Oops... Did I forget to mention the random charges?

I'm very careful these days when I put together a contract with an agency, publisher, or vendor. I've been burned enough times to know exactly what to look for, so I'm able to head off problems before they arise.

A quick way to lose my business before even getting started is to sneak things into a contract that weren't discussed, or to purposely leave other discussed items out of the contract. For example, if you've negotiated to charge an agency fee that is a sliding scale based on total media spend, don't revert back to a flat 15 percent on the contract.

Some other common sneaks include:

• Putting Net 30 terms into the contract, but then billing up front
• Working in fees based on time spent researching media, even though this was not brought up in the negotiation
• Sneaking in extra ad serving fees even though the media is running from the client's third-party ad server
• Negotiating a 48-hour out clause, but then burying a cancellation fee.

The bottom line with these types of tactics is that they may yield you a few extra bucks up front, but you've sealed your fate regarding earning any of my future business. It comes down to common sense, honesty, and integrity.