How to Write Better EULAs and SaaS Agreements

Short answer: if you want to write better SaaS agreements and EULAs, give whoever drafts them one instruction: simplify. Shorter, plain-English agreements close faster, survive procurement, and hold up better if they ever reach a jury. The rest of this post is how to actually get your lawyers there.

How do you inspire your lawyers to write better EULAs and SaaS agreements? It is not easy, but it is worth the effort. There is a short, well-known talk on simplifying contracts: at the 2010 TED conference, Alan Siegel made the case to a packed room that there is a better way to contract, and it comes down to simplify, simplify, simplify. Siegel is not a lawyer. He is a branding expert who redesigned a credit card agreement onto a single readable page and worked with the IRS on simplifying tax forms. That outsider’s view is exactly the point.

As a software licensing attorney, I am always hunting for what actually helps top software companies, and this is one of those things. Software and SaaS companies need efficient ways to contract, and that starts with refusing to accept length and legalese as the default.

Why Simpler Actually Wins.

This is not about aesthetics. A shorter, plain-English agreement closes faster, clears procurement and legal review in fewer rounds, and is far more defensible if a dispute ever reaches a judge or jury who has to understand it. Long, dense contracts generate questions, and every question is a delay in your sales cycle. Clarity is a revenue tool, not just a style preference. Even regulators agree: the SEC published A Plain English Handbook telling securities lawyers to use short sentences, active voice, everyday words, and tables instead of jargon. If plain English is good enough for SEC disclosure documents, it is good enough for your EULA.

How to Write Better SaaS Agreements: 4 Steps.

1. Demand plain English. If a non-lawyer on the buyer’s side cannot read a clause once and understand it, that clause will generate questions and delay. Make readability an explicit requirement when you brief your counsel, not a nice-to-have. You have to ask for it, maybe demand it, because plain English does not come naturally to most lawyers.
2. Cut what your model does not need. Boilerplate that does not fit your business adds pages without adding protection. A clause drafted for an enterprise on-premise license has no business sitting in a self-serve SaaS subscription agreement.
3. Modularize. A short core agreement plus an order form and a couple of policies beats one 30-page document, and it is easier to update (see SaaS Agreements Are Not Good Communication Vehicles). Policies can evolve with the business; the signed core does not have to be reopened.
4. Pair it with an FAQ. Move the explaining out of the contract and into a plain-English FAQ. The contract states the deal; the FAQ answers the questions your buyers actually ask. Your sales team will thank you.

One more practical note: measure the result. Track how many redline rounds your average deal takes before and after the rewrite. In my experience the simplified paper cuts negotiation rounds meaningfully, and that number is the argument that wins over the skeptics on your team.

Remember: your contracts are too important to leave only to the lawyers.

Watch the TED talk, hand your counsel the SEC handbook, and start with your highest-volume agreement. I hope this helps.

For the foundational decision between an EULA structure and a SaaS subscription structure (the first thing to simplify), see SaaS Agreement vs. Software EULA: Which Template Do You Need?

Resources:

• SaaS Agreement vs. Software EULA
• Who Else Is Streamlining Their Agreements?
• SaaS Agreements Are Not Good Communication Vehicles
• Are You Selling Legal Simplicity or Complexity?

Disclaimer:

This post is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not legal advice. You should hire an attorney if you need legal advice, which should be provided only after review of all relevant facts and applicable law.