from Hacker News

Want to make sure you get paid? Ditch the contract

by gelizondo on 4/25/13, 1:35 PM with 12 comments

  • by grabeh on 4/25/13, 1:49 PM

    The story should be titled 'Ditch the contract (and use Hourglass).

    All in all fairly terrible scaremongering about the alleged pitfalls of using an agreement. An agreement does not have to be complex to make it clear that for example, no assignment of rights will take place prior to full payment.

    Also, taking actions in small claims courts is relatively straightforward (at least here in the UK) particularly where a debt is involved, such as an unpaid invoice.

    I imagine Hourglass probably has some fairly full terms and conditions which apply to the usage of the service also.

    In general a shame, because on a brief glance, Hourglass could be complementary to those using an agreement. There's simply no need to attempt to undermine and attack the usage of agreements.

  • by robmclarty on 4/25/13, 2:10 PM

    I wanted to find out more about what Hourglass actually was, how much it costs, and how it might benefit me, but clicking on any links in the menu and especially the "show me the way" call to action, all lead me to their solitary sales page that wants me to sign up to get the guide. So I filled out my name and email so I could get the guide and instead was signed up to their email list, which required a confirmation, which left me sitting there starring at their sales page, without any guide to read. No offense, but your whole message is about clear communication, and your website's interactivity is very confusing and got me going in circles without any actual communication. My impression is now negative and I will likely forget about your service, let alone mention it to anyone else. Better get everything working first and actually deliver on your promises before blowing your horn.

  • by pushingpixels on 4/25/13, 2:05 PM

    This article is horrible advice. When I started in 1997 I paid a lawyer about $600 to draw up my "standard contract", since then I've had to attempt to recover fees from non paying clients a number of times. Twice it was in amounts enough to sue -- $77,000 and $13,000. In both cases I recovered the full amounts, in no small part thanks to a signed agreement.

  • by jkldotio on 4/25/13, 1:51 PM

    This is ridiculous. For those interested in the topic a much better discussion can be see here https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2450424

  • by tptacek on 4/25/13, 1:44 PM

    This is terrible advice.

  • by misnome on 4/25/13, 1:50 PM

    It sounds kind of interesting, but before actually making any attempt to explain what it means it ends with "Sign up to our thing to get the answer". Not even a whisper of "An alternative way".

    So, just an advertarticle.