A client brief last week started with one edit. It ended with: 9x16 cutdowns, subtitles burned-in, and end card swaps. None of this was in the original timeline or budget. I’ve learned to ask upfront now: “What are your actual deliverables?” It’s got me thinking, how do you protect your team from scope creep in post?

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One little change to another and it can really add up. When a client introduces something not already discussed I try to talk to them as if it was adding a new product/item. If the team can deliver and the client is ok with timeline shifts then we can discuss. Changes on their end mean changes on our end.

Totally agree—framing it like adding a new product really helps shift the mindset. I’ve started doing something similar: if it’s outside the agreed scope, I’ll flag it early and suggest a formal add-on with revised timeline or cost. It helps everyone understand that “just one more thing” has a knock-on effect. Scope changes are fine—as long as we’re all on the same page about what that actually means.

Things like that always have a way of happening, so it's good to be upfront about needing to stick to the script or the brief. At times a client just won't understand what they're asking for and what impact it has, so a little graceful education on that can be helpful. It's a matter of just being vigilant and recognizing right away when things are starting to creep. There needs to be some flex and some ordinary give and take, but we always need to know where to draw the line.

Yes exactly—it’s that balance of being collaborative without letting things spiral. I’ve definitely found that a bit of gentle education goes a long way. Most clients don’t realise that small requests can snowball unless someone points it out. Now I try to flag things early and re-anchor to the original brief before it gets too far off track. Flexibility is fine, but there’s got to be a line or it’s chaos every time.

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