⚙️ SUPPORT CONTRACTS
Service Level Agreement
(SLA)
Monetize your post-launch support. Establish clear response times, define server uptime guarantees, and protect your team from 24/7 client demands with a legally robust SLA.
What is an SLA?
A Service Level Agreement (SLA) is a contract that dictates exactly how you will maintain and support a software system or IT infrastructure after it has been delivered. It turns abstract promises like "good support" into measurable legal metrics.
By clearly defining what is covered (server patches, bug fixes, uptime) and what isn't (new feature requests, redesigns), an SLA allows you to charge a predictable monthly retainer while setting strict boundaries on client expectations.
Why Support Teams Need It
- **Boundary Setting:** Stop midnight WhatsApp messages from clients.
- **Recurring Income:** Justify monthly maintenance retainers legally.
- **Liability Capping:** Limit penalties if a server crashes unexpectedly.
Providing Support Without an SLA
"We"ll take care of it" is a dangerous promise. Without an SLA, support becomes a chaotic, uncompensated nightmare.
24/7 Unpaid Demands
Without defined support hours and response times, clients expect you to drop everything to fix minor issues immediately, often on weekends.
Free Feature Work
Clients frequently disguise new feature requests as "maintenance." Without an SLA defining what maintenance is, you end up doing free development.
Third-Party Liability
If AWS or a payment gateway goes down, clients will blame you. Without third-party exclusions in an SLA, you might be held financially responsible.
Inside the SLA Document
A comprehensive framework designed to make IT support profitable and predictable.
Severity Matrices
Categorize issues into Critical, High, Medium, and Low, assigning strict response and resolution times to each.
Uptime Guarantees
Define exactly how uptime is calculated, with clear exclusions for scheduled maintenance and third-party outages.
Service Credit Caps
Legally cap any penalties or refunds if you miss an SLA target, protecting your baseline revenue.
Support Channels & Hours
Specify that support is only provided via your ticketing system during standard business hours.
Maintenance Scope
Explicitly exclude new development, content updates, or consulting from the standard maintenance fee.
Client Responsibilities
Require clients to provide reproducible steps for bugs and assign a single point of contact.
Fixed Fee Drafting
SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT
Drafted to protect IT agencies, DevOps teams, and SaaS platforms.
How It Works
Tailoring the metrics to your team's real-world capacity.
Consultation
We discuss your support capacity, business hours, and the type of software/infrastructure you maintain.
Drafting
Our legal team drafts the SLA, focusing on strict definitions of support tiers and capping your liabilities.
Review & Revision
You review the matrix of response times to ensure they are realistic for your current team size.
Final Delivery
You receive a polished, reusable SLA template to bundle with all your post-launch contracts.
Implementation
Start upselling monthly maintenance retainers to your clients with professional legal backing.
Transform Support into Profit
An SLA isn't just a legal document; it's a sales tool for recurring revenue.
Regain Your Time
Force clients to respect your business hours. A critical issue gets immediate attention, but minor content changes wait in the queue.
Upsell Hosting
Use a professional SLA to justify high-margin managed hosting and maintenance retainers, moving away from project-to-project feast or famine.
Limit Penalties
If an AWS outage brings down a client's app, the SLA's force majeure clauses ensure you aren't legally or financially penalized.
Frequently Asked Questions
An SLA is a contract that defines the level of ongoing service, maintenance, and support a client can expect from you after a project is launched. It covers metrics like server uptime, bug fix response times, and regular updates.
It turns unpredictable post-launch client demands into a structured, recurring revenue stream. It sets clear boundaries so clients know exactly when you will respond to issues and how much it will cost.
It's a commitment that a software or server will be operational for a certain percentage of time (e.g., 99.9% uptime). The SLA details how this is measured and what happens (like service credits) if the guarantee isn't met.
The agreement categorizes issues by severity (e.g., Critical, High, Low) and assigns specific response and resolution timeframes to each. A critical server crash gets immediate attention, while a minor cosmetic bug might be scheduled for next week.
Typically, no. The SLA clearly distinguishes between routine maintenance/support and new feature development, which should be billed separately via a new Statement of Work (SOW).
Yes, our SLA drafts are perfect for DevOps teams and agencies providing managed hosting, outlining server maintenance, backup schedules, and disaster recovery procedures.
If you fail to meet the agreed-upon metrics (like uptime or response time), the SLA may require you to provide a partial refund or discount on their next invoice, known as a service credit. Our drafts ensure these are strictly capped to protect your business.
The SLA outlines 'Maintenance Windows'—specific times (usually nights or weekends) where planned downtime is allowed and does not negatively impact your uptime guarantee.
The contract specifies the acceptable channels for support (e.g., ticket system, email, phone) and your official business hours, preventing clients from demanding 24/7 support via WhatsApp unless they pay for it.
Our SLA includes 'Force Majeure' and third-party dependency clauses, ensuring you are not penalized for outages caused by upstream providers like Amazon Web Services or local ISPs.
Yes, it includes termination clauses usually requiring 30-day or 60-day written notice, protecting your recurring revenue from abrupt cancellations.
Related Legal Services
Software Development Agreement
Contract for the initial build phase before the SLA kicks in.
Master Service Agreement
Establish long-term umbrella terms for recurring enterprise clients.
UK LTD Company Formation
Form a UK corporate entity to legally enforce your international contracts.
SECURE RECURRING REVENUE
Stop Doing Free Maintenance.
Draft Your SLA Today.
Protect your team's time, define clear support boundaries, and start charging professional retainers for your ongoing services.
Professional Legal Drafting · Caps Your Liability · Defines Response Times