Vendor scope-creep pushback
Reply to "while you're at it" requests that protects the original scope AND the relationship. Acknowledges the ask, names what's in and out, offers a concrete option, keeps the warmth.
You agreed to photograph the ceremony and reception. Now they want getting-ready coverage added too, "since you'll already be there." Most owners feel two bad options: silently absorb (eat the cost), or sound like a contract lawyer (lose the client). There's a third reply, and you keep not writing it. This skill writes it.
The setup
- Open Claude. Start a new conversation.
- Compress the original agreement and the new ask into one sentence each. Don't paste the whole email thread. Two sentences is the trick.
- Decide what your "yes for $X" option is, or whether you'd rather refer them out. You can also let Claude propose both.
The prompt
I'm a [wedding photographer / wedding planner / florist / DJ /
videographer / day-of coordinator]. A [client / vendor] asked me
to do something that wasn't in our original agreement.
The original agreement (one sentence): [e.g. "photograph the
ceremony and reception, 8 hours, $3,200"]
What they're now asking for (one sentence): [e.g. "also cover
getting-ready, 'since you'll already be there early'"]
Write me a short reply that:
1. Acknowledges the ask warmly (no defensiveness)
2. Names what's in scope and what isn't, in plain words, no
contract-speak
3. Offers a concrete option (a quote for the new work, a
referral to someone who handles it, or "yes but for $X")
4. Keeps the relationship warm
My voice is direct, friendly, signs off with my first name.
Don't apologize for the scope. The scope is the scope.What you'll get back
A short reply, ready to send. For the getting-ready add-on example:
Hey Jordan, glad we're locked in for the day. Getting-ready coverage isn't in the original package, but I can add it. It's typically two hours and I'd invoice it at $600. I could start at the hotel at 10am instead of the ceremony at noon. Want me to add it to the contract? If you'd rather keep the original scope, we're completely set as-is.Jamie
Same warm tone. Different number. Cleaner week.
Adapt it for your trade
The shape works for: subcontractors, freelancers, studio rentals, design clients, custom orders, wedding photographers, accountants. Save the prompt with the words for your work. "While you're at it" looks different in every trade. The reply has the same shape every time.
Where this came from
Comes up in nearly every Scrappy Hour with anyone who quotes work. The skill complements vendor-reply-batch, which is about reply VOLUME. This one is about reply BOUNDARY. Visual version on Instagram: the "while you're at it".
Jamie at Scrappy Start
Install this skill in any Claude-compatible agent.
The raw markdown lives at the URL below. The frontmatter follows the Anthropic Claude Skills convention, so a Claude agent can fetch it, save it as a SKILL.md, and use it. Other agents can do the same with their own skill format.
https://scrappystart.ai/skills/vendor-scope-creep-pushback.md- name
- vendor-scope-creep-pushback
- use when
- when a client or vendor adds a "small thing" to a job that wasn't in the original agreement, and you don't want to silently absorb it or sound like a contract lawyer.
- saves
- hours per month, plus the mental load of saying yes when you should have said "yes for $X"
- license
- CC0
CC0 license. Fork it. Rewrite it for your business. The skill is yours.
Want someone sitting next to you while you try this on your real business? That's what a Scrappy Hour is.
Read the arrangement →