terms & conditions of service
If you have any questions about our policies, processes or how we’re dedicated to helping your business succeed, please contact us. By choosing to work with us you agree to the following Terms & Conditions:
Quotes, Estimates & Proposals:
All quoted prices are based on the estimated amount of time needed to accomplish everything outlined in your quote.
WEBSITE DESIGN: Once your deposited has been received, the design, structure and functionality of your new website will be built and once online, access will be provided. You’ll have opportunities to suggest changes along the way.
Additional Content & Functionality: You shouldn’t feel limited to your initial goals and if additional content, pages or functionality is desired you will be charged our current hourly rate. A separate quote can also be provided. Please contact us for our current hourly rate.
GRAPHIC DESIGN: All graphic design projects are charged hourly. Please contact us for our current hourly rate. Generally no deposit is required for smaller graphic design projects. A deposit may be required if the project exceeds 10 hours in duration. Proofs will be provided for your approval and changes made as desired. Once the final proof has been approved, payment is due, unless otherwise stated.
PLEASE NOTE: Our goal is to create the highest quality graphics & websites. The quotes and estimates we provide are often based on an assumption of time needed to work with (at the time unseen) text and photo (etc) content that is supplied by our clients.
If after receiving this content, we deem that more time is needed to create the graphics in a quality format, you will be notified. Your verbal or written agreement to move forward will be seen as your acknowledgement of the extra charges that will appear on your invoice. Ultimately, you the client are responsible for payment of the total invoice once we’ve received your written or verbal approval to have the project completed. Invoices are non-negotiable, however payment plans are available. This note was unfortunately made necessary to ensure that we’re fairly compensated for the time we spend on client projects, however as a policy, it helps to keep costs down for all clients.
Additional Time & Extras
Onsite Meetings: Generally one 1/2 hour onsite meeting or Zoom is included for no charge with website design and/or logo design projects. Additional onsite meetings are charged separately.
Zoom/ Facetime: Generally one 1/2 hour Zoom meeting or voice call is included for training and or tech support purposes. Additional Zoom, Facetime and telephone meetings are charged separately.
Payments, Fees and Charges:
New Websites: A deposit of 50% is due before work can begin. The balance is due once the website has been launched online.** Also due at this time are the fees for hosting, website management, domain registration(s)* & email registration(s)* for the year following the website’s activation.
*If applicable
** Launched online, means that the website is accessible on the internet.
Stalled Projects: If a project has stalled (with over one month of inactivity), the balance owing for work completed to that point will be due. Additionally a restart fee may apply, depending on the duration of inactivity and/or costs incurred while the project was stalled.
Graphics Design, Website changes and all other services: Generally no deposit is required for existing clients’ smaller projects but one may be required for new clients or large projects.
Payment Plans: We’re happy to work with your budget to create a payment plan that allows you to benefit from our services. Please contact us for more details.
Late fees are charged on all overdue invoices. If payment has not been received within 30 days from the invoice due date, your account may be suspended. This includes website hosting and email accounts. Any current projects will also be suspended until your account has been paid in full.
All efforts will be made to collect payment to ensure your website remains operational however we maintain the right to disconnect your services (website, domain and email) at anytime after payment is 30 days overdue, in fairness to all our clients there will be no extensions but payment plans are available.
If two or more invoices have not been paid on time within a one year period: We reserve the right to request a retainer or request that payment be made in full before more work is completed.
Your account will be suspended if payment is not received within 30 days of the invoice date. A reconnection fee of $200 will apply to re-launch your website and $25 to re-setup email accounts .
Email Service Terms and Conditions:
We guarantee the proper function of your email server/service. Tech support is included if a problem arises with your email due to the email server, server settings, domain settings etc.
If your email service is working properly and you require Tech support because of your specific device, email client software, local ISP settings or any other reason not directly related to the email server and it’s service you will be charged our hourly rate for this time.
If a problem arises with a product or service that we provide, tech support is included only if the problem is attributed to the product or service that we provide. If the problem is attributed to your local environment, computer, device then you will be charged our hourly rate for our time.
Information about our Best Practises:
Your website comes with advanced Search Engine Optimization and will be submitted to Google for indexing. It can take up to two months to achieve your natural position in the search engine ranking. The algorithm for determining your position is complex but is based more than anything on the written content and “alt” tags of the photos on your website, including testimonials also helps increase your ranking. Having other reputable websites to link to your website is also very important to acquiring a high ranking.
I guarantee to do my best to help your website achieve a high ranking position, but I cannot guarantee a certain position. Once your website has reached it’s initial peak position (after two months), more text and photo content can be added and /or edited to better compete with website listings ranked higher.
Your website will be built using the latest versions of proven and trusted software, that is for the most part open source. Validity and cross-browser compatibility are tested thoroughly in the major browsers (Safari, Chrome and Microsoft Edge) and all mobile devices.
As with all technologies, advancements and progressive enrichment is inevitable. While this eventually benefits us all it may cause future compatibility issues and errors with some of the features on your website. I cannot guarantee that there will be no future costs billed to you that are associated with fixing these issues but I do ensure that the adjustments will be done quickly and efficiently to minimize costs. You will be notified beforehand of any issues of this nature that arise. With my website maintenance plan you’re covered for the cost of up to 2 hours of labour each year. Addition changes are charged at our current hourly rate (please inquire).
Your website comes with advanced security features meant to prevent the possibility of malicious attack. While these security features are proven and I closely monitor their effectiveness, I cannot guarantee that as new threats emerge your website won’t ever be compromised.
As such I cannot be and am not liable to you or any third party for damages, including lost profits, lost savings or other incidental, consequential or special damages arising out of the operation of or inability to operate the website and any other web pages, even if you have advised me of the possibilities of such damages.
I guarantee to stay up to date on current security threats and will always do my best, go above and beyond to ensure that no damage or malicious threats can take hold. The best defense in dealing with these attacks is keeping the software up to date, which is a very important ongoing part of owning a website. With my hosting & maintenance plan I check, update and backup the software regularly.
We only use professional, royalty-free stock photography, our own original images and artwork or material submitted by our clients. Images gathered off the internet generally cannot be used because of copyright infringement.
As per Canadian copyright laws, we are the lawful copyright holder of the artwork, graphic design, code that we write and create. We authorize our clients to use the website, designs and product/content that we create for its indented use only. If you want to be the copyright holder of the website or designs that are created we are happy to pass this on (once final payment has been received in full) as desired. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Learn more about Copyright in Canada as it affects graphic and website design.