Scope Creep Examples — Web design
White-label rights the agreement doesn't cover
The client, itself an agency reselling the work to their own end client, asks to strip the agency's credit and present the design as entirely their own with no attribution rights discussed.
The client is a smaller agency that hired this team to execute the design work, then presents the finished product to their own end client under their own name — a fairly common subcontracting arrangement, but one the current agreement never actually addresses. When the agency asks (for a case study) whether they can reference the project publicly, the client pushes back hard, revealing they'd assumed full white-label confidentiality was implied, though nothing in the agreement grants or denies it.
Clause typically implicated
Clause typically implicated
Publicity / case study clause→ — Where white-label and case-study/reference rights should actually be spelled out — if it's silent, both sides are working from assumptions rather than an agreement.
Suggested change-order wording
Suggested change-order wording (illustrative, not legal advice)
Our current agreement doesn't explicitly address white-label terms or public reference rights — I'd like to get that written down clearly so we're both aligned rather than working from assumptions. I'm glad to keep this project confidential and not reference it publicly if that's important for your client relationships; let's add that as a written amendment to the agreement.
How this usually resolves
This is a case where getting the clause added in writing matters more than which specific answer wins — most agencies are happy to honor confidentiality for a reseller relationship once it's actually written down, and having it in writing protects both sides from a future misunderstanding rather than just resolving the current one.
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