How to get clients to sign contracts faster
Published
Short answer
Clients sign faster when the contract arrives the same day they say yes, is short enough to read in one sitting, matches what was discussed, and can be signed on a phone without an account. Most delays come from the agency's side: the contract is sent late, is too long, or needs a round of questions that a clear summary would have answered.
Why contracts sit unsigned
A contract that isn't signed in two days often isn't signed for two weeks. The common reasons:
- It arrived days after the call, when the excitement had cooled.
- It's twenty pages, and the client is waiting for "a quiet moment" to read it.
- Something doesn't match what they remember agreeing.
- It needs a printer, an account or a laptop.
- The right person to sign isn't the person who received it.
Seven ways to speed it up
1. Send it the same day
The best time to send a contract is within an hour of the yes. With templates and an AI agent, that's realistic: "Make the engagement letter for Fjord, 8 000 fixed, delivery 15 December, and show it to me" takes a minute. See send your first contract from your AI agent.
2. Keep it short
Put the legal terms in a master services agreement signed once, and send a one-page statement of work per project. A page gets read today; twenty pages get read "later".
3. Lead with a summary
Start the email, or the first page, with three lines: what you'll deliver, by when, and for how much. If those match the client's memory, the rest is a formality.
4. Send it to the person who signs
Ask on the call: "Who signs on your side?" Send it straight to them, with your contact copied.
5. Make it work on a phone
Many people sign between meetings. The contract should open from an email on a phone, with no account or download, and a signature in two taps.
6. Follow up once, kindly, after two days
"Just checking the agreement came through, happy to walk through anything" is enough. Your agent can tell you what's still waiting: "Which contracts are still unsigned?"
7. Remove the questions in advance
If clients always ask about the same clause (usually liability or ownership), explain it in a sentence in the summary, or change the template.
Make the next step easy to take
- On the call
Find the signer
Confirm who can sign on the client’s side.
- The same day
Prepare the draft
Use your template while the agreement is fresh.
- Before sending
Check the summary
Deliverables, date and price should match the conversation.
- After two working days
Follow up once
If it is still unsigned, offer to answer questions.
How Pledge helps
Your agent drafts from your template in Claude, ChatGPT, Codex or Cursor, so the contract can go out minutes after the call. The client gets a link, reads it in the browser on any device and signs without an account. You can ask your agent at any time what's still waiting for a signature.
Questions
- How long should it take a client to sign a contract?
- For a short engagement letter or SOW, a day or two is normal. If it takes longer than a week, something is usually unclear, or it went to the wrong person.
- Should I follow up on an unsigned contract?
- Yes, once after two working days, kindly and briefly, offering to answer questions. Most delays are forgetfulness, not objections.
- Do clients need an account to e-sign?
- Not with Pledge. The client opens the link in the email, reads the contract and signs in the browser.
Try Pledge
Contracts, time, plans and leads for small agencies, with an MCP server for Claude and ChatGPT. Pledge is in private beta: leave your email and we will send an invite.