Design and Search Engine Optimization Services

Homestead Design Services and Search Engine Optimization Services
Supplemental License and Terms of Service

This Homestead Design Services and Search Engine Optimization Services Supplemental License and Terms of Service (this "Agreement") was updated on January 15, 2013, and replaces and supersedes all other versions of this Agreement in its entirety. To view the previous version of this Agreement, click here.

This Agreement is between the below-named Member ("Member" or "You") and Homestead Technologies Inc. ("Homestead").

WHEREAS, You have agreed to the terms and conditions of the Homestead Terms of Service (the "Terms of Service") and now wish to engage Homestead for additional design services ("Design Services"), Search Engine Optimization services and/or additional products and services that Homestead may provide to You subject to the terms of this Agreement (collectively, the "Services"); and

WHEREAS, this Agreement supplements the Terms of Service, which remain in full force and effect;

By clicking "I AGREE," You indicate that You understand and agree to the terms of this Agreement. If You do not agree to the terms of this Agreement, You are not granted any rights in the Services, and You will not be able to access or use the Services. Your payment for and continued use of the Services constitutes your continued acceptance of these terms. If at any time You do not agree with the terms of the Agreement, You may no longer use these Services and You must notify Homestead to cancel the Services.

1. Definitions. In addition to all other terms defined herein, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

Content Updates means additions, deletions, changes made to text, placement of graphics, hypertext links, or other visual modifications that affect a single specific web page and are not part of the overall site design across multiple pages or that affect basic functionality provided as part of the site design.
Copywriting means the authoring of textual content by Homestead based on verbal and written input from You.
Grammar Checking means review and updates made, at Homestead's discretion, to textual content based on generally accepted English language standards. Grammar Checking does not apply to words or text embedded in graphics. Homestead is not liable for any errors made in Grammar Checking; You remain responsible for all content on your site.
Spell Checking means review and corrections made, at Homestead's discretion, to the spelling of words in textual content supplied by You, based on a standard American English language dictionary. Spell checking does not apply to words embedded in graphics. Homestead is not liable for any errors made in Spell Checking; You remain responsible for all content on your site.
Design Updates means changes made to the site design that impact multiple pages on the site, including site and page layouts, headers and graphics, logos, including functionality related to basic site navigation, menus, categories, and any other inherent capabilities of the site design that affect use of the site.
Graphics and Photos means image files supplied by You in PNG, JPG or GIF format that You represent and warrant that You have full rights to use as part of your project, per the terms of this Agreement.
Initial Consultation means a phone conversation between You and a member of the Design Services Team near the start of a QuickStart Design, Deluxe Design or Search Engine Optimization project to discuss your business and web site goals and design preferences (if applicable) and the information You provided in Your Business Profile.
Site Review Call means a phone conversation between You and a member of the Design Services Team after a Full Service web site has been built to review the web site created for your Full Service project.
Keyword means a phrase consisting of one or more words that is anticipated to be used by the general public to find your web site on commonly used search engines and that meets specific criteria as established by Homestead in terms of search volume, relevancy to your business and target market, and suitability for optimizing your site based on competition among other web sites and content of your site.
Mockup means an initial, non-final graphic depiction of one (1) initial page of your web site as designed by Homestead. Mockups are only available for QuickStart and Deluxe Design Packages and do not apply to Full Service Packages.
Order Summary means the description of services, features of your site, and any other terms as outlined by Homestead during the sales process for the design of your site, as documented in the Homestead sales system.
Site Buildout means the completion of your site, per the Design Services project including making the site visible on the Internet.
Development means the work involved to implement code and configuration changes on your web site or store to build out a web site design or Search Engine Optimization project.
Weblistings Premium Package means a business directory hosted by Homestead. Full Service and Search Engine Optimization customers with physical business addresses in the United States are eligible to have their businesses listed in this directory with links to their sites as long as the SEO Subscription remains active.
Weblistings Profile means the listing for your business. If You qualify, but do not already have an active Weblistings Profile, Homestead will create a profile for You including basic business location, contact and web site link information.
Service Offering means the description of features and included items as described on the mydsproject.com web site, as of the time the customer order is placed and as may be changed from time to time at Homestead's sole discretion.

Some services referenced within this Agreement may be available during limited times only and may not be available at the time of purchase of other services.

2. Design Services

Homestead will provide You with Design Services as further described on the most current Order Summary provided to You, incorporated by reference herein, and subject to the applicable terms and conditions for each package below. Please click on the package listed below for any additional fees and cancellation terms applicable to that package. You understand and agree that Homestead will provide the Design Services solely in accordance with the information provided by You in communications sent by You via email, online communication via the Homestead site, and/or subsequent telephone interviews.

2.1 Design Services Member Responsibilities

You acknowledge and agree that:

The setup fee applicable to the Design Service is non-refundable once Development work has commenced. Please refer to the package descriptions and terms set forth in the links above to determine when Development work has commenced for each package
You are responsible for the accuracy and appropriateness of all data and content on your web site including without limitation any sales tax calculations, product pricing, product descriptions, shipping charges, contact information, email communications, and electronic payment processing. Homestead, its affiliated entities, and its suppliers will not be held responsible for inaccurate, incomplete, or inappropriate information on your web site or any related potential damages.
YOU UNDERSTAND THAT HOMESTEAD MAY NOT MAINTAIN COPIES OF FILES OR DOCUMENTS THAT ARE SENT BY YOU AND THAT YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR BACKING UP THIS DATA.
You understand and agree that Homestead's performance under this Agreement is dependent upon the timely and satisfactory performance of your responsibilities. In the event that Homestead is unable or delayed in performing its responsibilities as a result of Your delays or failures, Homestead may take specific actions including project cancellation, automatically approving the initial design or building out a site as displayed in the Mockup without Your approval, or assessing charges related to missed appointments or other unmet responsibilities.
Homestead will not proceed with consultations or any other aspect of your design service project until this Agreement has been accepted by You and we have received your completed Business Profile survey
For Quickstart and Deluxe design packages, if You have not attended the Initial Consultation (provided via phone) within thirty (30) calendar days, or if a Design Services project is not completed within forty-five (45) days, of your initial Design Services order, Homestead reserves the right to cancel your project.
If we do not receive a completed Business Profile and all necessary content, graphics and images and other requested materials within forty-five (45) days of your purchase, we may cancel your project and refund your payments.
Materials such as any content and Graphics and Photos that are identified during the initial purchase of the Design Service package, or during the Initial Consultation, must be supplied to Homestead via its web site no later than five (5) business days following the Initial Consultation. If these materials are not received within this timeframe, Homestead will use placeholders and/or stock photos, at its discretion, to build the Mockup of the site.
All Mockups must be approved, or alternatively, have revisions provided to Homestead, within five (5) business days of the Mockup being sent to You. Once approval is received, your site will be built based on the Mockup you approved. If approval or revisions are not received by Homestead within five (5) business days Homestead will proceed to implement the Site Buildout. No revisions will be accepted past Site Buildout except as specified in this Agreement.
Training is included for QuickStart and Deluxe Design Services packages. Site Buildout will occur whether You attend the training or not. You may attend training any time up to ninety (90) days after the Site Buildout is completed.
You understand the distinction between Content Updates and Design Updates as defined within this Agreement.

2.2 Design Services Fees and Cancellation Terms

In addition to the fees and cancellation terms applicable to each specific package set forth in the links above, You also agree to the following terms and conditions:

You agree to pay all fees for the service package You selected when due, plus any additional fees for services provided to You by Homestead via phone, email or other communication method and included on the most current Order Summary. Homestead shall receive 100% of the fee prior to the commencement of any Design Services under the QuickStart or Deluxe Design Services Package and at least one subscription payment under the Full Service Package.
If You miss a scheduled appointment, You have the option to schedule a makeup appointment, however, upon three (3) missed appointments You may be charged a reschedule fee of $35.00 which is non-refundable. Homestead reserves the right to cancel this Agreement if the Initial Consultation has not occurred within thirty (30) days of the purchase date, or if a Design Services project is not completed within forty-five (45) days, and will issue a prorated refund of the fees You paid, if applicable, according to the policies herein.
If You cancel your Design Services project for any reason after your orientation is complete, but prior to Site Buildout, (when your mockup is translated into viewable web pages), Homestead may in its sole discretion refund up to 50% of the Design Services fees paid by You for the project. This policy shall also apply to terminations by Homestead for any other reason permitted under this Agreement.
If You purchased Design Services through a promotional offer package, any refunds shall be calculated from the lowest, then-current list price.

3. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Services

For additional terms and conditions, including fees and cancellation terms, that are applicable to the specific package you purchased, please click on the relevant link for SEO Setup Service or SEO Subscription Service (collectively, the "SEO Services") below.

In addition to the terms and conditions set forth in the links above, Homestead will provide You with SEO Services as further described herein. You understand and agree that Homestead will provide the SEO Services solely in accordance with the information provided by You via email, online communication via the Homestead site, and/or subsequent telephone interviews with authorized Homestead representatives.

By selecting the SEO Services, You grant Homestead permission to perform the actions specified in this Agreement on your site, and on your behalf, including submission of your site, and authored articles, to external sites and directories, as well as insertion of a tracking code on your site to provide traffic and conversion statistics.

By providing the SEO Services, Homestead will try to improve the ranking of your site on at least one of the following search engines, as may be changed at Homestead's sole discretion from time to time: Google, Yahoo, and Bing (U.S. versions only) for one of the selected Keywords. Homestead does not control how search engines rank sites or how fast a site is indexed, and any improvements in search engine ranking resulting from the SEO Services may take months and are not guaranteed.

Homestead will not proceed with consultations or any other aspect of Your SEO project until this Agreement has been accepted by You.

While Homestead will consult with You on Keyword selection, Homestead reserves the right to select the final Keywords chosen for optimization based on its expertise and generally accepted industry practices. If You do not agree with the selected Keywords You may terminate the SEO Services in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.

3.1 SEO Services Member Responsibilities

The setup and other fees applicable to the SEO Setup Service are non-refundable once Development work has commenced.
You are responsible for the accuracy, completeness, and appropriateness of all data and content on your web site including any sales tax calculations, product pricing, product descriptions, shipping charges, contact information, email communications, and electronic payment processing. Homestead, its affiliated entities, and its suppliers will not be held responsible for inaccurate, incomplete, or inappropriate information on your web site or any related potential damages.
YOU UNDERSTAND THAT THE HOMESTEAD DESIGN TEAM IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING COPIES OF ANY FILES OR DOCUMENTS THAT ARE SENT BY YOU AND THAT YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING COPIES OF THIS DATA.
You understand and agree that Homestead's performance under this Agreement is dependent upon the timely and satisfactory performance of your responsibilities, including:
- Completion of your Business Profile survey prior to the scheduling of your SEO Consultation. Updates to your site per specific instructions from Homestead.
- Submission of information about your business to Homestead as requested.
- In the event that Homestead is unable or delayed in performing its responsibilities as a result of your delays or failures, Homestead may take specific actions including, without limitation, project cancellation, automatically approving the Keywords in Homestead's sole discretion, building out a site with modified content without your approval, and assessing charges related to missed appointments or other unmet responsibilities.
If You have not attended the initial SEO consultation (provided via phone) within thirty (30) calendar days of your initial SEO order, your project will be canceled and a full refund will be issued less any previous fees related to missed or rescheduled appointments.
If you miss a scheduled consultation appointment, You have the option to schedule a makeup appointment, however, upon three (3) missed appointments You may be charged a reschedule fee of $35.00 which is non-refundable. Homestead may provide the opportunity for You to review the selected Keyword(s). If your feedback is not received within three (3) business days after Homestead provides You with materials for your review, Homestead will assume approval and proceed with the SEO project. Homestead reserves the right to specify final Keywords for optimization, and Member's sole remedy in the event of a dispute will be to cancel the project for a 50% refund of fess paid until Development work begins. If Development work has begun, you are not eligible for a refund.
All content and article feedback is limited to errors and omissions notices only. You will have the ability to modify your site content after project completion.
You permit Homestead to act on your behalf in submitting your site to major search engines, directories or other resources deemed appropriate by Homestead.
You acknowledge and agree that changes to your site content by you or by any third party that conflict with Homestead's recommendations may affect and limit improvements and optimization by the SEO Services.

3.2 Member Acknowledgements.

You understand, acknowledge and agree that:

Homestead has no control over the policies of search engines or directories with respect to the type of sites and/or content that they accept now or in the future. Your web site(s) may be excluded from any search engine or directory at any time at the sole discretion of the search engine or directory entity.
Some search engines and directories may take as long as two (2) to four (4) months, and in some cases longer, after submission to list Your web site(s).
Occasionally, search engines and directories will stop accepting submissions for an indefinite period of time.
Occasionally, search engines and directories will drop listings for no apparent or predictable reason. Often a listing will "reappear" without any additional submissions.
Some search engines and directories offer expedited listing services for a fee. You are responsible for all expedited service fees unless otherwise noted in the Order Form.

3.3 Web Site Changes. Homestead is not responsible for changes made to Your web site(s) by other parties which may adversely affect the search engine or directory rankings of Your web site(s).

3.4 DISCLAIMER OF ALL OTHER WARRANTIES. HOMESTEAD DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SEO SERVICES, INCLUDING THE WRITING OR EDITING OF ANY ARTICLES BY HOMESTEAD OR ANY OF ITS AGENTS, WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS OR REQUIREMENTS. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE IS WITH YOU. EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED IN THIS AGREEMENT, HOMESTEAD PROVIDES ITS SERVICES "AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. THE PARTIES AGREE THAT (A) THE LIMITED WARRANTIES SET FORTH IN THIS SECTION ARE THE SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE WARRANTIES PROVIDED BY HOMESTEAD, AND (B) HOMESTEAD DISCLAIMS ALL OTHER WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT, PERFORMANCE OR INABILITY TO PERFORM UNDER THIS AGREEMENT, THE CONTENT, AND EACH PARTY'S COMPUTING AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM. 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.

3.5 SEO Services Fees and Cancellation Terms

In addition to the fees and cancellation terms applicable to each specific package set forth in the links above, You also agree to the following terms and conditions:

You agree to a 3-month minimum term under the SEO Subscription Services package. If you cancel your SEO Subscription Services prior to the end of 3-months from when you are notified that your project entered the Subscription period, you may be charged a $300 early termination fee.
You agree to pay the total fees, which shall mean the sum of the SEO Package fee and any additional fees provided to You by Homestead via phone, email or other communication methods and included on the most current Order Summary. Homestead shall charge 100% of the setup service fee prior to the commencement of any SEO Service.
If You fail to attend a scheduled consultation appointment, Homestead will charge You a fee of $35.00 which is non-refundable. If you miss a scheduled consultation appointment, You have the option to reschedule an appointment up to three (3) times without additional charges (notwithstanding any no-show fees). Homestead will provide voicemail notification of this charge being assessed.
Homestead reserves the right to cancel this Agreement if the Initial Consultation has not occurred within thirty (30) days of the purchase date, or if an SEO project is not completed within forty-five (45) days, and will issue a pro-rated refund of the fees you paid, if applicable, according to the terms of this Agreement.
If your Services are cancelled prior to your SEO Initial Consultation, you will be eligible for a full refund of your purchase price, less any fees related to missed or rescheduled appointments.
- If you cancel the Services, for any reason (including disputing Keyword selection), after Keyword recommendations have been provided but before Development begins, Homestead may in its sole discretion refund up to 50% of the SEO service fees paid by You for the project. This policy shall also apply to terminations by Homestead for any other reason permitted under this Agreement.
- If you cancel at any time after the SEO Initial Consultation, you will not be eligible for a full refund

4. Rights and Licenses

(a) Right to Web Site

With the exception of any Third-Party Materials and Background Technology as defined in this Section 4, You own the web site and Your Content. "Your Content" means all content or information (including, without limitation, any text, music, sound, photographs, video, graphics, data, or software), in any medium, provided by You to Homestead which You represent and warrant You have full rights to use. "Third-Party Materials" means any content, software, or other computer programming material that is owned by an entity other than Homestead, and licensed by Homestead or generally available to the public, including You, under published licensing terms, and that Homestead will use in the development of or to display or run a web site. The graphics utilized on your site from Homestead's graphics library may be licensed from third-party suppliers. Homestead provides You a limited, personal, nonexclusive, nontransferable license to use the graphics during the term of this Agreement.

(b) Limited License to Background Technology

"Background Technology" means computer programming/formatting code or operating instructions developed by or for Homestead and used to create any portion of a web site or used to operate the web site or a web server in connection with a web site. Background Technology includes, but is not limited to, any files necessary to make forms, buttons, checkboxes, and similar functions and underlying technology or components, such as style sheets, web site templates, animation templates, interface programs that link multimedia and other programs, customized graphics manipulation engines, and menu utilities, whether in database form, dynamically driven, or provided in any other format. Background Technology does not include any of Your Content or any derivatives, improvements, or modifications of Your Content. Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, Homestead hereby grants You a non-exclusive license, limited to the term of your subscription, to copy, distribute, transmit, display and perform the Background Technology that is incorporated into a web site, in whole or in part, solely as necessary for You to operate, maintain, and make the web site available in the normal course of your business. You may not duplicate or distribute any Background Technology to any third party without the prior written consent of Homestead. All rights to the Background Technology not expressly granted to You hereunder are retained by Homestead. Without limiting the foregoing, You agree not to reverse-engineer, reverse-assemble, decompile, or otherwise attempt to derive any source code of the Background Technology, except as allowed by law.

(c) Limited License to Content

You hereby grant to Homestead the limited, nonexclusive right and license to copy, distribute, transmit, display, perform, create derivative works from, modify, and otherwise use and exploit Your web site, any of Your Content, or any of Your Marks provided to Homestead hereunder, solely for the purpose of rendering the Design Services under this Agreement. Such limited right and license shall extend to no other materials or for any other purpose and will terminate automatically upon termination of this Agreement for any reason.

(d) License to Web Site Design

Member grants to Homestead an exclusive, worldwide, sublicenseable, assignable, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, fully paid-up license to use, reproduce, distribute, create derivative works of, publicly display, digitally perform, make, have made, sell, offer for sale, and import the Web Site Design or Web Site Design features distinct and separate from your specific content. Web Site Design shall mean all HTML files, Java files, graphics files, animation files, data files, technology, scripts, and programs, both in object code and source code form, all documentation, and all other items and information, whether tangible or intangible and in whatever form or media, created, written, conceived, made, or discovered by Homestead or its personnel in connection with the design of the web site or portions of a web site, contemplated by this Agreement.

CHANGES TO THIS AGREEMENT OR THE SERVICES. We may change this Agreement from time to time, and the changes will be effective when posted on our web site for the Service or when we notify you by other means. Please review this Agreement periodically on this web site for changes. We may also change or discontinue the Service, in whole or in part, including but not limited to, the Internet based services, pricing, technical support options, and other product-related policies. Any such changes are effective when posted or as otherwise stated in the mode of notification(s), and your continued use of the Service after Homestead posts or otherwise notifies you of any changes indicates your agreement to the changes.

January 15, 2013

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Design and Search Engine Optimization Services