasonable number of hours, you can wrap everything up into one lump sum. Don’t forget to still be detailed in documenting the work included in that retainer or project so they can still clearly see the magnitude of work being done.

Use your website, marketing, and proposals as a way to communicate value.

You should be using your website, social media presence, and proposals as a way to communicate the value of your work clearly. This can be hard to do—even a humblebrag can feel uncomfy, we know!

But once you shift your mindset, lock down your elevator pitch and positioning, and tie in your pricing, it’s time to share that with the world!

Putting that message out there not only helps to get you in front of the right potential clients, but it allows you to sell value before you even touch base with a client for the first time.

Get a gut check from your community.

If you’re feeling unsure of your new positioning and pricing, run it by someone! Even if you’re running your business on your own, there’s an entire community out there who wants to help—and can provide insights you wouldn’t be able to get otherwise.

Find someone you admire and ask for their feedback. Don’t focus too much on whether you have competitive rates. Instead, get their opinion on whether they think a potential client could understand the value you’re trying to get across.

If you don’t have anyone in your back pocket to speak to already, start connecting with other freelancers through online and offline communities. Check out our list of freelance communities we love if you’re not sure where to get started!

You can also find either Samantha or me on social and run it by us, we’re here for you! Connect with us on Twitter: @SamanthaAnderl and @thelittlestflea.