How to Keep a Contract from Killing Your Margin

Matchstick Legal’s Pricing Matrix puts numbers to the legal asks that eat your profit

Clients keep asking for more—net 60 terms, portfolio restrictions, no kill fees. Each one chips away at your margin. Taken together, they can turn a solid project into a financial mess.

Matchstick Legal built a tool to address this head-on: the Pricing Matrix. It lets agencies name the cost of those requests before the real work begins. No backpedaling. No improvising. Just a clear map of how contract terms affect your bottom line.

Take a peek at some highlights below.


Price the Tradeoffs, Not the Project

When a client removes portfolio rights, you lose visibility. When they stretch payment to 60 days, your cash flow suffers. The matrix spells that out. Each line item ties a contractual ask to its financial impact.


Get Ahead of the “You Didn’t Say That Was Extra”

Include the matrix with your estimate. If the client makes changes, you already showed how it affects pricing. No surprises. No escalations. Just structure.


Take the Emotion Out of the Legal Talk

Most legal tension comes from vagueness. The matrix adds specifics. You don’t have to justify every clause on the spot—you already framed the terms. Now you’re discussing known variables, not inventing new ones.


Defend the Work by Defending the Context

You already know how to price creative. The matrix helps you price everything else. It makes sure your scope reflects both the work and the conditions around it.


Here’s What to Include

  • Payment Terms: Offer 5% off for net 15. Add 10% for net 60.
  • Portfolio Rights: If the client restricts usage, bump the fee by 10–15%.
  • Kill Fees: If they want flexibility, price the risk into the project total.

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