Summary

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I will always do my best to fulfill your needs and meet your goals, but sometimes it is best to have a few simple things written down so that we both know what is what, who should do what and what happens if things go wrong. In this contract you won't find complicated legal terms or large passages of unreadable text. I have no desire to trick you into signing something that you might later regret. I do want what's best for the safety of both parties, now and in the future.

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In short

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You, the Client, are hiring Sissy Blanchard of SJB Consulting to design and develop a web site for the estimated total price outlined in our previous correspondence. The agreed payment plan is available upon request should you need another copy

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What do both parties agree to do?

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As my customer, you have the power and ability to enter into this contract on behalf of your company or organization. You agree to provide me with everything that I need to complete the project including text, images and other information as and when I need it, and in the format that I ask for. You agree to review my work, provide feedback and sign-off approval in a timely manner too. Deadlines work two ways and you will also be bound by any dates that you and I set together. You also agree to stick to the payment schedule set out in the accepted price quote.

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I have the experience and ability to perform the services you need from me and I will carry them out in a professional and timely manner. Along the way I will strive to meet all the deadlines set but I can't be responsible for a missed launch date or a deadline if you have been late in supplying materials or have not approved or signed off my work on-time at any stage. On top of this I will also maintain the confidentiality of any information that you give me.

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Details of the work

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I will create designs for the look-and-feel, layout and functionality of your web site. This contract includes one main design plus any changes to the site during a review period. This review period lasts a total of 5 working days, and will begin when I declare the site ready for review. If you're not happy with the whole website at this stage, you will pay me in full for all of the work that I have produced until that point and you may either cancel this contract or continue to commission me to make further design revisions at the daily rate set out in my original estimate. During the creation of your website, you will have the option to either, have a "Coming Soon" page in place or password protect the directory in which the website is being created. Your website will not be made live and accessible by the public until the final payment is made.

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Text content

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I am not responsible for writing or inputting any text copy unless I specified it in the original estimate. I'll be happy to help though, and in addition to the estimate I will charge you at $40 per hour, including a free initial consultation, for copy writing or content input.

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Photographs

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If needed, you will supply me photographs either in digital or printed format. If you choose to buy stock photographs I can suggest vendors of stock photography. Any time I spend searching for or taking appropriate photographs will be charged at $40 per hour, after a free initial consultation to determine if this is the best route to take.

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Changes and revisions

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I know from plenty of experience that fixed-price contracts are rarely beneficial to you, as they often limit you to your first idea about how something should look, or how it might work. I don't want to limit either your options or your opportunities to change your mind.

The estimate/quotation prices set out in the accepted price quote are based on the number of days that I estimated I'll need to accomplish everything that you told me you want to achieve. If you do want to change your mind, add extra pages or templates or even add new functionality, that won't be a problem. You will be charged at my standard hourly rate of $40 per hour. Along the way I might ask you to put requests in writing so I can keep track of changes.

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Legal stuff

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I can't guarantee that the functions contained in any web page templates or in a completed web site will always be error-free and so I can't be 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 this web site and any other web pages, even if you have advised me of the possibilities of such damages. 

 

If any provision of this agreement shall be unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable from this agreement and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions.

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Copyrights

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You guarantee to me that any elements of text, graphics, photos, designs, trademarks, or other artwork that you provide me for inclusion in the web site are either owned by yourself, or that you have permission to use them.

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When I receive your final payment, copyright is automatically assigned as follows:

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You own the graphics and other visual elements that I create for you for this project. I will give you a copy of all files and you should store them really safely as I am not required to keep them or provide any native source files that I used in making them. You also own text content, photographs and other data you provided, unless someone else owns them. I own the XHTML markup, CSS and other code and I license it to you for use on only this project. I love to show off my work and share what I have learned with other people, so I also reserve the right to display and link to your completed project as part of my portfolio and to write about the project on web sites, in magazine articles and in books about web design.

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The Website

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By signing this contract, you agree to have a website monitor installed on the website. This allows both my self and you to keep track of changes made to the site and who made them. Any problems or issues on the site caused by you or any member of your business will be fixed but will be charged at my hourly rate of $40. Any problems or issues caused by external entities, for example hacking or users to the site will be fixed free of charge. However if external entities gained access to your site through external hosting or were allowed access by yourself or on your behalf then you will also be charged at my hourly rate of $40.

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If in the future you desire changes to be made to your site I will be happy to make them, any changes will be charged at my hourly rate of $40. If you choose to host your website with myself then before these changes are made I will, free of charge, back up the site to ensure no data is lost. However if you choose to host your site externally, you will be advised by myself to back up your site and if you so wish I will back up the site for you. For this you will be charged at my hourly rate of $40

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All estimated days outlined in the original proposal are approximate. I cannot be held accountable to these approximations if you do not provide any necessary files promptly or due to any unseen circumstances or public holidays.

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Payments

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I am sure you understand how important it is as a small business that you pay the invoices that I send you promptly. As I’m also sure you'll want to stay friends, you agree to stick tight to the following payment schedule, which will be as follows, but may be revised based on further conversations between me.

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Deposit Percentage of total estimated fee due upon agreement this contract: 50% of agreed upon price quote

Remainder of fee payable not more than 14 days after receipt of finished product: 50% of agreed upon price quote + additional hours worked

If payments are not received within 7 days you will be contacted as a reminder to pay the invoice. If 7 days after you have been contacted you still have not paid the outstanding invoice, your website will be removed from its permanent location. The website will not go live until the final payment is made.

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NOTE: BY SIGNING THIS CONTRACT YOU AGREE TO THE PROPOSAL

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But where is all the horrible small print?

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Just like a parking ticket, you cannot transfer this contract to anyone else without my permission. This contract stays in place and need not be renewed. If for some reason one part of this contract becomes invalid or unenforceable, the remaining parts of it remain in place.

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Although the language is simple, the intentions are serious and this contract is a legal document under exclusive jurisdiction of the United State court system.

This contract is subject to change. Sissy Blanchard has the power to change this contract once the outlined project is complete. A new contract will be formed and will require signatures from all parties included on this contract.