1. Services and Definitions

• 1.1 "The Company": Means Creative Startup NZ.
• 1.2 "Services": Includes Logo Design, Website Design (HTML & Google Sites), SEO Audits, Social Media Audits, Video Assets, and Strategic Consulting.
• 1.3 "Full Launch Package": A comprehensive service comprising a Professional Logo, 5-Page Website, Strategic Consult, and Stripe Integration.
• 1.4 "Weekly Social Media Planner": A locally-hosted, desktop-only software tool provided on a subscription basis.

2. Price and Payment

• 2.1 Pricing: Prices are fixed as advertised on the website. All rates are exclusive of GST (15%) unless otherwise stated.
• 2.2 Stripe Fee Absorption: The Company absorbs all standard Stripe transaction fees. The price displayed + GST is the final price. No unexpected surcharges will be applied.
• 2.3 Standard Payment Terms: For standard services, payment is due in full prior to the commencement of work.

• Structure: Clients electing to use the payment plan agree to split the total fee into three equal installments:
  
  (1) Kickoff: 33% due immediately to initiate the project.
  (2) Go-Live: 33% due prior to the public launch of the website.
  (3) Support Run: 33% due exactly 30 days after the Go-Live date.
• Obligation: The Client acknowledges that the final payment is a fixed obligation for the services rendered. It is not contingent on the Client's sales or business performance during that 30-day period.

3. Client Responsibilities & Timelines

• 3.1 Providing Assets: The Client agrees to provide all necessary copy, images, and branding assets within five (5) working days of the project kickoff.
• 3.2 Project Delays: Failure to provide assets within this window may result in the project being paused and moved to the end of the current production queue. Significant delays may incur a rescheduling fee.

4. Service-Specific Terms

• Deliverables: Custom design provided as high-resolution files (PNG, JPG, SVG/EPS).
• Revisions: Includes up to three (3) rounds of minor revisions to ensure you are happy with the result.

• Scope: Design and development of up to five core static pages.
• Integration: The Full Launch Package includes the setup of Stripe checkout and necessary API keys.
• Delivery: For Google Sites, "Delivery" constitutes the formal transfer of "Owner" status to the Client's nominated Google Account.

• Scope: Diagnosis of technical issues, keyword strategy, and engagement consistency.
• Implementation: These services provide a clear roadmap and report. The physical implementation of these recommended changes is a separate service.

• Scope: Custom animation of the Client's logo to create Intros or Outros.
• Prerequisite: The Client must provide high-quality vector files of their logo for animation.

• Methodology: We focus on practical, Lean Startup strategies. We offer honest feedback and guidance, but we do not guarantee financial results as success relies on the Client's execution.

• 5-Day Trial: A 5-day free trial is provided. It is the Client's responsibility to test the software during this period to ensure it meets their needs and works on their specific hardware.
• Data Storage Limitations: The software operates entirely via local browser storage (IndexedDB) to ensure your data remains private. It is not compatible with mobile devices. Important: Clearing your browser cache, cookies, or site data will permanently delete all scheduled content. The Company cannot recover this data and accepts no liability for data lost due to user actions or automated browser clearing.

5. Ownership & Intellectual Property

• 5.1 Standard Transfer: Upon full payment of the invoice, the Company assigns to the Client all Intellectual Property Rights in the final deliverables. You own it completely.
• 5.2 Ongoing Security: The Client is solely responsible for maintaining the security of their own accounts (Google, Domain Registrar, Stripe) after the handover is complete.

• Provisional License: For clients utilizing the 33/33/33 payment plan, the Website operates under a Revocable Provisional License until the final payment clears. Intellectual Property rights do not officially transfer until the invoice is settled in full.
• License Script: The website code contains a date-based license validator. If the final payment is not received by the agreed due date, a "Service Payment Due" notice will automatically appear on the website.
• Tampering: Removing or altering this license code prior to making the final payment constitutes a breach of contract.

6. Warranties & Liability

• 6.1 15-Day Warranty: We provide a 15-day technical warranty on Website code and links from the date of delivery. This covers our work, but excludes issues caused by the Client modifying the site or third-party platforms changing their systems.
• 6.2 No Earnings Guarantee: The Company provides tools and advice, but makes no guarantee regarding future revenue, website traffic, or business success.

7. Cancellations & Refunds

• 7.1 Standard Services: As our work is custom and time-intensive, no refunds are provided once design, development, or consulting work has officially commenced.
• 7.2 Bundled Services: If a bundled package is cancelled partway through, we reserve the right to charge the standard list price for the individual services that have already been delivered.
• 7.3 Software Subscriptions: Because a free trial is provided to verify compatibility, all subsequent subscription payments for the Weekly Social Media Planner are final and non-refundable.
• 7.4 Disputes: Any disputes that cannot be resolved amicably within 5 working days must be referred to mediation via the Resolution Institute (NZ).
• 7.5 Payment Default: Failure to clear final payments within 7 days of the due date will result in the revocation of licenses and potential suspension of the provided services.

The "No-Nonsense" Privacy Promise

Most digital agencies operate under a deeply flawed model of data hoarding. They collect as much of your personal information as possible to feed into complex marketing funnels, or worse, to share with third-party software partners and offshore developers. Creative Startup NZ categorically rejects this approach.

Our digital infrastructure is built on the principle of "Digital Sovereignty"—the fundamental belief that you own your data, and we should only interact with it when absolutely necessary to get the job done. Our architecture is lean, built on a secure, flat-file framework (think of it as the digital equivalent of a reliable Toyota Corolla). There is no bloat, no invasive tracking, and no hidden data harvesting.

What We Collect

We operate under strict data minimization rules. When you use our website, our intake forms ask only for the essential parameters required to initiate your project or answer your inquiry:

• Your Full Name
• Your Official Business Name
• Your Contact Email Address
• Your Contact Phone Number
• Basic context regarding your project roadblocks

We do not utilize invasive "pixel-farming" techniques to track your personal browsing habits across the internet, nor do we deploy unnecessary behavioral cookies to profile you. We only know what you actively choose to tell us.

What We Do With It

The information you provide is utilized strictly to communicate with you regarding your requested project and to build your requisite digital infrastructure.

• We do not sell, trade, or lease your data to anyone.
• We do not feed your email address into automated "nurture" marketing lists, annoying newsletters, or offshore mailing applications.
• Your data routes directly from our website form into our own private, locked database hosted on secure New Zealand-based infrastructure. No third-party plugins, offshore developers, or external software companies are permitted to intercept or scan our data pipeline.

How We Delete It

We view inactive data as a liability, not an asset. If you join our project waitlist or make a general inquiry but ultimately decide not to proceed with a build, we do not keep your file hanging around our servers indefinitely.

Our database is programmed with an automated data hygiene protocol. Any prospect file that remains inactive for 30 consecutive days is subjected to a permanent hard-delete. This is not a "soft archive" where we hide your data out of sight—the data is completely and irreversibly scrubbed from our systems.

Your Rights

Under the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020, you possess the right to know exactly what information an agency holds about you, and the right to request its immediate correction or deletion.

While the law grants agencies 20 working days to respond to these requests, we guarantee a 48-hour turnaround. If you wish to receive a raw export of the data we hold on file, correct a mistake, or trigger an immediate manual deletion ahead of our 30-day automated purge, you simply need to email Russell directly. Your request will be handled personally and immediately, without requiring you to navigate automated support tickets or legal hoops.