How the business side works so the creative side can stay calm.

When we work together, you are hiring me as an independent contractor, not as an employee, partner, or legal representative. You keep full control and ownership of your business and decisions. I am responsible for how I carry out the work, and you are responsible for the business outcomes that depend on your products, services, and decisions.

Most communication happens by email and shared documents, with calls or messages as needed. I keep things as simple as possible so you are not buried in project management tools unless your project really needs them.

Before significant work begins, I will outline the scope in writing. That might be a formal proposal, a simple scope document, or a clear email summary. That written scope is our guide for what is included.

If you ask for changes or additions that fall outside the agreed scope, we will review them together. Extra work can be handled in one of two ways:

• A short add on estimate at a fixed price for a clear piece of work, or
• Hourly billing at my current rate when the work is open ended or exploratory.

Hourly work typically runs between $95 and $120 per hour depending on the platform and depth of work. PHP, WordPress, SQL, and system logic usually sit toward the higher side of that range. I will always confirm scope and expectations before moving into extra work so there are no surprise charges.

Project fees and payment structure will be listed in your proposal, invoice, or written estimate. Larger builds often use a deposit, one or more milestone payments, and a final payment near launch. Smaller work may be invoiced in a single installment or billed hourly.

Unless we agree otherwise in writing, invoices are due within seven (7) calendar days of the invoice date. Work may pause if an invoice is significantly overdue, and delivery dates may shift to reflect the pause. Any third party costs that I pay on your behalf, such as licenses or specific tools we agree to, will be passed through and clearly noted.

You are responsible for any local taxes that apply to your business or region. If your company requires purchase orders or specific billing details, please share those early so invoices can be prepared correctly.

Most fixed price work includes a reasonable round or two of revisions inside the agreed scope. Revisions are intended to refine and improve, not to redesign from scratch after a direction has already been approved.

If feedback moves the project into new territory, such as a new layout, a different feature set, or a major change in goals, we will treat that as a scope change and adjust pricing and timelines accordingly. I will always be clear about what is included and what counts as new work so you can choose what makes sense for your budget and priorities.

You keep ownership of the content, brand assets, and materials you bring into the project. That includes your existing logos, photos, copy, product information, and any other original materials you provide. You are responsible for making sure you have the right to use everything you supply.

Once your project is fully paid, you receive the rights to use the final deliverables that we agreed on for your business. For web and systems work, that usually means the site design, page layouts, and project specific code created for you. For artwork and design, that means the final approved versions we deliver. Music and audio work may have specific licensing terms, which we will outline in writing for each engagement.

Behind the scenes, I retain ownership of my general tools, processes, starter code, and any reusable components or ideas that are not unique to your project. This keeps me able to serve future clients and to maintain my own systems, while you still have full use of the work you paid for.

Unless you ask me not to in writing, I may feature your project in my portfolio, social channels, or case studies after launch. I will never share sensitive internal details, pricing, or private strategy in that context.

Many projects depend on third party services and platforms. That can include hosting providers, domain registrars, email services, plugins, payment gateways, and other software. I will help you choose tools that make sense for your budget and goals, and I will configure them as part of the build if we agree on that in the scope.

I do not control these third party services, so I cannot guarantee their performance, pricing, or uptime. If a provider has an outage or changes its terms, I will help you respond where practical, but I am not responsible for losses that come from issues on their side.

When you grant me access to your servers, control panels, or accounts, I will treat those credentials carefully and only use them for project work. You are responsible for keeping your own master records of logins and for reviewing and updating access over time, especially if your internal team changes.

Project timelines are based on both my work and your feedback. I will always give you realistic windows instead of wishful thinking. In return, I ask that you provide content, approvals, and decisions within a reasonable time so the project can keep moving.

If feedback, content, or approvals are delayed by more than fourteen (14) days, I may pause the project and reschedule it into my calendar. When that happens, delivery dates may shift, and a restart fee may apply if the pause is long enough that we need to rebuild context or environments.

If I am the one who needs to adjust timing, I will let you know as early as possible and we will decide together whether to shift the schedule, trim scope, or phase work so the most important pieces still land when you need them.

Any non public information that you share with me for the project is treated as confidential. That includes internal documents, strategy notes, pricing that is not public, and anything similar that a reasonable person would expect to keep private.

I will not sell or share your private information with third parties for marketing. I may refer in general terms to the type of project or industry in conversation with other clients, but not in a way that reveals your confidential details.

If your project requires a separate nondisclosure agreement, we can put that in place as long as it is reasonable and consistent with how I work.

Either of us can request to pause or end a project. If you decide to cancel part way through, you agree to pay for the work that has already been completed, along with any non refundable third party costs that were incurred on your behalf.

Deposits are generally not refundable once work has started, since they reserve time on the calendar and cover early planning and setup. If there are special circumstances, we can discuss a fair resolution based on how much work has been done and what can be reused.

If I ever need to step away from a project for a serious reason, I will either refund the portion of fees for work not yet completed or help transition the project to another provider in a reasonable way.

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict of law rules. If we ever have a dispute that we cannot resolve through normal conversation, we agree to try in good faith to settle it informally first.

If a formal dispute becomes necessary, it will take place in the state or federal courts located in California, and both of us consent to the personal jurisdiction of those courts for matters related to this agreement.

To the fullest extent allowed by law, my total liability for any claims related to a project is limited to the total amount you actually paid me for that project in the three (3) months before the claim. I am not liable for lost profits, lost data, or other indirect or consequential damages that arise from the use of the work.

If any part of these terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the rest of the terms remain in effect. These terms work together with any project specific written agreements we create. If there is a clear conflict between these terms and a signed project agreement, the project agreement will control for that specific item.