Please, Negotiate With Me

Because we work closely together on your wedding, I want you to get what you need. Photo by Peter Coombs.

I find that sometimes potential clients are hesitant to negotiate the draft contract I send them.  If you are one of those people, I’d like to give you a couple of good reasons to jump in and negotiate.

Reason Number One:  If you do ask for changes in the contract, then there is a good chance that you will get something you want, instead of feeling stuck with something you don’t want.  I don’t always accept every change exactly as it is proposed, but I will go out of my way to make sure you are happy with what you are getting.  I don’t want to start our relationship on the wrong foot.  I want you to be happy you hired me.  I don’t want you to feel as if I have bullied you into accepting my terms.

Reason Number Two:  When you and I have discussed changes and come to an agreement we can both live with, especially if you have special circumstances that you want included, it increases the trust level between us.  We understand each other, so we can trust each other.  And it is very important to me that that trust is there, as we will be working closely together and I will have the responsibility to do some very important things for you.

So, will you always get what you want when you negotiate my contract?  No, but if you don’t, it’s because there is a very good reason for it (and I will explain the reasoning to you).  Should you always ask?  Yes.  Because if you don’t ask, you will definitely not get what you are looking for, and I might not, either.