Choose Contract Templates
Choosing Contract Templates
Summary: Select and customize the right contract template for your business needs to create professional, legally sound agreements quickly.
Overview
growlio provides pre-built contract templates designed for various business scenarios and industries. Choosing the right template saves time while ensuring your contracts include essential legal protections. This guide helps you understand available templates, when to use each one, and how to customize them for your specific needs.
Prerequisites
- Active growlio account with contract access
- Understanding of your service agreements
- Member-level permissions or higher
- Clarity on what terms you need in contracts
How to Choose Contract Templates
Step 1: Access Contract Templates
Navigate to Business > Contracts, then click "Create New Contract". The template selection screen appears showing all available contract templates.
Step 2: Review Template Categories
Browse templates organized by category: Service Agreements, Consulting Contracts, Project-Based Agreements, Retainer Contracts, and more. Each category serves different business models.
Tip: If you're unsure which category fits, start with "General Service Agreement" - it's the most flexible.
Step 3: Preview Template Details
Click on any template to see a preview of its structure, included clauses, and what situations it's designed for. Read the description carefully.
Step 4: Check Included Clauses
Review what legal clauses come standard in each template: scope of work, payment terms, intellectual property, confidentiality, termination, liability, and dispute resolution.
Tip: Ensure critical clauses for your industry are included. Common needs: IP ownership, confidentiality, liability limitations.
Step 5: Evaluate Template Complexity
Consider template complexity based on project value and risk. Higher-value projects warrant more detailed contracts with extensive protections.
Step 6: Select Appropriate Template
Choose the template that best matches your service type, client relationship, and project scope. Click "Use This Template" to start creating your contract.
Step 7: Review Customization Options
After selecting a template, see which sections are customizable: payment terms, deliverables, timelines, and specific conditions. Templates provide structure while allowing flexibility.
Tip: All templates allow customization. Don't hesitate to select one and modify it to fit your exact needs.
Step 8: Consider Industry Requirements
Ensure your chosen template addresses industry-specific requirements: regulatory compliance, certification standards, or professional association guidelines.
Step 9: Validate with Legal Review
For your first use of any template, consider having your lawyer review and approve it. Save their approved version as your standard.
Step 10: Save Custom Template
After customizing a template to perfection, save it as your own custom template for reuse. This speeds up future contract creation.
Tips & Best Practices
- Start with standard templates and customize rather than creating from scratch
- Have legal counsel review templates before first use
- Save customized versions as personal templates for consistency
- Update templates annually to reflect changes in laws and business practices
- Choose templates based on project value and complexity
- Include more detailed terms for higher-value or risky engagements
- Keep simpler contracts for smaller, straightforward projects
- Ensure templates address your most common client concerns
- Document which template to use for different service types
- Train team members on appropriate template selection
- Version control your templates to track changes over time
- Consider jurisdiction-specific requirements when selecting templates
Troubleshooting
Issue: Can't find appropriate template for my service
Solution: Start with "General Service Agreement" and customize it. Contact growlio support to request specific template types. Consider hiring a lawyer to create a custom template, then save it in growlio.
Issue: Template missing critical clauses I need
Solution: Most templates allow adding custom clauses. Add missing sections in the customization phase. Save your enhanced version as a custom template for future use.
Issue: Template uses wrong jurisdiction's laws
Solution: Modify the governing law section to reflect your location. Have local legal counsel review and adjust for your jurisdiction. Save the localized version as your standard.
Issue: Multiple templates seem appropriate
Solution: Preview and compare key sections of each. Choose the more comprehensive template if unsure - it's easier to remove clauses than add them. Consult with a lawyer if genuinely uncertain.
Issue: Template too complex for small projects
Solution: Look for "Simplified" or "Basic" versions of contracts. Many categories offer both standard and simplified options. Consider creating a streamlined version of complex templates.