How to Send a Contract for Signature (and Actually Get It Back)
Most contracts are not rejected — they are ignored. Here is how to send one so it gets signed today, including the covering email, the follow-up cadence, and multi-signer sequencing.
The short version
- Contracts sit unsigned mostly because of friction and ambiguity, not disagreement. Remove both and same-day signature becomes normal.
- Send a PDF, never an editable Word file — an editable contract invites silent changes to your terms.
- The covering email should do four things: confirm what was agreed, state the total, say exactly what to do, and give a date.
- Follow up on a schedule — day 2, day 5, day 10 — and make the last one a phone call. Silence usually means confusion, not refusal.
On this page
- Before you send: three checks
- 1. Export to PDF
- 2. Fill in every blank
- 3. Confirm the signer has authority
- The covering email
- The follow-up sequence
- Multiple signers: sequence deliberately
- Sign first yourself
- Sequential vs parallel
- Watch the version problem
- Email PDFs or use a signing platform?
- What to do the moment it comes back
To send a contract for signature: export it as a PDF, attach it or send a signing link, and write a short covering email that confirms what was agreed, states the total, tells the recipient exactly what to do, and gives a date by which you need it back. Then follow up on a fixed schedule until it is signed.
The reason this deserves a whole guide is that the failure mode is so consistent. Contracts rarely come back with objections. They come back never — the client meant to read it, then a job came in, and three weeks later you are still waiting to start work you already scheduled.
Before you send: three checks
1. Export to PDF
Send the PDF, keep the Word file. An editable .docx in a client's inbox means the scope, the price, or the payment schedule can be quietly adjusted, and you may not notice until you compare line by line at invoice time.
PDF also renders identically on every machine, so what they see is what you wrote. Word documents reflow depending on installed fonts and version.
2. Fill in every blank
Nothing stalls a contract like a template placeholder. [CLIENT NAME], [INSERT DATE], or a highlighted $X,XXX tells the recipient this was not prepared for them, and it gives a hesitant client a reason to put it aside.
Search the document for square brackets, XX, and any highlighting before you export.
3. Confirm the signer has authority
The person you have been emailing is not always the person who can bind the business. For a company, that is usually an owner, officer, or someone with written signing authority — a site manager often is not.
One sentence handles it: "Are you the right person to sign this, or should I send it to someone else?" Asking before you send costs nothing. Discovering it afterwards costs a week.
The covering email
This email does more work than the contract. It should be short, specific, and answer the recipient's three unspoken questions: is this what we discussed, what does it cost, and what do I have to do?
Subject: Contract for the Henderson Street rewire — ready to sign Hi Marcus, Attached is the agreement for the panel upgrade and full rewire we walked through on Tuesday. It reflects everything we discussed: 200-amp service, twelve circuits, and the two exterior GFCI outlets you added at the end. Total is $8,400, with a 30% deposit ($2,520) to schedule and the balance due on completion of the final inspection. To sign: open the attached PDF, add your signature on page 4, and reply to this email with it attached. It takes about a minute. If you can get it back to me by Friday, I can hold your start date of the 22nd. After that I will need to offer that slot to the next job in the queue. Anything you want changed, tell me and I will send a revised version today. Thanks, Jane
Every paragraph is doing a job:
- Confirms the scope in the client's own language, including the thing they added late — proof you listened.
- States the money plainly, including the deposit as a dollar figure, not just a percentage.
- Gives literal instructions. "Open, sign page 4, reply with it attached." Never assume the process is obvious.
- Attaches a real reason for the deadline. The start date is a genuine constraint, not manufactured urgency.
- Invites objections. Counter-intuitive, but it converts silence into a conversation, and a conversation you can close.
The follow-up sequence
Assume the first send will not close it. Not because the client is difficult, but because they are busy. Plan the sequence in advance so following up is a routine, not a decision you have to make each time.
| When | Channel | Message |
|---|---|---|
| Day 0 | The contract plus the covering email above | |
| Day 2 | Email — reply on the same thread | "Just checking this arrived — any questions before you sign?" |
| Day 5 | Text or short call | "Hi Marcus, following up on the rewire agreement. Anything holding it up?" |
| Day 10 | Phone call | Direct: "Do you still want to go ahead? I need to know either way so I can plan the schedule." |
| Day 14 | Close it out: "I am assuming this is on hold — the quote holds until the 30th, just say the word." |
The day-10 call is the one that works. Silence over email almost never means "no" — it usually means the client has a question they have not asked, or they forgot. A ninety-second phone call surfaces both.
Multiple signers: sequence deliberately
With more than one signer, the order changes your outcome.
Sign first yourself
Send a document you have already signed. It signals commitment and removes a step from the client's side. There is no downside — your signature alone does not create a binding contract if they never sign.
Sequential vs parallel
- Sequential — each signer gets it after the previous one finishes. Right when a later signer needs to see an earlier approval, and when there is a clear hierarchy.
- Parallel — everyone gets it at once. Faster, and right when the signers are peers who do not depend on each other.
Sequential with three signers and a two-day lag each takes a week. Parallel takes as long as the slowest person. If there is no reason for an order, do not impose one.
Watch the version problem
Emailing PDFs to multiple signers is where documents go wrong. Two people sign different drafts, someone forwards an old version, and you end up with an executed contract nobody can definitively identify. This is exactly the failure a signing platform is built to prevent — everyone signs the same sealed document, and the record proves it.
Email PDFs or use a signing platform?
Both are legally valid. They differ in friction and in evidence.
| Email a PDF | Signing platform | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Free tier to a few dollars per document |
| Client effort | Download, sign, save, attach, reply | Click link, click sign, done |
| Works on a phone | Awkward | Designed for it |
| Chasing | You do it manually | Automatic reminders |
| Proof of what was signed | Whatever file you kept | The exact sealed version |
| Proof of who signed | Inbox access only | Verified email, timestamp, IP, optional SMS code |
| Multiple signers | Version chaos | One document, tracked |
A practical rule: email PDFs for repeat clients on small jobs. Use a signing flow for new clients, larger amounts, multiple signers, or anything with a payment schedule attached.
What to do the moment it comes back
Five minutes, immediately
- Check every required signature and initial is present — missing initials on page 3 is the classic
- Confirm the dates are filled in and correct
- Compare against your version to confirm nothing was altered
- Send a fully executed copy back to the client — they need one too, and ESIGN expects it
- Save the executed PDF and any audit trail together in the client folder
- Put the key dates in your calendar: deposit due, start date, milestones, renewal or expiry
- Invoice the deposit the same day, while the decision is fresh
That last one matters more than it looks. The gap between signature and deposit invoice is where momentum dies. Send it while they are still in the file.
Frequently asked questions
Should I sign the contract before sending it to the client?
Usually yes. It signals commitment and removes a step for them. Your signature alone does not bind you to anything if the client never signs — most contracts take effect on the last signature. The exception is a negotiation still in flux, where signing first suggests the terms are final when they are not.
How long should I wait before following up?
Two days for the first nudge, five for the second, ten for a phone call. Waiting a week to follow up on a contract you need signed to hold a schedule slot is too passive — and following up daily reads as desperate. A fixed cadence keeps it professional.
Can I send a contract for signature by text message?
You can send the link by text, and many clients prefer it. Keep the contract itself in email or a signing platform so there is a durable record — text threads are easily lost when a phone is replaced, and they are harder to produce later.
What if the client signs but changes something first?
A signature on altered terms is a counter-offer, not an acceptance. Compare the returned document against your version line by line. If it changed, you either accept the change by countersigning the new version or reissue the original for signature. Never assume the returned file matches what you sent.
Do I have to send the client a copy of the signed contract?
Yes — both as good practice and because ESIGN and UETA require that electronic records be retainable and accurately reproducible by everyone entitled to them. Send the fully executed copy as soon as the last signature lands.
What is a reasonable deadline to put on a contract?
Tie it to something real: a start date you are holding, a quoted material price with an expiry, or a scheduling window. Arbitrary urgency erodes trust. A genuine constraint, explained plainly, is persuasive and honest.