Portfolio Hosting Contact
I. PRIVACY POLICY
We hate spam just as much as you do. We will never share your information with third parties unless required to do so by law or requested by you. The information we collect from you will be used to maintain your services with us and to represent the quality of our work to others, such as in our online portfolio.
II. OWNERSHIP OF WEBSITE DESIGN
Upon completion of a custom website design and payment of web design and development fees, the client is the owner of the commissioned website. The client may continue to use the commissioned website to promote the client’s company or organization regardless of whether he/she chooses to continue further services with Kowie Online Graphics. The client does not have the right to resell the design or development to other companies. The client does have the right to add pages onto the existing site or have another company add pages onto the existing site using the commissioned website design/development.
III. OWNERSHIP OF WEBSITE DOMAIN NAME
Website domain names are leased from domain name registration companies. When Kowie Online Graphics registers a domain name for a client, that registration will be made in the client’s name. Upon payment of any outstanding fees, the client has the right to use that domain name regardless of whether he/she chooses to continue further services with Kowie Online Graphics. Domain name renewal and renewal fees are the responsibility of the client. Clients are advised to closely monitor the renewal date of a registered domain name. If the client chooses to have Kowie Online Graphics renew the domain name on behalf of the client, an additional service fee may apply.
IV. OWNERSHIP AND COPYRIGHT OF CONTENT
All text and photos used as content in a commissioned website must be provided by the client. The client must have ownership or written permission to use all content he/she provides for use. Kowie Online Graphics cannot be responsible for copyright infringements on behalf of clients. In the event that third-party and/or Open Source scripts, applications etc are used, the user agreement of the given script or application applies.
V. PROJECT INITIATION
The initiation of a web design or development project requires a signed or electronically submitted signup form and payment of half of the initial web design/development fees for custom website design and the entire setup fee for website templates.
VI. TWO WEEK GUARANTEE
Two Week Guarantee on Mockups - Kowie Online Graphics takes pride in handling requests in a timely manner. Starting from the date of the project initiation, Kowie Online Graphics will submit an initial mockup to the client within ten business days or the client will be entitled to a R500 discount off the second half of the initial web design fees. If the client requires modifications to the design, the same two-week guarantee applies on subsequent mockups starting from the time the feedback is given on the previous mockup. Two Week Guarantee on Five Page Websites - Also, starting from the date on which the client submits all content and any other administrative needs (passwords, etc.) or the date on which the client approves the mockup (whichever is later),Kowie Online Graphics will convert the approved mockup into website format and add the text for the home page and first four sub pages within ten business days or the client will be entitled to a R500 discount off the second half of the initial web design fees. This guarantee applies only to informationbased sites. The turnaround time on e-commerce sites or websites with custom programming or add-ons are based on the size of the project and the list of other projects in the development queue.
VII. PROJECT TIMLINESS INCENTIVES AND PENALTIES
Kowie Online Graphics cannot complete a website if the client does not provide content (the text and/or photos to be used in the website) or other required elements (pre-existing logo or account login information, etc.). If Kowie Online Graphics is waiting for content or other pieces of information, the client will be notified. If the client fails to handle the requests in a timely manner, the website may be delayed. (Writing and photography services are available for a surcharge if the client needs assistance with content development.) In order to keep projects on track,Kowie Online Graphics offers incentives and penalties. If a client provides all content (text & photos) and other required elements within ten business days of project initiation, the client will receive a R250 discount off the website design fee. Alternatively, if the client has not submitted all content and other required elements within 30 days of project initiation, client will be billed R250 per month for every month the project is delayed. If the client-driven delays continue, Kowie Online Graphics will complete as much of the project as possible without the missing elements. In order to keep all accounts current, Kowie Online Graphics may bill for the completed project and add missing elements later at they are received. If more than 60 days from the website design and build has passed, and the client still has not submitted the remaining missing content, Kowie Online Graphics reserves the right to consider the project complete in its entirety and bill for future work.
VIII. HOW CONTENT MAY BE SUBMITTED
All content must be submitted electronically via email (contact us for the correct email address) . Both text and photos/graphics must be clearly labeled with the name of the page on which it will be displayed. Content may not be submitted via fax or paper copies. Exceptions to this policy must be approved in advance and will incur a surcharge.
IX. HOW MUCH CONTENT MAY BE SUBMITTED PER PAGE
Due to web page load time considerations and the flat rate charged for web pages, there is a limit on what can be included in a single web page. A web page can hold the equivalent of about 2 and ½ pages of the content that would typically fit on an 8 ½” x 11” piece of paper. If the content is straight text without any pictures, tables, graphs, etc., this equates to a maximum of 2000 words. If there are pictures, or tables, etc., then less text will fit. Additionally, a web page may include up to a maximum of six photos on a page. A photo gallery page with limited text may contain up to ten photos. If a client’s content does not fit within these parameters, one or more additional web pages should be purchased. This applies to static pages. In the event which a dynamic image gallery is used, it is up to the client to populate the image database. Alternatively, we may provide a data entry service for an additional fee.
X. HOW REVISIONS TO A WEBSITE DESIGN ARE HANDLED
We take pride in providing attractive designs. However, design is a subjective art, and not everyone’s tastes are the same. While we will gladly make initial minor modifications for no additional charge, it is important to be clear on how revisions to the look of a website design are handled. The web design signup form is the contract which describes the look a commissioned web design project will achieve. Design preferences should be specified at that time, prior to the commencement of any design work. If any design preference stated in the web design signup form was not met, the adjustments will be made free of charge. If the client develops preferences or changes his/her mind after the completion of the work, adjustments will be made by the hour at R100.00 per hour.
XI. DESIGNS FOR SUB PAGES
Unless otherwise specified in the design contract, subpages of any website will use the same design as the home page. Mockups are not provided for sub pages. Formatting requests for sub pages will be considered but will not be guaranteed. If the client requires specific looks or formatting for sub pages, this request should be made at the time of the initial contract and may incur additional fees.
XII. HOW WEBSITE MAINTENANCE REQUESTS ARE HANDLED
Clients who have signed up for a maintenance plan receive discounts off the web designer’s hourly rates for website updates. The standard half hour maintenance plan is enough time to add about five photos and a few paragraphs of text. Clients on a Kowie Online Graphics web maintenance plan may send update requests via email (contact us for the correct email address). Routine maintenance which fits into the allotted time specified in the client’s maintenance plan is typically completed in about three to four business days. If a client on a website maintenance plan requests more than the scheduled amount of maintenance, he/she will be given a quote and, if approved, the additional work will be completed at a discounted rate of R85.00 per hour and the turnaround time will be based on workload issues. Clients who are not on any maintenance plan may request website updates at the full R100.00 hourly rate and the turnaround time will be based on workload issues. Monthly maintenance plan fees are separate from hosting fees and may be cancelled at any time. (See details under the Termination of Services section.)
XIII. HOW TECHNICAL SUPPORT IS HANDLED
Clients whose websites are hosted by Kowie Online Graphics have access to emergency technical support from 8am - 5pm, Monday to Tuesday. In the event of a website hosting outage, clients should send an email and a technician will be paged. The email address is support@kowie.co.za . Please note, technical support cannot be provided for clients’ individual computer issues.
XV. SEARCH ENGINE GUARANTEE
Most every client would like his/her website to rank high in search engine results for selected keywords, yet search engine results are determined by a multitude of constantly changing factors, third party search engines, and the amount and quality of competition on the world wide web. Kowie Online Graphics guarantees certain search-engine friendly techniques will be used in the creating of each custom website, such as keywords in the title bar at the top of the browser, the meta tags in the hidden coding behind the scenes, and alternate text behind some images. If the keyword placement in these three areas is not to the client’s liking, Kowie Online Graphics will change these three items to the client’s choices one time for free. Subsequent or additional changes will be billed at the standard hourly rate. Kowie Online Graphics cannot be held responsible for search engine results.
XVI. TERMINATION OF SERVICES
If the client changes his/her mind about doing work with Kowie Online Graphics during the course of the initial web design or development phase, the client will be responsible for the amount of work already completed. Depending on the amount of work completed at the time of cancellation, this may mean receiving a full refund, a partial refund, no refund, or owing additional fees. In order to protect clients from unintentional service interruption, clients wishing to terminate any services must request the service termination in writing. If a client received a discount as an incentive to commit to 12 months of hosting and/or maintenance, and if the 12 month commitment has not passed, the client is responsible to pay for the hosting and/or maintenance fees for the remaining months or pay a R750 cancellation fee, whichever is less.
XVII. THIRD PARTY VENDORS
Third party vendors may have separate terms of service agreements. Kowie Online Graphics cannot be held liable for disputes with third party vendors.
XVIII. REFUSAL OF SERVICE
Kowie Online Graphics reserves the right to decline to do business with any client for any reason.
XIX. CHANGES TO TERMS OF SERVICE
Kowie Online Graphics reserves the right to change these terms of services at any time for any reason. One-half of the initial website design and development fees are due upon project initiation. Upon project completion, the remaining balance is due in full within five business days. Once the remaining balance is paid in full, the completed website will be moved from the staging server to the client’s server so the website will go live. Payment for monthly services such as Hosting and Maintenance are due net 20. Kowie Online Graphics reserves the right to charge a late fee of 20% up to a maximum of R500.00 for payments received after net 30. Accounts at net 60 are at risk of termination. Clients experiencing financial hardship should contact Kowie Online Graphics to discuss payment options.
