It's yours, and you can leave
Who owns my web address?
You do. It's in your name and your own account. You typically pay about $10-15 a year for it, and I set it up.
Who owns the website?
Your content is always yours: text, images, documents, and your web address. After 12 months, with your account paid up, the site's code is yours too. With a redesign, it's yours from day one. Ask, and I'll send you a full copy, free.
Leaving sooner? Take the code for the cost of the move ($1,500 for smaller sites, $3,000 for larger), or just take your content.
How long do I have to stay?
As long as you like. It's month to month from day one, with no contract. Paid yearly? Unused months are refunded at the monthly price.
How do I cancel?
Text me. Billing stops after the current month, and your site stays up 30 days after that. Ask, and I deliver your site's code and content within 5 business days.
Changes
What changes are included?
Everyday changes are yours to make, any time, in your site's editor: text, photos, hours, prices, events, team members, news posts, and documents. Stuck? Text me and I'll walk you through it.
Each quarter I also make one small improvement you ask for, like a new section on a page, a layout tweak, or a change the editor can't make. Fixing anything broken is always on me.
Something new, like a new kind of page design or a custom feature, gets a flat price before I start.
When do you answer?
8 to 5, Monday to Friday, Pacific time.
Outages are different. If your site goes down, I know right away, day or night. Down more than 30 minutes? I text you and keep you posted until it's back.
What do you fix without asking?
Accessibility problems in the site's code or designs, missing page titles and descriptions, pages Google can't read, and slow pages: fixed, no need to ask.
Weak image descriptions, headings out of order, vague link wording: fixed, and I let you know in case you'd like different words.
Typos, broken links, wrong redirects: fixed. If it's a name, a fact, or legal wording I'm unsure of, I ask first.
Fixes are always on me.
Who approves the wording?
You do. Name one or two people who approve wording changes, and I wait for their OK.
Your organization decides what the site says. I don't give legal, advertising, or regulatory advice.
Can we get more than one Site Review a year?
Yes. One Site Review a year is included. Want another, for a launch, a new service, or a rebrand? It's $1,500.
Do I have to learn anything or log in?
A little. Your site comes with a simple editor for the things you change most, like text, photos, team members, news, and events. I show you around at launch, and if you get stuck, text me.
What if I need an online store or more pages?
Text me what you have in mind. Something new gets a flat price before I start, and it won't change.
Price and billing
Will my price go up?
Not for 12 months from signup. After that, any increase comes with at least 90 days' notice, no more than once a year, and never during a year you've prepaid.
Is there a setup fee?
No. Moving the site you have is free: same look, same content, plus small fixes where needed.
Want a new look? Redesigns are optional and priced by page design: $2,000 to start (your home page and the parts every page shares), plus $500 for each other page design. New colors, fonts, and style for your brand are $2,500 more.
How does billing work?
Autopay, by card or bank transfer. $1,000 a month, or $11,000 paid yearly, which is one month free. Paid yearly and leave early? Unused months are refunded at the monthly price.
If a payment fails, I send at least two reminders. Improvements pause until it's fixed, and the site goes offline after 30 days. Your rights to your content and code don't change.
Safety and backup
Is my site safe?
Your site holds only the data it needs. Contact-form messages are emailed to you and deleted once delivered.
Every change is saved, back to your launch. Going back takes one click.
If it goes down, I know right away, day or night. Down more than 30 minutes? I text you and keep you posted until it's back.
What happens to messages from my contact form?
They're emailed to you, then deleted once delivered. If one can't be delivered, it's retried, then deleted within 30 days. Only you and I can see them, and they're never sent to AI.
What if something happens to you?
A backup developer has access in case I'm unavailable, and outages are covered around the clock. Your content and web address are always yours, and your site is built with standard tools any web developer can pick up.
Your site
Do you use templates?
No. I don't start from a template and swap in your logo and words. Every site is built from scratch around your business and your brand. It's designed for your business, not copied from anyone else's.
I already have a website. Can I switch?
Yes, and I'll move it for free. Same look, same web address, same pages. Every old page gets a redirect, checked against Google at launch and again 30 days later, and I handle the switch so your email keeps working.
Will it look right on phones?
Yes, and on tablets and computers too. I look at how your customers use it and build around that. If they mostly find you on their phone, calling you or getting directions is one tap. If they sit down to read bios or browse your work, it reads well on a big screen.
Is my site accessible? Is it compliant?
Every site is built following WCAG 2.2 AA, the accessibility guidelines US rules point to, and tested before launch: automated checks, plus hands-on keyboard and screen-reader passes. If I find a problem later, I fix it.
I never call a site "compliant." No check catches every problem, and compliance is a legal question for you and your lawyer. What I promise: I keep checking, and I fix what I find.
Will people find me on Google?
Every page gets a title and description, old pages get redirects, and your site carries the details Google and AI assistants read. I watch Google's own tools for your site and fix problems as they show up. Nobody can honestly promise you the top spot.
The agreement
Draft. I'm still finalizing this, and you'll get the final version before you sign. If the answers above and this agreement ever differ, the agreement wins.
The service
For $1,000 a month (or $11,000 paid yearly), I build or move your website, host it, keep it secure and up to date, monitor it, build it to the Cody Standard and keep checking it, give you an editor for everyday changes, make one small improvement each quarter, send a monthly report, and do a yearly Site Review with a check-in each quarter.
Changes
You make everyday changes yourself in your site's editor: text, photos, hours, prices, events, team members, news posts, and documents. Every edit is checked before it goes live. If you get stuck, I'll walk you through it.
Each quarter, I make one small improvement you ask for, like a new section on a page, a layout tweak, or a change the editor can't make. Unused improvements don't carry over. Fixing anything broken is always included.
New work (a new kind of page design, a tool or connection to other software, a redesign, custom features) gets a flat written price first. Nothing is billed without your OK.
Response times
Messages: I answer 8 to 5, Monday to Friday, Pacific.
Outages (the site is down): I'm alerted right away, day or night. If it's down more than 30 minutes, I text you and keep you posted until it's back. I fix it as fast as I can; if the cause is an outage at the hosting company, it's out of my hands.
Security incidents (a breach, exposed form data, a compromised account): reported to you within 24 hours of discovery, with updates until resolved.
Month to month
There's no contract term. Cancel any time by text or email. Billing stops after the current month. The site stays up for 30 days after that, and if you ask, I deliver your site's code and content within 5 business days. Paid yearly? Unused months are refunded at the monthly price.
Price
Your price is locked for 12 months from signup. After that, any increase comes with at least 90 days' written notice, no more than once a year, and never during a year you've prepaid.
What you own
Your content (text, images, documents) and your web address are yours, always. Your web address and Google Search Console are in your name, and you can export your visitor numbers any time.
After 12 months of service, with your account paid up, your site's code is yours, free, whenever you ask: a standalone copy you can host anywhere and change however you like. Leave sooner and you can take the code for the cost of the move ($1,500 for smaller sites, $3,000 for larger), or just take your content.
My hosted services (the contact form, monitoring, checks) end with the service, so you'd point your form at a provider of your own.
Your data
Contact-form messages are emailed to you and deleted once delivered; undelivered ones are retried, then deleted within 30 days. Only you and I can see them. They are never sent to AI.
Your part
You approve what your site says, and you name one or two people who approve wording changes. You send only content you have the right to use.
What I don't promise
I build following WCAG 2.2 AA and test before launch, but no check catches every problem. I don't promise that your site complies with any law, including accessibility laws, and I don't give legal, advertising, or regulatory advice.
I don't promise search rankings, or that the site will never go down. I promise to watch it, and to fix what I find.
Billing
Autopay by card or bank transfer. If a payment fails, I send at least two reminders, improvements pause until it's fixed, and the site goes offline after 30 days. Your rights to your content and code don't change.
Backup
A backup developer has access to your site in case I'm unavailable.
Changes to these terms
I may update these terms with 90 days' written notice, but never during your price lock or a year you've prepaid.
Who this is with
This agreement is between you and Text Cody, under the laws of Washington.
Something else?
Ask me. If I don't know, I'll find out and get back to you.