Record every extra request against a dated, approved scope before assigning the work. Classify it as an existing commitment, a correction, or a scope change. Then record the added work, fee, deadline effect and named approver in one change ledger. Keep proposed changes separate from approved commitments so a client's question does not silently become a creator's new deadline.
The form and ledger below are original, hypothetical examples. They are operating recommendations, not contract terms or legal advice. Adapt them to your agreements and have qualified counsel review disputed obligations or contract amendments in the relevant jurisdiction.
Start with the commitment you can point to
A request is difficult to classify when the agreed work exists only across email threads. Keep a dated scope version alongside the approved creator brief. Give each commitment a reference and record:
- Deliverable count, format, channel and responsible person.
- Included revision rounds and what each round covers.
- Approval steps, client response dates and creator deadlines.
- Reporting fields, collection dates and who supplies each source.
- Agreed usage rights and exclusions.
For example, a hypothetical scope might cover four creator videos, one consolidated revision round per video, and one final report. It might exclude cutdowns, translations and paid-media adaptation. An extra spreadsheet tab is not automatically extra scope; check whether it contains already-promised reporting or new analysis.
The Association for Project Management's change-control process starts from an approved baseline. It calls for evaluating cost, time, resources and other effects before deciding whether to approve, reject or defer a change.
If your starting scope lacks quantities or exclusions, use pricing agency creator work from the actual scope to define the work before estimating additions.
Classify the request before quoting it
Use the approved scope and brief as evidence. Record the reason for the classification, including the version you checked.
| Class | Test | Hypothetical request | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|
| Existing commitment | Does the current scope already promise this? | Supply the agreed final report | Assign it under the original fee and date |
| Correction | Did delivered work fail an agreed requirement? | Fix a product name the agency entered incorrectly | Record the defect, owner and recovery plan |
| Scope change | Does the request add or replace an agreed requirement? | Add a second video format after concept approval | Estimate the difference and seek approval |
A new preference can change the scope even when it arrives inside an included revision round. Conversely, reaching the revision limit does not by itself prove that fixing a missed requirement deserves another fee. Read what the agreement says about revisions, defects and responsibility.
Split mixed requests. A client's message might ask to fix a misspelled product name and add a new opening scene. Give the correction and the new scene separate entries, or separate line items under one request. Otherwise the cost of the addition disappears inside the correction.
When the documents conflict, mark the classification as disputed. Name the people who will resolve it before promising a price or delivery date.
Use a change-request form before work starts
Copy these field labels into your existing project tool. Keep the request linked to its source message rather than relying on a meeting summary alone.
Request ID and received date:
Requester and source message:
Campaign and affected creator/deliverable IDs:
Current scope/brief version and commitment reference:
Requested difference and reason:
Classification and supporting evidence:
Work added, removed or corrected:
Agency effort estimate and fee:
Creator/vendor fee and confirmation status:
Rights, data access or review dependencies:
Original milestone and proposed milestone:
Decision needed by, with time zone:
Options: add, swap, defer or decline
Client approver and agency approver:
Decision, timestamp and approval-record link:
Updated scope version and delivery owner:
Completion evidence and actual effort:Separate effort from price. An agency may spend three hours fixing its own error and charge no additional fee. A creator may quote a fixed amount for another edit. Both affect capacity, but they belong in different ledger fields.
Give the client a choice when the budget or date cannot move. A swap should name the deliverable being removed and any work already incurred. Do not assume removing a future post cancels a creator's existing fee obligation.
Show the cost and schedule together
This hypothetical ledger uses an original agency fee of USD 4,000 and a USD 2,400 creator budget. The original campaign total is USD 6,400. Amounts are illustrative, not market rates; taxes are excluded. Milestones use numbered working days rather than real dates.
| ID | Request and class | Effort and added fee | Schedule effect | Decision |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CR-01 | Fix agency typo; correction | 1 agency hour; USD 0 | Fix on day 8; day-12 launch unchanged | Assigned |
| CR-02 | Two extra cutdowns; addition | 3 agency hours, USD 300; creator USD 400 | Cutdowns on day 14; original launch stays day 12 | Approved on day 8 |
| CR-03 | Replace approved concept; replacement | Estimate awaiting creator quote | Proposed day-12 launch at risk; new date unconfirmed | Pending |
| CR-04 | Extra report breakdown; addition | 2 agency hours, USD 200 | Would move report from day 20 to day 21 | Declined |
CR-02 raises the approved campaign total to USD 7,100. CR-03 remains outside that total because nobody has approved its price. CR-04 adds nothing. CR-01 still consumes capacity despite its zero added fee.
Do not add every proposed delay together. Map each change to the task it affects. An extra cutdown delivered after launch may leave the original videos untouched. Replacing their concept could require new scripts, filming and review before any video can launch.
Record the assumptions behind each date, such as creator availability and receipt of consolidated feedback. For that dependency, use setting client approval deadlines before creator commitments.
Check access and disclosure before accepting an addition
A request for new reporting may require permission the agency does not have. For example, YouTube's channel-permissions documentation says Viewer (Limited) cannot access revenue data. It also says channel permissions do not give invited users access to YouTube APIs.
Record the requested metric, who can supply it, the permitted sharing route and the access deadline. Do not promise an automated report merely because someone has invited the agency into YouTube Studio. Keep credentials out of the ledger and use a reference to the access record.
Disclosure corrections need their own treatment. For endorsements affecting U.S. consumers, FTC staff guidance says material brand connections should be clear and video disclosures should appear within the video. Other jurisdictions may also apply.
If a disclosure is missing, flag the affected content for correction and review. Record the cost dispute separately. A ledger classification cannot establish that content is compliant or decide who owes the correction fee.
Close the decision, then update the work
Modash's discussion of influencer-marketing bottlenecks identifies legal reviews and content approvals as sources of delay. Prepare the decision packet with the changed deliverable, cost and schedule together so reviewers do not need separate rounds to discover each consequence.
Use these operating rules:
- Name who may approve spending and who confirms delivery capacity.
- Require a recorded decision through the approval method your agreement specifies. Do not treat silence as approval.
- Confirm affected creators' availability and terms before confirming the revised client deadline.
- After approval, update the scope, budget, brief and schedule under the same request ID. Preserve the earlier versions.
- At completion, attach the delivered file or report and record actual effort, including work the agency absorbed.
For an urgent request, record any authorized spending cap and limited work instruction before starting. Do not use urgency to hide an unresolved creator fee or an unconfirmed deadline.
Open the latest extra request now. Write the original commitment beside the requested difference, then send the client the cost-and-date choice before assigning the added work.
