Charlottesville SEO Web Development

Revdex.com Complaint ResponseResponder: [redacted] for Charlottesville SEO Web
Development, LLCComplaint filed by: [redacted], [redacted], formerly [redacted]Response date: Dec. 7, 2015Ms. [redacted]’s Complaint:We contracted with Charlottesville SEO Web
Development - [redacted] to...

develop a website for our business, [redacted] The contract stated that the product would be
delivered in a professional, competent and timely manner. Services were NOT
delivered in a professional, competent or timely manner. We hired the company
because we wanted the services of a specific web designer. That designer left
the company within a couple of weeks after we signed the contract and we not
informed until after we paid $2000.00 on top a $6000.00 deposit over three
months into the project. We paid in good faith with little to no product at
that point. When we requested a logo we were told we were getting an original
design. The designs (all twelve of them) were found on line by my 15 year old
son. When I confronted [redacted] with the issue, he said he had no idea this was
happening and offered to give us the logo for free. We were not satisfied,
however we accepted it because we were told we needed it to move forward with
the project and we were already three months behind. The original estimate for
services with the web designer we chose was twice as much as the estimate for
designer we ended up with on the project.[redacted] continuously found ways to
incorporate more fees into the project. [redacted] also informed us of an additional
coding cost of $3000.00. Website design estimates should include this cost. We
agreed to pay for some marketing writing due the fact that we had at that point
in the project paid more than the estimate for designer that was now on the
project. Then we informed we needed to do our own writing because "he
couldn't light a fire" under his writer. They finally delivered comps for
the website most of which was unacceptable. In addition, the new web designer
and [redacted] did not know how to intergrate services we needed on our website.We
terminated the contract when we realized we would never get an acceptable
website.Response SummaryMy firm, Charlottesville SEO Web Development,
made costly financial sacrifices in efforts to appease Ms. [redacted] by waiving
fees for work that Ms. [redacted] received and approved. After signing our contract, Ms. [redacted]’s
expectations and requirements expanded. My firm provided additional services
while capping Ms. [redacted]’s fee below the amount stipulated in our
contract.  To appease Ms. [redacted], we
continued offering additional work at no additional charge, including unlimited design changes and
copywriting revisions.  We delivered writing and design work, as
requested, which Ms. [redacted] received and approved.  On at least three separate occasions, Ms.
[redacted] later changed her mind, notifying us she no longer liked work she had
already accepted.  In each instance, we
accommodated her requests to make additional revisions at no additional charge.Ms. [redacted]’s expanding requirements and failure
to provide timely feedback caused lengthy delays and scheduling conflicts for
my firm.  She then blamed us for the
delays. Paragraph 5 of our contract stipulates our
deadlines and time estimates will be extended as necessary if the client, Ms.
[redacted], fails to provide feedback and information we request within 3 days OR
if Ms. [redacted] issues Change Orders.  Ms.
[redacted] did both.  One of Ms. [redacted]’s
delays involved a Change Order that resulted in a cumulative delay of 75 days. The
project was hindered further by Ms. [redacted]’s scheduling challenges and feedback
delays.Before Ms. [redacted] delivered previously agreed
coding prerequisites, she abruptly terminated our contract. Her complaint alleges
she “realized” we could not code her site. 
We’ve been developing websites for a decade.  We’ve built sites considerably more
complicated than the site we were hired to build for Ms. [redacted].  In good faith, I authorized coding to begin about
a week prior to receiving Ms. [redacted]’s termination notice. The site in progress
is on our server.  Ms. [redacted] never saw
it. Ms. [redacted] had no reason to presume we could not, or would not, code her
website.  The coding we provided in good
faith added another $1,000+ to my firm’s costs for this project. We did not invoice Ms. [redacted] to
recoup this cost.Response DetailsClaim: We contracted with Charlottesville SEO Web Development - [redacted] to develop a website for our business, [redacted].Response: The contract was executed between our firm and [redacted] on April 14, 2005.  Claim:  The contract stated that the product would be delivered in a professional, competent and timely manner. Services were NOT delivered in a professional, competent or timely manner.Response:The first day Ms. [redacted] and her partner were free to meet with our team was April 24. [7 day delay]   We conducted a “whiteboard” meeting April 24 at Ms. [redacted]’s home in northern Madison County.At that April 24 meeting, Ms. [redacted] said she planned to rename the company but had not decided on a name.  Ms. [redacted] agreed to provide us the new name April 27, per the 3 day time limit stipulated in Paragraph 5.e of our contract (available on [redacted] Drive).  Ms. [redacted] did not provide us a name until May 12. [12 day delay]  Paragraph 5 of our contract stipulates that our firm is not responsible for project delays when our client misses deadlines.These were the first of multiple delays, Change Orders and missed deadlines by Ms. [redacted]. In May, Ms. [redacted] hired my firm to design a logo.  This project was not included in our contract so it represented a Change Order.We negotiated a separate fee of $1,000 for logo designWe later waived the $1,000 fee as a concession to Ms. [redacted]Claim: We hired the company because we wanted the services of a specific web designer. That designer left the company within a couple of weeks after we signed the contract and we not informed until after we paid $2000.00 on top a $6000.00 deposit over three months into the project. We paid in good faith with little to no product at that point.Response:Paragraph 15 or our contract (available on [redacted] Drive) stipulates that we may assign the project to subcontractors we choose.  The contract does not specify any contractor by name.  The designer Ms. [redacted] expected to be assigned this project participated in the initial whiteboard meeting, a 4 hour workshop conducted at Ms. [redacted]’s home, attended by the designer in question, our writer and myself.  When the meeting ended, Ms. [redacted] commented that she was very pleased.  The meeting provided marketing insights that enabled us to generate wireframes created by the designer in question, including a content plan for the Home page. We followed the wireframes and content plan throughout the project. The workshop enhanced our understanding of the company, its target audience, and unique selling proposition, empowering us to guide marketing decisions pertaining to website layout, navigation and copywriting, each of which we delivered subsequently.  On May 14, 30 days after our contract with Ms. [redacted] was executed, the designer Ms. [redacted] met did withdraw from our team.  He voiced concerns that Ms. [redacted]’s budget was inadequate to achieve her goals.  He urged us not to initiate website redesign before Ms. [redacted]’s rebranding project had taken shape--specifically, until her new logo was designed and approved. He noted we’d need a separate agreement for logo design since this was not included in the scope of our contract. I assigned our senior (more experienced) designer and a superior--and more expensive--developer to replace the designer/coder who left. Contract paragraph 15 states: “Third Party Consultants and Sub-Contractors.  CHARLOTTESVILLE SEO reserves the right to assign subcontractors to this project to ensure the right fit for the job as well as on-time completion”I informed Ms. [redacted] and apologized to her that the designer/coder she liked had left, but I did not do so immediately.  Though our contract does not require us to notify Ms. [redacted] of such changes, I regret and apologize for not explaining the change sooner to Ms. [redacted].  When I informed Ms. [redacted] the designer had disengaged, Ms. [redacted] did not terminate our contract.  Not only did she continue working with us, she spoke highly of our senior designer’s work. (audio available on [redacted] Drive) Indeed, Ms. [redacted] did not terminate until October 16, when we were within a week of delivering a coded website.  She terminated within 2 days after agreeing to pay the balance due of $3,000.  In good faith, I had authorized my developer to begin coding the site.  When Ms. [redacted] abruptly terminated the agreement, my developer had performed roughly the first 25% of the coding project.  I paid him $1,000+ for this work. (invoice attached)  We did not invoice Ms. [redacted] for this expense. The senior designer and the senior developer assigned to Ms. [redacted]’s project are each more experienced than the departing contractor.   The senior developer is quantifiably more capable.  (See [redacted] Drive for quantitative proof that the replacement developer delivers top quality code) Design is subjective, but it is noteworthy that I have assigned redesign work (pending) to improve the appearance of both sites the departing designer created during his brief tenure with my firm.  So while the designer Ms. [redacted] met did disengage, he was replaced by a more capable team. Ms. [redacted] was poised to benefit from superior work.On May 14, Ms. [redacted] agreed to hire us for a separate project to design her logo with the understanding the work was to be performed by our senior designer. Ms. [redacted]’s decision to change her company’s name, coupled with the subsequent logo design project effectively put the website design and development project on hold.Our writer said that day (May 14) that she would postpone copywriting until the logo design was completed and approved by Ms. [redacted].Our writer also noted the importance of a new tagline to accompany the new company name and new logo.  Our senior designer agreed that a tagline was critically important for branding, marketing and design.  Our writer offered to donate this work since it was not part of the initial project scope.  Tagline creation was to begin after the logo was designed and approved.   Fee waived. May 14 quote from our senior designer to our writer re. tagline:“I totally agree with you about tag lines - even as a designer, I find them essential, keeps the branding on point and focused. I end up writing them too if none is provided and its a VERY generous ‘freebee.’ My years in NYC big ad agency land exposed me to a world where tag lines are - rightfully so - every bit as important (and $$$) as the logo itself. A good tag line can literally be worth a $m.”May 27, [12 days after receiving the assignment Change Order] our senior designer shared 12 distinct and professional logo designs with our team for discussion.  (Logo 1rst drafts are available on [redacted] Drive)  We presented these initial logo drafts to Ms. [redacted] for feedback and direction on May 29 [14 days after receiving the assignment Change Order]Ms. [redacted] promised to provide feedback June 1, per the terms of our contract.  Ms. [redacted] notified me her son had found some of the shapes in online stock imagery.  Logo work is not a task my firm seeks, but our senior designer has been creating logos for ad agencies in New York City and internationally for over 20 years. I had not asked her how she produces designs because no prior client had ever asked me.   Our designer was unreachable (volunteering on a mountain retreat for breast cancer survivors) the day Ms. [redacted] complained about her son’s discovery,  so I simply apologized to Ms. [redacted] and assured Ms. [redacted] we would not charge her. Ms. [redacted] informed me she was considering letting her son attempt to create the logo.  I told Ms. [redacted] she could work with her son or hire any designer she chose.   I assured her I would speak with our senior designer the following week, which is when I learned that adapting shapes from stock imagery is common practice for logo design.  In that conversation with my designer, she also noted :Her first draft designs were intended as initial ideas  Only some of her logos incorporated stock-imagery shapesLogos for many major brands adopt this logo-design approachWhen my designer regained cell phone coverage, she called Ms. [redacted] to explain and to apologize for any misunderstanding.  Ms. [redacted] elected to continue working with our designer.  At no time during my conversation with Ms. [redacted] about logo design did I mention or allude to adverse consequences in the event Ms. [redacted] should choose to hire another designer.  (audio discussion about logo design is available on [redacted] Drive)  Indeed, I waived the fee.  My firm had no financial incentive to retain the logo design project.  Our writer worked that weekend on taglines and provided ideas to our team June 2. [4 days after seeing the initial logos and prior to receiving feedback from Ms. [redacted]]I exchanged ideas, editing suggestions and revisions with our writer until June 7 at no charge  June 7, we presented the tagline ideas to Ms. [redacted]June 9, Ms [redacted] shared her vision for a modified taglineOur team had concerns with Ms. [redacted]’s tagline, which we deliberated in-house at no chargeJune 23 [9 days for Round 2 on this Change Order], our senior designer delivered over a dozen new and revised logo concepts at no charge, based on her discussions with Ms. [redacted], after Ms. [redacted] chose to continue working with our designer.  (Round 2 logos available on [redacted] Drive)July 13 [20 days for Round 3 on this Change Order], our senior designer delivered 4 logo concepts to Ms. [redacted] (available on [redacted] Drive), after corresponding directly with Ms. [redacted].  At this time we also were awaiting feedback from Ms. [redacted] regarding Draft 1 of copy for the Home page, which our writer and I had discussed and collaborated to improve.  The copywriting feedback delay constituted another missed deadline by Ms. [redacted].July 16, Ms. [redacted] notified our senior designer that Ms. [redacted] had chosen a logo.    Our designer used the word “finally” in her celebratory remarks that this time intensive project we provided at no charge was delivered and accepted.At the time Ms. [redacted] accepted the logo, she did not indicate she was displeased in any way with the logo she chose.   At one point she offered to pay our fee. We did not charge her.  For 2.5 months, from April 27, the due date for the new name that Ms. [redacted] missed, until July 16 when she approved the logo, her website redesign project and the bulk of the writing was on hold due to Ms. [redacted]’s delays providing feedback and her Change Orders. [75 day delay]. Two months were consumed only by logo design, a Change Order that was not included in our initial contract.  Ms. [redacted]’s changes and delays interfered with other projects and with our team’s summer travel plans.   We waived all fees for everyone who participated in logo design and discussions.  The original project, without logo, was estimated at $12,000.  In one of multiple good faith efforts to appease Ms. [redacted], I offered to cap the fees at $11,000 and to continue paying my team, and continue donating my time indefinitely, until Ms. [redacted] was satisfied.  Ms. [redacted] accepted my firm’s offer to receive design changes until she was satisfied with a cap on all work except coding at $8,000, the amount she had already paid. Ms. [redacted] accepted my offer to assume all writing and editing duties myself until she was satisfied with the writing on every page of her site.  I submitted multiple copywriting edits promptly, when and as requested by Ms. [redacted], many of which Ms. [redacted] approved with apparent enthusiasm. (Documentation of Ms. [redacted]’s acceptance of writing and editing is available on [redacted] Drive).  By this time, Ms. [redacted] had made a total of two payments totaling $8,000.  I offered Ms. [redacted] the choice of hiring another developer if she wished to lower her total cost below the reduced project cap of $11,000.  I provided Ms. [redacted] a written estimate of the hours (45) we anticipated we would require to code, test and launch the website, once she was satisfied with layouts and text.  I informed her that she could hire a web development firm overseas if she wished to economize on the coding project. Prior to Ms. [redacted]’s abrupt contract-cancellation email, all written communications from Ms. [redacted] indicated she intended to pay my firm to complete the project at a capped fee of $11,000, which meant she would pay the coding fee ($3,000) when she accepted the project as coded on our server (per our contract timeline for payments).  In another concession, I authorized our developer to begin coding the project based on Ms. [redacted]’s emails that she wished to continue working with us for the coding project.  At least a week after Ms. [redacted] had approved the website layouts for each page and after I had authorized our developer to begin coding the approved design, Ms. [redacted] emailed me to complain about the layout on two pages, the Home page and Contact page.   I notified our developer to delay coding those pages and informed our senior designer that we needed to provide alternate layouts to Ms. [redacted].  No additional fee for this Change OrderClaim: When we requested a logo we were told we were getting an original design. The designs (all twelve of them) were found on line by my 15 year old son. When I confronted [redacted] with the issue, he said he had no idea this was happening and offered to give us the logo for free.ResponseMuch of this statement from Ms. [redacted] is accurate.  Our senior designer readily acknowledges adapting shapes she located in stock imagery for some, but not all, of the design concepts she submitted in Round 1.Our senior designer disputes Ms. [redacted]’s implication that Round 1 designs were in any way substandard.Our senior designer disputes Ms. [redacted]’s implication that our senior designer did not follow widely used design practices when she adapted and incorporated these shapes.   Please see the explanation above for additional information.  When Ms. [redacted] initially complained about the use of stock imagery, I immediately offered to withdraw our logo design service at no charge.  There was no fee for the logo work we’d provided and no penalty to hire another designer.  Ms. [redacted] was under no obligation to resume work with our designer.  She chose to do so with no pressure or threats of undue delay from my firm.I disagree with “we were not satisfied.”  Ms. [redacted] reengaged our designer.  At the time she approved the logo, as stated above, Ms. [redacted] did not inform us she was dissatisfied with the logo she approved. She did mention later that she wasn’t sure she liked the logo until she saw it in the website design comps, at which point she said she was pleased.  She also indicated she was pleased with the website design during that discussion. (audio shared on [redacted] Drive)  Claim: The original estimate for services with the web designer we chose was twice as much as the estimate for designer we ended up with on the project.Response:No.  Before Ms. [redacted] signed our initial contract, I provided two estimates.Lower estimate was $6,500 to design and code a website  This would have been design and code only  No writingNo editingNo consultingNo marketing personas No marketing adviceNo workshop billable at $2,400Contract (paragraph 11) rates for this workshop:Writer research: $125 * 2 hours = $250Writer at workshop: $125 * 4 hours = $500Design & Marketing research : $150 * 2 hours = $300Design & Marketing at workshop : $150 * 8 hours = $1,200Design post-workshop: $150 * 1 design hour = $150Total billable for workshop = $2,400Travel time ~ 5 hours (waived)Higher estimate was $12,000 for design and coding plus marketing help Did not include subsequent change orders for:Logo design Tagline workIn late September, we provided yet another concession to Ms. [redacted], offering a choice of two options.Option 1: No balance due to deliver all items in the list below except coding and page-speed optimizationOption 2: $3,000 balance due upon coding completion and acceptance of delivery for all items listed below. Our normal fee would be  $12,000 + $1,000 + hourly fees for unlimited edits to provide this work:Website design Completed until Ms. [redacted] changed her mind about two pages she had approvedDesign re-approval was pending and subject to our offer of unlimited design changes prior to coding the siteLogo design Completed and approved by Ms. [redacted]Whiteboard session Completed in AprilMarketing help to formulate content to engage target audienceCompletedWriting and editing Completed, but pending final approval or additional requests for editing from Ms. [redacted]Also subject to our offer of unlimited content edits prior to building the siteTagline creation or helpCompletedConversion rate optimization CompletedCoding Page speed optimizationBy the time we offered Ms. [redacted] these 2 options:Our regular billable rate for services already rendered would have exceeded $15,000. We projected our cumulative fees to complete the project as proposed in Option 2 above might exceed $25,000 at our contract rates. Our total project fee was capped, nevertheless, at $11,000. September 29, Ms. [redacted] emailed us saying she accepted the second option for us to code the site. She agreed to pay the $3,000 coding fee upon acceptance of the coded site for a capped project total of $11,000.“Hi [redacted],We have decided we would like your firm to complete the website and agree
to pay the additional $3000.00 for completion and coding.  We made comments regarding changes that need
to be made to the website. We still need video integration, forms integration
and form uploads.  We will send you text
that we need to write by COB Wednesday. 
Please let us know next steps.[redacted] and [redacted]  ”Claim: We were not satisfied, however we accepted it because we were told we needed it to move forward with the project and we were already three months behind.ResponseTo the contrary:I encouraged Ms. [redacted] to hire another logo designer.  At that time, Ms. [redacted] was responsible for 75 days of delays, not including scheduling challenges.  (see above)Our senior designer reported at least one “significant delay” as she awaited logo feedback from Ms. [redacted], who was on vacation. Such delays, for which Ms. [redacted] inappropriately blames our team, further contributed to our efforts to complete the project in a timely manner. Claim: [redacted] continuously found ways to incorporate more fees into the project.ResponseThis is patently false and defamatory.  We bill for our time, as is stipulated in our contract. But for Ms. [redacted], we capped the total fee below the contract price she originally agreed to pay.  We continuously made financial sacrifices by waiving, discounting and capping fees to appease Ms. [redacted]. (abundant evidence available on [redacted] Drive)We offered to withdraw from the coding project after providing our estimate of 45 hours to code, test and launch, in which case our final fee would have been the $8,000 Ms. [redacted] had already paid.Had we completed the project, Ms. [redacted] would have been invoiced $3,000 for coding. For a reduced fee total of $11,000 (including payments received), she would have received considerably more work than the contract stipulated. See fees and options above.Correspondence from Ms. [redacted] indicated she wanted us to complete the project quickly so I authorized my developer to begin coding the project before Ms. [redacted] provided final approval of all design and copy.  My firm paid our developer $1,000+ (invoice available on [redacted] Drive) for his initial coding work.  We did not charge Ms. [redacted] for the developer’s time, even though her Sept. 29 email, above, states her consent to engage and compensate us for this coding work.Claim: [redacted] also informed us of an additional coding cost of $3000.00.ResponseMs. [redacted]’s assertion is misleading.  Please refer to project pricing above.  To recap:The original contract price was $12,000.To appease Ms. [redacted], my firm lowered the fee to $11,000 while adding more services including unlimited editing and design revisions.Ultimately, Ms. [redacted]’s demands would have required us to deliver $15,000 to $25,000 of services for $8,000 total instead of the $11,000 total fee she reconfirmed two days before terminating the agreement.  Claim: Website design estimates should include this cost.ResponseMs. [redacted]’s assertion is misleading.  Design and coding fees were included in the $12,000 contract and later in the $11,000 Option 2, detailed above.Please see costs and options above.Claim: We agreed to pay for some marketing writing due the fact that we had at that point in the project paid more than the estimate for designer that was now on the project. ResponseThis claim doesn’t make sense.  Claim: Then we informed we needed to do our own writing because "he couldn't light a fire" under his writer.ResponseMs. [redacted] received a workshop, wireframes, information architecture, marketing guidance, marketing personas, and copywriting prior to one missed July 28 deadline by my writer.When I apologized to Ms. [redacted] about our writer missing a deadline, I told Ms. [redacted] she could hire another writer, wait for my writer (an independent contractor), or write the remaining copy in house.  If Ms. [redacted] had chosen to write the copy or hire a writer, she would not have been charged for our writer’s time.  Ms. [redacted] was not charged for writing delivered after the missed deadline Ms. [redacted] was not charged for extensive subsequent editsMy writer and I were working on Home page copy the week of Aug. 3, when Ms. [redacted] emailed us another Change Order in which she instructed us to stop writing so we could expedite the design.  I notified my writer to stop writing. I alerted my designer that Ms. [redacted] wanted us to proceed with designing layouts for unwritten content.Claim: They finally delivered comps for the website most of which was unacceptable.ResponseMy designer and I received praise from Ms. [redacted] when we delivered the design comps. (audio available on [redacted] Drive)It was not until shortly before Ms. [redacted] terminated our agreement that she complained about the layouts , and even then she complained only about layouts for two pages, both of which she had previously approved.  When Ms. [redacted] did complain, I offered to do whatever was necessary to make her happy, including creating a new design, and/or hiring a new designer.  I assured Ms. [redacted] that I would absorb all future design costs until she was completely satisfied.  (email available on [redacted] Drive)Senior designer’s reaction that Ms. [redacted] was dissatisfied with design work:“That is just unbelievable.  I'm totally shocked. She never once said she didn't like her logo. We discussed the process of a launch pad series of drafts, and she agreed it made sense. She liked the website design that was suggested, we were all on the call when she said she loved the look. It wasn't until several rounds of revisions that she decided she didn't
like the home page design any longer. And no one ever asked me for anything other
than what I supplied. Yep, the truth is definitely contorted.
 Disappointing isn't the word, I'm positively gobsmacked. I've never ever
ever encountered anything remotely like this. I'm just astonished and so so
very sad.”Claim: In addition, the new web designer and [redacted] did not know how to intergrate services we needed on our website.ResponseThis is inaccurate, false and defamatory.First, it is our developer’s responsibility to implement website functionality.  Our senior designer is responsible for design only.Second, although Ms. [redacted] later asserted that she expected more coding than I had contractually agreed to deliver, my firm agreed to provide the additional work at no extra charge to Ms. [redacted]. (audio available on [redacted] Drive)The developer assigned to code Ms. [redacted]’s site is experienced and extremely capable.  (quantitative proof available on [redacted] Drive) The additional work was not complicated. It posed no coding challengesThe additional coding would have required an additional day or two to complete and thus would have increased my firm’s costs.   (developer’s revised estimate available on [redacted] Drive) Third, at no charge to Ms. [redacted], I researched new technologies and conducted international calls to review Ms. [redacted]’s project with principals of companies that provide video conferencing services.  The services appeared easy to implement and maintain. I presented these service options to Ms. [redacted] as a courtesy, free of charge.  Ms. [redacted] chose not to implement the services.  Ms. [redacted] cited third-party cost concerns.We terminated the contract when we realized we would never get an acceptable website.ResponseThis is baseless and defamatory.Ms. [redacted] had no way to assess the competence of our developer.Nothing in my comments to Ms. [redacted] suggested my developer could not build the website to meet or exceed her requirements.We were about one week from delivering a coded site when Ms. [redacted] abruptly terminated the contract via email.Adjusting (per contract paragraph 5) for delays Ms. [redacted] caused surrounding her company’s name change and logo design, my firm was on schedule to complete the project within the timeframe as estimated in our contract.  Adjusting for additional delays and Change Orders, we were on schedule to deliver ahead of our estimate.Oct. 14, Ms. [redacted] reconfirmed her agreement to pay us $3,000 when coding was completed and approved by her.  Here is an excerpt of that Oct. 14 email exchange:“I will email you a link to the site on our server. My team will correct any issues you identify or we identify, including missing pages, problems with forms, problems with links, and any pre-cutoff edits I may have overlooked.”Ms. [redacted]: “Sounds fine.”“You will pay the remaining $3k when you are satisfied (a) that everything works, and (b) that I have inserted the text changes you provided by the cutoff”Ms. [redacted]: “We will pay $3000 upon receipt of a coded functional website.”Oct. 16, Ms. [redacted] terminated the same agreement she had reconfirmed two days prior. Ms. [redacted] terminated…before delivering items she agreed to provide as coding prerequisites.…without ever seeing the site in progress on our server, which we had begun coding a few days prior and which would have been ready for her review about a week later.Closing thoughtsMs. [redacted] did not contact us by phone or email to notify us she was terminating the agreement In the six months we provided services to Ms. [redacted], not once did she express concern to me or my team about our ability to code her site.In the ten years I have operated this small business, I have maintained our outstanding reputation for exemplary customer service, making concessions to resolve concerns directly whenever clients are not completely satisfied.  Of the hundreds of clients we have served during the past decade, Ms. [redacted] is the only client who has chosen to file a Revdex.com complaint and the only client to assert that not a single piece of work our team delivered in 6 months had value, in spite of the fact that she accepted, approved and praised our design and copywriting before terminating our contract.Ms. [redacted] was unapologetically relentless in her demands for services. Each time Ms. [redacted] complained, we offered her additional concessions in ongoing efforts to appease her. This was a costly project for my firm (evidence available on [redacted] Drive), but we never stopped trying to satisfy Ms. [redacted].We are disappointed Ms. [redacted] chose to terminate our agreement inches from the finish line.  We believe she provides a valuable service to her clients. We hope her new business proves successful.

Revdex.com Complaint ResponseResponder: [redacted] for Charlottesville SEO Web
Development, LLCComplaint filed by: [redacted], [redacted], formerly [redacted]Response date: Dec. 7, 2015Ms. [redacted]’s Complaint:We contracted with Charlottesville SEO...

Web
Development - [redacted] to develop a website for our business, [redacted] The contract stated that the product would be
delivered in a professional, competent and timely manner. Services were NOT
delivered in a professional, competent or timely manner. We hired the company
because we wanted the services of a specific web designer. That designer left
the company within a couple of weeks after we signed the contract and we not
informed until after we paid $2000.00 on top a $6000.00 deposit over three
months into the project. We paid in good faith with little to no product at
that point. When we requested a logo we were told we were getting an original
design. The designs (all twelve of them) were found on line by my 15 year old
son. When I confronted [redacted] with the issue, he said he had no idea this was
happening and offered to give us the logo for free. We were not satisfied,
however we accepted it because we were told we needed it to move forward with
the project and we were already three months behind. The original estimate for
services with the web designer we chose was twice as much as the estimate for
designer we ended up with on the project.[redacted] continuously found ways to
incorporate more fees into the project. [redacted] also informed us of an additional
coding cost of $3000.00. Website design estimates should include this cost. We
agreed to pay for some marketing writing due the fact that we had at that point
in the project paid more than the estimate for designer that was now on the
project. Then we informed we needed to do our own writing because "he
couldn't light a fire" under his writer. They finally delivered comps for
the website most of which was unacceptable. In addition, the new web designer
and [redacted] did not know how to intergrate services we needed on our website.We
terminated the contract when we realized we would never get an acceptable
website.Response SummaryMy firm, Charlottesville SEO Web Development,
made costly financial sacrifices in efforts to appease Ms. [redacted] by waiving
fees for work that Ms. [redacted] received and approved. After signing our contract, Ms. [redacted]’s
expectations and requirements expanded. My firm provided additional services
while capping Ms. [redacted]’s fee below the amount stipulated in our
contract.  To appease Ms. [redacted], we
continued offering additional work at no additional charge, including unlimited design changes and
copywriting revisions.  We delivered writing and design work, as
requested, which Ms. [redacted] received and approved.  On at least three separate occasions, Ms.
[redacted] later changed her mind, notifying us she no longer liked work she had
already accepted.  In each instance, we
accommodated her requests to make additional revisions at no additional charge.Ms. [redacted]’s expanding requirements and failure
to provide timely feedback caused lengthy delays and scheduling conflicts for
my firm.  She then blamed us for the
delays. Paragraph 5 of our contract stipulates our
deadlines and time estimates will be extended as necessary if the client, Ms.
[redacted], fails to provide feedback and information we request within 3 days OR
if Ms. [redacted] issues Change Orders.  Ms.
[redacted] did both.  One of Ms. [redacted]’s
delays involved a Change Order that resulted in a cumulative delay of 75 days. The
project was hindered further by Ms. [redacted]’s scheduling challenges and feedback
delays.Before Ms. [redacted] delivered previously agreed
coding prerequisites, she abruptly terminated our contract. Her complaint alleges
she “realized” we could not code her site. 
We’ve been developing websites for a decade.  We’ve built sites considerably more
complicated than the site we were hired to build for Ms. [redacted].  In good faith, I authorized coding to begin about
a week prior to receiving Ms. [redacted]’s termination notice. The site in progress
is on our server.  Ms. [redacted] never saw
it. Ms. [redacted] had no reason to presume we could not, or would not, code her
website.  The coding we provided in good
faith added another $1,000+ to my firm’s costs for this project. We did not invoice Ms. [redacted] to
recoup this cost.Response DetailsClaim: We contracted with Charlottesville SEO Web Development - [redacted] to develop a website for our business, [redacted].Response: The contract was executed between our firm and [redacted] on April 14, 2005.  Claim:  The contract stated that the product would be delivered in a professional, competent and timely manner. Services were NOT delivered in a professional, competent or timely manner.Response:The first day Ms. [redacted] and her partner were free to meet with our team was April 24. [7 day delay]   We conducted a “whiteboard” meeting April 24 at Ms. [redacted]’s home in northern Madison County.At that April 24 meeting, Ms. [redacted] said she planned to rename the company but had not decided on a name.  Ms. [redacted] agreed to provide us the new name April 27, per the 3 day time limit stipulated in Paragraph 5.e of our contract (available on [redacted] Drive).  Ms. [redacted] did not provide us a name until May 12. [12 day delay]  Paragraph 5 of our contract stipulates that our firm is not responsible for project delays when our client misses deadlines.These were the first of multiple delays, Change Orders and missed deadlines by Ms. [redacted]. In May, Ms. [redacted] hired my firm to design a logo.  This project was not included in our contract so it represented a Change Order.We negotiated a separate fee of $1,000 for logo designWe later waived the $1,000 fee as a concession to Ms. [redacted]Claim: We hired the company because we wanted the services of a specific web designer. That designer left the company within a couple of weeks after we signed the contract and we not informed until after we paid $2000.00 on top a $6000.00 deposit over three months into the project. We paid in good faith with little to no product at that point.Response:Paragraph 15 or our contract (available on [redacted] Drive) stipulates that we may assign the project to subcontractors we choose.  The contract does not specify any contractor by name.  The designer Ms. [redacted] expected to be assigned this project participated in the initial whiteboard meeting, a 4 hour workshop conducted at Ms. [redacted]’s home, attended by the designer in question, our writer and myself.  When the meeting ended, Ms. [redacted] commented that she was very pleased.  The meeting provided marketing insights that enabled us to generate wireframes created by the designer in question, including a content plan for the Home page. We followed the wireframes and content plan throughout the project. The workshop enhanced our understanding of the company, its target audience, and unique selling proposition, empowering us to guide marketing decisions pertaining to website layout, navigation and copywriting, each of which we delivered subsequently.  On May 14, 30 days after our contract with Ms. [redacted] was executed, the designer Ms. [redacted] met did withdraw from our team.  He voiced concerns that Ms. [redacted]’s budget was inadequate to achieve her goals.  He urged us not to initiate website redesign before Ms. [redacted]’s rebranding project had taken shape--specifically, until her new logo was designed and approved. He noted we’d need a separate agreement for logo design since this was not included in the scope of our contract. I assigned our senior (more experienced) designer and a superior--and more expensive--developer to replace the designer/coder who left. Contract paragraph 15 states: “Third Party Consultants and Sub-Contractors.  CHARLOTTESVILLE SEO reserves the right to assign subcontractors to this project to ensure the right fit for the job as well as on-time completion”I informed Ms. [redacted] and apologized to her that the designer/coder she liked had left, but I did not do so immediately.  Though our contract does not require us to notify Ms. [redacted] of such changes, I regret and apologize for not explaining the change sooner to Ms. [redacted].  When I informed Ms. [redacted] the designer had disengaged, Ms. [redacted] did not terminate our contract.  Not only did she continue working with us, she spoke highly of our senior designer’s work. (audio available on [redacted] Drive) Indeed, Ms. [redacted] did not terminate until October 16, when we were within a week of delivering a coded website.  She terminated within 2 days after agreeing to pay the balance due of $3,000.  In good faith, I had authorized my developer to begin coding the site.  When Ms. [redacted] abruptly terminated the agreement, my developer had performed roughly the first 25% of the coding project.  I paid him $1,000+ for this work. (invoice attached)  We did not invoice Ms. [redacted] for this expense. The senior designer and the senior developer assigned to Ms. [redacted]’s project are each more experienced than the departing contractor.   The senior developer is quantifiably more capable.  (See [redacted] Drive for quantitative proof that the replacement developer delivers top quality code) Design is subjective, but it is noteworthy that I have assigned redesign work (pending) to improve the appearance of both sites the departing designer created during his brief tenure with my firm.  So while the designer Ms. [redacted] met did disengage, he was replaced by a more capable team. Ms. [redacted] was poised to benefit from superior work.On May 14, Ms. [redacted] agreed to hire us for a separate project to design her logo with the understanding the work was to be performed by our senior designer. Ms. [redacted]’s decision to change her company’s name, coupled with the subsequent logo design project effectively put the website design and development project on hold.Our writer said that day (May 14) that she would postpone copywriting until the logo design was completed and approved by Ms. [redacted].Our writer also noted the importance of a new tagline to accompany the new company name and new logo.  Our senior designer agreed that a tagline was critically important for branding, marketing and design.  Our writer offered to donate this work since it was not part of the initial project scope.  Tagline creation was to begin after the logo was designed and approved.   Fee waived. May 14 quote from our senior designer to our writer re. tagline:“I totally agree with you about tag lines - even as a designer, I find them essential, keeps the branding on point and focused. I end up writing them too if none is provided and its a VERY generous ‘freebee.’ My years in NYC big ad agency land exposed me to a world where tag lines are - rightfully so - every bit as important (and $$$) as the logo itself. A good tag line can literally be worth a $m.”May 27, [12 days after receiving the assignment Change Order] our senior designer shared 12 distinct and professional logo designs with our team for discussion.  (Logo 1rst drafts are available on [redacted] Drive)  We presented these initial logo drafts to Ms. [redacted] for feedback and direction on May 29 [14 days after receiving the assignment Change Order]Ms. [redacted] promised to provide feedback June 1, per the terms of our contract.  Ms. [redacted] notified me her son had found some of the shapes in online stock imagery.  Logo work is not a task my firm seeks, but our senior designer has been creating logos for ad agencies in New York City and internationally for over 20 years. I had not asked her how she produces designs because no prior client had ever asked me.   Our designer was unreachable (volunteering on a mountain retreat for breast cancer survivors) the day Ms. [redacted] complained about her son’s discovery,  so I simply apologized to Ms. [redacted] and assured Ms. [redacted] we would not charge her. Ms. [redacted] informed me she was considering letting her son attempt to create the logo.  I told Ms. [redacted] she could work with her son or hire any designer she chose.   I assured her I would speak with our senior designer the following week, which is when I learned that adapting shapes from stock imagery is common practice for logo design.  In that conversation with my designer, she also noted :Her first draft designs were intended as initial ideas  Only some of her logos incorporated stock-imagery shapesLogos for many major brands adopt this logo-design approachWhen my designer regained cell phone coverage, she called Ms. [redacted] to explain and to apologize for any misunderstanding.  Ms. [redacted] elected to continue working with our designer.  At no time during my conversation with Ms. [redacted] about logo design did I mention or allude to adverse consequences in the event Ms. [redacted] should choose to hire another designer.  (audio discussion about logo design is available on [redacted] Drive)  Indeed, I waived the fee.  My firm had no financial incentive to retain the logo design project.  Our writer worked that weekend on taglines and provided ideas to our team June 2. [4 days after seeing the initial logos and prior to receiving feedback from Ms. [redacted]]I exchanged ideas, editing suggestions and revisions with our writer until June 7 at no charge  June 7, we presented the tagline ideas to Ms. [redacted]June 9, Ms [redacted] shared her vision for a modified taglineOur team had concerns with Ms. [redacted]’s tagline, which we deliberated in-house at no chargeJune 23 [9 days for Round 2 on this Change Order], our senior designer delivered over a dozen new and revised logo concepts at no charge, based on her discussions with Ms. [redacted], after Ms. [redacted] chose to continue working with our designer.  (Round 2 logos available on [redacted] Drive)July 13 [20 days for Round 3 on this Change Order], our senior designer delivered 4 logo concepts to Ms. [redacted] (available on [redacted] Drive), after corresponding directly with Ms. [redacted].  At this time we also were awaiting feedback from Ms. [redacted] regarding Draft 1 of copy for the Home page, which our writer and I had discussed and collaborated to improve.  The copywriting feedback delay constituted another missed deadline by Ms. [redacted].July 16, Ms. [redacted] notified our senior designer that Ms. [redacted] had chosen a logo.    Our designer used the word “finally” in her celebratory remarks that this time intensive project we provided at no charge was delivered and accepted.At the time Ms. [redacted] accepted the logo, she did not indicate she was displeased in any way with the logo she chose.   At one point she offered to pay our fee. We did not charge her.  For 2.5 months, from April 27, the due date for the new name that Ms. [redacted] missed, until July 16 when she approved the logo, her website redesign project and the bulk of the writing was on hold due to Ms. [redacted]’s delays providing feedback and her Change Orders. [75 day delay]. Two months were consumed only by logo design, a Change Order that was not included in our initial contract.  Ms. [redacted]’s changes and delays interfered with other projects and with our team’s summer travel plans.   We waived all fees for everyone who participated in logo design and discussions.  The original project, without logo, was estimated at $12,000.  In one of multiple good faith efforts to appease Ms. [redacted], I offered to cap the fees at $11,000 and to continue paying my team, and continue donating my time indefinitely, until Ms. [redacted] was satisfied.  Ms. [redacted] accepted my firm’s offer to receive design changes until she was satisfied with a cap on all work except coding at $8,000, the amount she had already paid. Ms. [redacted] accepted my offer to assume all writing and editing duties myself until she was satisfied with the writing on every page of her site.  I submitted multiple copywriting edits promptly, when and as requested by Ms. [redacted], many of which Ms. [redacted] approved with apparent enthusiasm. (Documentation of Ms. [redacted]’s acceptance of writing and editing is available on [redacted] Drive).  By this time, Ms. [redacted] had made a total of two payments totaling $8,000.  I offered Ms. [redacted] the choice of hiring another developer if she wished to lower her total cost below the reduced project cap of $11,000.  I provided Ms. [redacted] a written estimate of the hours (45) we anticipated we would require to code, test and launch the website, once she was satisfied with layouts and text.  I informed her that she could hire a web development firm overseas if she wished to economize on the coding project. Prior to Ms. [redacted]’s abrupt contract-cancellation email, all written communications from Ms. [redacted] indicated she intended to pay my firm to complete the project at a capped fee of $11,000, which meant she would pay the coding fee ($3,000) when she accepted the project as coded on our server (per our contract timeline for payments).  In another concession, I authorized our developer to begin coding the project based on Ms. [redacted]’s emails that she wished to continue working with us for the coding project.  At least a week after Ms. [redacted] had approved the website layouts for each page and after I had authorized our developer to begin coding the approved design, Ms. [redacted] emailed me to complain about the layout on two pages, the Home page and Contact page.   I notified our developer to delay coding those pages and informed our senior designer that we needed to provide alternate layouts to Ms. [redacted].  No additional fee for this Change OrderClaim: When we requested a logo we were told we were getting an original design. The designs (all twelve of them) were found on line by my 15 year old son. When I confronted [redacted] with the issue, he said he had no idea this was happening and offered to give us the logo for free.ResponseMuch of this statement from Ms. [redacted] is accurate.  Our senior designer readily acknowledges adapting shapes she located in stock imagery for some, but not all, of the design concepts she submitted in Round 1.Our senior designer disputes Ms. [redacted]’s implication that Round 1 designs were in any way substandard.Our senior designer disputes Ms. [redacted]’s implication that our senior designer did not follow widely used design practices when she adapted and incorporated these shapes.   Please see the explanation above for additional information.  When Ms. [redacted] initially complained about the use of stock imagery, I immediately offered to withdraw our logo design service at no charge.  There was no fee for the logo work we’d provided and no penalty to hire another designer.  Ms. [redacted] was under no obligation to resume work with our designer.  She chose to do so with no pressure or threats of undue delay from my firm.I disagree with “we were not satisfied.”  Ms. [redacted] reengaged our designer.  At the time she approved the logo, as stated above, Ms. [redacted] did not inform us she was dissatisfied with the logo she approved. She did mention later that she wasn’t sure she liked the logo until she saw it in the website design comps, at which point she said she was pleased.  She also indicated she was pleased with the website design during that discussion. (audio shared on [redacted] Drive)  Claim: The original estimate for services with the web designer we chose was twice as much as the estimate for designer we ended up with on the project.Response:No.  Before Ms. [redacted] signed our initial contract, I provided two estimates.Lower estimate was $6,500 to design and code a website  This would have been design and code only  No writingNo editingNo consultingNo marketing personas No marketing adviceNo workshop billable at $2,400Contract (paragraph 11) rates for this workshop:Writer research: $125 * 2 hours = $250Writer at workshop: $125 * 4 hours = $500Design & Marketing research : $150 * 2 hours = $300Design & Marketing at workshop : $150 * 8 hours = $1,200Design post-workshop: $150 * 1 design hour = $150Total billable for workshop = $2,400Travel time ~ 5 hours (waived)Higher estimate was $12,000 for design and coding plus marketing help Did not include subsequent change orders for:Logo design Tagline workIn late September, we provided yet another concession to Ms. [redacted], offering a choice of two options.Option 1: No balance due to deliver all items in the list below except coding and page-speed optimizationOption 2: $3,000 balance due upon coding completion and acceptance of delivery for all items listed below. Our normal fee would be  $12,000 + $1,000 + hourly fees for unlimited edits to provide this work:Website design Completed until Ms. [redacted] changed her mind about two pages she had approvedDesign re-approval was pending and subject to our offer of unlimited design changes prior to coding the siteLogo design Completed and approved by Ms. [redacted]Whiteboard session Completed in AprilMarketing help to formulate content to engage target audienceCompletedWriting and editing Completed, but pending final approval or additional requests for editing from Ms. [redacted]Also subject to our offer of unlimited content edits prior to building the siteTagline creation or helpCompletedConversion rate optimization CompletedCoding Page speed optimizationBy the time we offered Ms. [redacted] these 2 options:Our regular billable rate for services already rendered would have exceeded $15,000. We projected our cumulative fees to complete the project as proposed in Option 2 above might exceed $25,000 at our contract rates. Our total project fee was capped, nevertheless, at $11,000. September 29, Ms. [redacted] emailed us saying she accepted the second option for us to code the site. She agreed to pay the $3,000 coding fee upon acceptance of the coded site for a capped project total of $11,000.“Hi [redacted],We have decided we would like your firm to complete the website and agree
to pay the additional $3000.00 for completion and coding.  We made comments regarding changes that need
to be made to the website. We still need video integration, forms integration
and form uploads.  We will send you text
that we need to write by COB Wednesday. 
Please let us know next steps.[redacted] and [redacted]  ”Claim: We were not satisfied, however we accepted it because we were told we needed it to move forward with the project and we were already three months behind.ResponseTo the contrary:I encouraged Ms. [redacted] to hire another logo designer.  At that time, Ms. [redacted] was responsible for 75 days of delays, not including scheduling challenges.  (see above)Our senior designer reported at least one “significant delay” as she awaited logo feedback from Ms. [redacted], who was on vacation. Such delays, for which Ms. [redacted] inappropriately blames our team, further contributed to our efforts to complete the project in a timely manner. Claim: [redacted] continuously found ways to incorporate more fees into the project.ResponseThis is patently false and defamatory.  We bill for our time, as is stipulated in our contract. But for Ms. [redacted], we capped the total fee below the contract price she originally agreed to pay.  We continuously made financial sacrifices by waiving, discounting and capping fees to appease Ms. [redacted]. (abundant evidence available on [redacted] Drive)We offered to withdraw from the coding project after providing our estimate of 45 hours to code, test and launch, in which case our final fee would have been the $8,000 Ms. [redacted] had already paid.Had we completed the project, Ms. [redacted] would have been invoiced $3,000 for coding. For a reduced fee total of $11,000 (including payments received), she would have received considerably more work than the contract stipulated. See fees and options above.Correspondence from Ms. [redacted] indicated she wanted us to complete the project quickly so I authorized my developer to begin coding the project before Ms. [redacted] provided final approval of all design and copy.  My firm paid our developer $1,000+ (invoice available on [redacted] Drive) for his initial coding work.  We did not charge Ms. [redacted] for the developer’s time, even though her Sept. 29 email, above, states her consent to engage and compensate us for this coding work.Claim: [redacted] also informed us of an additional coding cost of $3000.00.ResponseMs. [redacted]’s assertion is misleading.  Please refer to project pricing above.  To recap:The original contract price was $12,000.To appease Ms. [redacted], my firm lowered the fee to $11,000 while adding more services including unlimited editing and design revisions.Ultimately, Ms. [redacted]’s demands would have required us to deliver $15,000 to $25,000 of services for $8,000 total instead of the $11,000 total fee she reconfirmed two days before terminating the agreement.  Claim: Website design estimates should include this cost.ResponseMs. [redacted]’s assertion is misleading.  Design and coding fees were included in the $12,000 contract and later in the $11,000 Option 2, detailed above.Please see costs and options above.Claim: We agreed to pay for some marketing writing due the fact that we had at that point in the project paid more than the estimate for designer that was now on the project. ResponseThis claim doesn’t make sense.  Claim: Then we informed we needed to do our own writing because "he couldn't light a fire" under his writer.ResponseMs. [redacted] received a workshop, wireframes, information architecture, marketing guidance, marketing personas, and copywriting prior to one missed July 28 deadline by my writer.When I apologized to Ms. [redacted] about our writer missing a deadline, I told Ms. [redacted] she could hire another writer, wait for my writer (an independent contractor), or write the remaining copy in house.  If Ms. [redacted] had chosen to write the copy or hire a writer, she would not have been charged for our writer’s time.  Ms. [redacted] was not charged for writing delivered after the missed deadline Ms. [redacted] was not charged for extensive subsequent editsMy writer and I were working on Home page copy the week of Aug. 3, when Ms. [redacted] emailed us another Change Order in which she instructed us to stop writing so we could expedite the design.  I notified my writer to stop writing. I alerted my designer that Ms. [redacted] wanted us to proceed with designing layouts for unwritten content.Claim: They finally delivered comps for the website most of which was unacceptable.ResponseMy designer and I received praise from Ms. [redacted] when we delivered the design comps. (audio available on [redacted] Drive)It was not until shortly before Ms. [redacted] terminated our agreement that she complained about the layouts , and even then she complained only about layouts for two pages, both of which she had previously approved.  When Ms. [redacted] did complain, I offered to do whatever was necessary to make her happy, including creating a new design, and/or hiring a new designer.  I assured Ms. [redacted] that I would absorb all future design costs until she was completely satisfied.  (email available on [redacted] Drive)Senior designer’s reaction that Ms. [redacted] was dissatisfied with design work:“That is just unbelievable.  I'm totally shocked. She never once said she didn't like her logo. We discussed the process of a launch pad series of drafts, and she agreed it made sense. She liked the website design that was suggested, we were all on the call when she said she loved the look. It wasn't until several rounds of revisions that she decided she didn't
like the home page design any longer. And no one ever asked me for anything other
than what I supplied. Yep, the truth is definitely contorted.
 Disappointing isn't the word, I'm positively gobsmacked. I've never ever
ever encountered anything remotely like this. I'm just astonished and so so
very sad.”Claim: In addition, the new web designer and [redacted] did not know how to intergrate services we needed on our website.ResponseThis is inaccurate, false and defamatory.First, it is our developer’s responsibility to implement website functionality.  Our senior designer is responsible for design only.Second, although Ms. [redacted] later asserted that she expected more coding than I had contractually agreed to deliver, my firm agreed to provide the additional work at no extra charge to Ms. [redacted]. (audio available on [redacted] Drive)The developer assigned to code Ms. [redacted]’s site is experienced and extremely capable.  (quantitative proof available on [redacted] Drive) The additional work was not complicated. It posed no coding challengesThe additional coding would have required an additional day or two to complete and thus would have increased my firm’s costs.   (developer’s revised estimate available on [redacted] Drive) Third, at no charge to Ms. [redacted], I researched new technologies and conducted international calls to review Ms. [redacted]’s project with principals of companies that provide video conferencing services.  The services appeared easy to implement and maintain. I presented these service options to Ms. [redacted] as a courtesy, free of charge.  Ms. [redacted] chose not to implement the services.  Ms. [redacted] cited third-party cost concerns.We terminated the contract when we realized we would never get an acceptable website.ResponseThis is baseless and defamatory.Ms. [redacted] had no way to assess the competence of our developer.Nothing in my comments to Ms. [redacted] suggested my developer could not build the website to meet or exceed her requirements.We were about one week from delivering a coded site when Ms. [redacted] abruptly terminated the contract via email.Adjusting (per contract paragraph 5) for delays Ms. [redacted] caused surrounding her company’s name change and logo design, my firm was on schedule to complete the project within the timeframe as estimated in our contract.  Adjusting for additional delays and Change Orders, we were on schedule to deliver ahead of our estimate.Oct. 14, Ms. [redacted] reconfirmed her agreement to pay us $3,000 when coding was completed and approved by her.  Here is an excerpt of that Oct. 14 email exchange:“I will email you a link to the site on our server. My team will correct any issues you identify or we identify, including missing pages, problems with forms, problems with links, and any pre-cutoff edits I may have overlooked.”Ms. [redacted]: “Sounds fine.”“You will pay the remaining $3k when you are satisfied (a) that everything works, and (b) that I have inserted the text changes you provided by the cutoff”Ms. [redacted]: “We will pay $3000 upon receipt of a coded functional website.”Oct. 16, Ms. [redacted] terminated the same agreement she had reconfirmed two days prior. Ms. [redacted] terminated…before delivering items she agreed to provide as coding prerequisites.…without ever seeing the site in progress on our server, which we had begun coding a few days prior and which would have been ready for her review about a week later.Closing thoughtsMs. [redacted] did not contact us by phone or email to notify us she was terminating the agreement In the six months we provided services to Ms. [redacted], not once did she express concern to me or my team about our ability to code her site.In the ten years I have operated this small business, I have maintained our outstanding reputation for exemplary customer service, making concessions to resolve concerns directly whenever clients are not completely satisfied.  Of the hundreds of clients we have served during the past decade, Ms. [redacted] is the only client who has chosen to file a Revdex.com complaint and the only client to assert that not a single piece of work our team delivered in 6 months had value, in spite of the fact that she accepted, approved and praised our design and copywriting before terminating our contract.Ms. [redacted] was unapologetically relentless in her demands for services. Each time Ms. [redacted] complained, we offered her additional concessions in ongoing efforts to appease her. This was a costly project for my firm (evidence available on [redacted] Drive), but we never stopped trying to satisfy Ms. [redacted].We are disappointed Ms. [redacted] chose to terminate our agreement inches from the finish line.  We believe she provides a valuable service to her clients. We hope her new business proves successful.

Review: We contracted with Charlottesville SEO Web Development - [redacted] to develop a website for our business, [redacted]. The contract stated that the product would be delivered in a professional, competent and timely manner. Services were NOT delivered in a professional, competent or timely manner. We hired the company because we wanted the services of a specific web designer. That designer left the company within a couple of weeks after we signed the contract and we not informed until after we paid $2000.00 on top a $6000.00 deposit over three months into the project. We paid in good faith with little to no product at that point. When we requested a logo we were told we were getting an original design. The designs (all twelve of them) were found on line by my 15 year old son. When I confronted [redacted] with the issue, he said he had no idea this was happening and offered to give us the logo for free. We were not satisfied, however we accepted it because we were told we needed it to move forward with the project and we were already three months behind. The original estimate for services with the web designer we chose was twice as much as the estimate for designer we ended up with on the project.[redacted] continuously found ways to incorporate more fees into the project. [redacted] also informed us of an additional coding cost of $3000.00. Website design estimates should include this cost. We agreed to pay for some marketing writing due the fact that we had at that point in the project paid more than the estimate for designer that was now on the project. Then we informed we needed to do our own writing because "he couldn't light a fire" under his writer. They finally delivered comps for the website most of which was unacceptable. In addition, the new web designer and [redacted] did not know how to intergrate services we needed on our website.We terminated the contract when we realized we would never get an acceptable website.Desired Settlement: The only "product" we feel we received that was acceptable was a draft of the wire frame for the website developed by the original website designer.[redacted] states on his website "Each day you wait, your competitors gain power". He is right and now we had to hire another website design company. Therefore due to an unacceptable product and the loss of business we believe we are entitled to a refund of the entire amount $8000.00.

Business

Response:

Revdex.com Complaint ResponseResponder: [redacted] for Charlottesville SEO Web

Development, LLCComplaint filed by: [redacted], [redacted], formerly [redacted]Response date: Dec. 7, 2015Ms. [redacted]’s Review:We contracted with Charlottesville SEO Web

Development - [redacted] to develop a website for our business, [redacted] The contract stated that the product would be

delivered in a professional, competent and timely manner. Services were NOT

delivered in a professional, competent or timely manner. We hired the company

because we wanted the services of a specific web designer. That designer left

the company within a couple of weeks after we signed the contract and we not

informed until after we paid $2000.00 on top a $6000.00 deposit over three

months into the project. We paid in good faith with little to no product at

that point. When we requested a logo we were told we were getting an original

design. The designs (all twelve of them) were found on line by my 15 year old

son. When I confronted [redacted] with the issue, he said he had no idea this was

happening and offered to give us the logo for free. We were not satisfied,

however we accepted it because we were told we needed it to move forward with

the project and we were already three months behind. The original estimate for

services with the web designer we chose was twice as much as the estimate for

designer we ended up with on the project.[redacted] continuously found ways to

incorporate more fees into the project. [redacted] also informed us of an additional

coding cost of $3000.00. Website design estimates should include this cost. We

agreed to pay for some marketing writing due the fact that we had at that point

in the project paid more than the estimate for designer that was now on the

project. Then we informed we needed to do our own writing because "he

couldn't light a fire" under his writer. They finally delivered comps for

the website most of which was unacceptable. In addition, the new web designer

and [redacted] did not know how to intergrate services we needed on our website.We

terminated the contract when we realized we would never get an acceptable

website.Response SummaryMy firm, Charlottesville SEO Web Development,

made costly financial sacrifices in efforts to appease Ms. [redacted] by waiving

fees for work that Ms. [redacted] received and approved. After signing our contract, Ms. [redacted]’s

expectations and requirements expanded. My firm provided additional services

while capping Ms. [redacted]’s fee below the amount stipulated in our

contract. To appease Ms. [redacted], we

continued offering additional work at no additional charge, including unlimited design changes and

copywriting revisions. We delivered writing and design work, as

requested, which Ms. [redacted] received and approved. On at least three separate occasions, Ms.

[redacted] later changed her mind, notifying us she no longer liked work she had

already accepted. In each instance, we

accommodated her requests to make additional revisions at no additional charge.Ms. [redacted]’s expanding requirements and failure

to provide timely feedback caused lengthy delays and scheduling conflicts for

my firm. She then blamed us for the

delays. Paragraph 5 of our contract stipulates our

deadlines and time estimates will be extended as necessary if the client, Ms.

[redacted], fails to provide feedback and information we request within 3 days OR

if Ms. [redacted] issues Change Orders. Ms.

[redacted] did both. One of Ms. [redacted]’s

delays involved a Change Order that resulted in a cumulative delay of 75 days. The

project was hindered further by Ms. [redacted]’s scheduling challenges and feedback

delays.Before Ms. [redacted] delivered previously agreed

coding prerequisites, she abruptly terminated our contract. Her complaint alleges

she “realized” we could not code her site.

We’ve been developing websites for a decade. We’ve built sites considerably more

complicated than the site we were hired to build for Ms. [redacted]. In good faith, I authorized coding to begin about

a week prior to receiving Ms. [redacted]’s termination notice. The site in progress

is on our server. Ms. [redacted] never saw

it. Ms. [redacted] had no reason to presume we could not, or would not, code her

website. The coding we provided in good

faith added another $1,000+ to my firm’s costs for this project. We did not invoice Ms. [redacted] to

recoup this cost.Response DetailsClaim: We contracted with Charlottesville SEO Web Development - [redacted] to develop a website for our business, [redacted].Response: The contract was executed between our firm and [redacted] on April 14, 2005. Claim: The contract stated that the product would be delivered in a professional, competent and timely manner. Services were NOT delivered in a professional, competent or timely manner.Response:The first day Ms. [redacted] and her partner were free to meet with our team was April 24. [7 day delay] We conducted a “whiteboard” meeting April 24 at Ms. [redacted]’s home in northern Madison County.At that April 24 meeting, Ms. [redacted] said she planned to rename the company but had not decided on a name. Ms. [redacted] agreed to provide us the new name April 27, per the 3 day time limit stipulated in Paragraph 5.e of our contract (available on [redacted] Drive). Ms. [redacted] did not provide us a name until May 12. [12 day delay] Paragraph 5 of our contract stipulates that our firm is not responsible for project delays when our client misses deadlines.These were the first of multiple delays, Change Orders and missed deadlines by Ms. [redacted]. In May, Ms. [redacted] hired my firm to design a logo. This project was not included in our contract so it represented a Change Order.We negotiated a separate fee of $1,000 for logo designWe later waived the $1,000 fee as a concession to Ms. [redacted]Claim: We hired the company because we wanted the services of a specific web designer. That designer left the company within a couple of weeks after we signed the contract and we not informed until after we paid $2000.00 on top a $6000.00 deposit over three months into the project. We paid in good faith with little to no product at that point.Response:Paragraph 15 or our contract (available on [redacted] Drive) stipulates that we may assign the project to subcontractors we choose. The contract does not specify any contractor by name. The designer Ms. [redacted] expected to be assigned this project participated in the initial whiteboard meeting, a 4 hour workshop conducted at Ms. [redacted]’s home, attended by the designer in question, our writer and myself. When the meeting ended, Ms. [redacted] commented that she was very pleased. The meeting provided marketing insights that enabled us to generate wireframes created by the designer in question, including a content plan for the Home page. We followed the wireframes and content plan throughout the project. The workshop enhanced our understanding of the company, its target audience, and unique selling proposition, empowering us to guide marketing decisions pertaining to website layout, navigation and copywriting, each of which we delivered subsequently. On May 14, 30 days after our contract with Ms. [redacted] was executed, the designer Ms. [redacted] met did withdraw from our team. He voiced concerns that Ms. [redacted]’s budget was inadequate to achieve her goals. He urged us not to initiate website redesign before Ms. [redacted]’s rebranding project had taken shape--specifically, until her new logo was designed and approved. He noted we’d need a separate agreement for logo design since this was not included in the scope of our contract. I assigned our senior (more experienced) designer and a superior--and more expensive--developer to replace the designer/coder who left. Contract paragraph 15 states: “Third Party Consultants and Sub-Contractors. CHARLOTTESVILLE SEO reserves the right to assign subcontractors to this project to ensure the right fit for the job as well as on-time completion”I informed Ms. [redacted] and apologized to her that the designer/coder she liked had left, but I did not do so immediately. Though our contract does not require us to notify Ms. [redacted] of such changes, I regret and apologize for not explaining the change sooner to Ms. [redacted]. When I informed Ms. [redacted] the designer had disengaged, Ms. [redacted] did not terminate our contract. Not only did she continue working with us, she spoke highly of our senior designer’s work. (audio available on [redacted] Drive) Indeed, Ms. [redacted] did not terminate until October 16, when we were within a week of delivering a coded website. She terminated within 2 days after agreeing to pay the balance due of $3,000. In good faith, I had authorized my developer to begin coding the site. When Ms. [redacted] abruptly terminated the agreement, my developer had performed roughly the first 25% of the coding project. I paid him $1,000+ for this work. (invoice attached) We did not invoice Ms. [redacted] for this expense. The senior designer and the senior developer assigned to Ms. [redacted]’s project are each more experienced than the departing contractor. The senior developer is quantifiably more capable. (See [redacted] Drive for quantitative proof that the replacement developer delivers top quality code) Design is subjective, but it is noteworthy that I have assigned redesign work (pending) to improve the appearance of both sites the departing designer created during his brief tenure with my firm. So while the designer Ms. [redacted] met did disengage, he was replaced by a more capable team. Ms. [redacted] was poised to benefit from superior work.On May 14, Ms. [redacted] agreed to hire us for a separate project to design her logo with the understanding the work was to be performed by our senior designer. Ms. [redacted]’s decision to change her company’s name, coupled with the subsequent logo design project effectively put the website design and development project on hold.Our writer said that day (May 14) that she would postpone copywriting until the logo design was completed and approved by Ms. [redacted].Our writer also noted the importance of a new tagline to accompany the new company name and new logo. Our senior designer agreed that a tagline was critically important for branding, marketing and design. Our writer offered to donate this work since it was not part of the initial project scope. Tagline creation was to begin after the logo was designed and approved. Fee waived. May 14 quote from our senior designer to our writer re. tagline:“I totally agree with you about tag lines - even as a designer, I find them essential, keeps the branding on point and focused. I end up writing them too if none is provided and its a VERY generous ‘freebee.’ My years in NYC big ad agency land exposed me to a world where tag lines are - rightfully so - every bit as important (and $$$) as the logo itself. A good tag line can literally be worth a $m.”May 27, [12 days after receiving the assignment Change Order] our senior designer shared 12 distinct and professional logo designs with our team for discussion. (Logo 1rst drafts are available on [redacted] Drive) We presented these initial logo drafts to Ms. [redacted] for feedback and direction on May 29 [14 days after receiving the assignment Change Order]Ms. [redacted] promised to provide feedback June 1, per the terms of our contract. Ms. [redacted] notified me her son had found some of the shapes in online stock imagery. Logo work is not a task my firm seeks, but our senior designer has been creating logos for ad agencies in New York City and internationally for over 20 years. I had not asked her how she produces designs because no prior client had ever asked me. Our designer was unreachable (volunteering on a mountain retreat for breast cancer survivors) the day Ms. [redacted] complained about her son’s discovery, so I simply apologized to Ms. [redacted] and assured Ms. [redacted] we would not charge her. Ms. [redacted] informed me she was considering letting her son attempt to create the logo. I told Ms. [redacted] she could work with her son or hire any designer she chose. I assured her I would speak with our senior designer the following week, which is when I learned that adapting shapes from stock imagery is common practice for logo design. In that conversation with my designer, she also noted :Her first draft designs were intended as initial ideas Only some of her logos incorporated stock-imagery shapesLogos for many major brands adopt this logo-design approachWhen my designer regained cell phone coverage, she called Ms. [redacted] to explain and to apologize for any misunderstanding. Ms. [redacted] elected to continue working with our designer. At no time during my conversation with Ms. [redacted] about logo design did I mention or allude to adverse consequences in the event Ms. [redacted] should choose to hire another designer. (audio discussion about logo design is available on [redacted] Drive) Indeed, I waived the fee. My firm had no financial incentive to retain the logo design project. Our writer worked that weekend on taglines and provided ideas to our team June 2. [4 days after seeing the initial logos and prior to receiving feedback from Ms. [redacted]]I exchanged ideas, editing suggestions and revisions with our writer until June 7 at no charge June 7, we presented the tagline ideas to Ms. [redacted]June 9, Ms [redacted] shared her vision for a modified taglineOur team had concerns with Ms. [redacted]’s tagline, which we deliberated in-house at no chargeJune 23 [9 days for Round 2 on this Change Order], our senior designer delivered over a dozen new and revised logo concepts at no charge, based on her discussions with Ms. [redacted], after Ms. [redacted] chose to continue working with our designer. (Round 2 logos available on [redacted] Drive)July 13 [20 days for Round 3 on this Change Order], our senior designer delivered 4 logo concepts to Ms. [redacted] (available on [redacted] Drive), after corresponding directly with Ms. [redacted]. At this time we also were awaiting feedback from Ms. [redacted] regarding Draft 1 of copy for the Home page, which our writer and I had discussed and collaborated to improve. The copywriting feedback delay constituted another missed deadline by Ms. [redacted].July 16, Ms. [redacted] notified our senior designer that Ms. [redacted] had chosen a logo. Our designer used the word “finally” in her celebratory remarks that this time intensive project we provided at no charge was delivered and accepted.At the time Ms. [redacted] accepted the logo, she did not indicate she was displeased in any way with the logo she chose. At one point she offered to pay our fee. We did not charge her. For 2.5 months, from April 27, the due date for the new name that Ms. [redacted] missed, until July 16 when she approved the logo, her website redesign project and the bulk of the writing was on hold due to Ms. [redacted]’s delays providing feedback and her Change Orders. [75 day delay]. Two months were consumed only by logo design, a Change Order that was not included in our initial contract. Ms. [redacted]’s changes and delays interfered with other projects and with our team’s summer travel plans. We waived all fees for everyone who participated in logo design and discussions. The original project, without logo, was estimated at $12,000. In one of multiple good faith efforts to appease Ms. [redacted], I offered to cap the fees at $11,000 and to continue paying my team, and continue donating my time indefinitely, until Ms. [redacted] was satisfied. Ms. [redacted] accepted my firm’s offer to receive design changes until she was satisfied with a cap on all work except coding at $8,000, the amount she had already paid. Ms. [redacted] accepted my offer to assume all writing and editing duties myself until she was satisfied with the writing on every page of her site. I submitted multiple copywriting edits promptly, when and as requested by Ms. [redacted], many of which Ms. [redacted] approved with apparent enthusiasm. (Documentation of Ms. [redacted]’s acceptance of writing and editing is available on [redacted] Drive). By this time, Ms. [redacted] had made a total of two payments totaling $8,000. I offered Ms. [redacted] the choice of hiring another developer if she wished to lower her total cost below the reduced project cap of $11,000. I provided Ms. [redacted] a written estimate of the hours (45) we anticipated we would require to code, test and launch the website, once she was satisfied with layouts and text. I informed her that she could hire a web development firm overseas if she wished to economize on the coding project. Prior to Ms. [redacted]’s abrupt contract-cancellation email, all written communications from Ms. [redacted] indicated she intended to pay my firm to complete the project at a capped fee of $11,000, which meant she would pay the coding fee ($3,000) when she accepted the project as coded on our server (per our contract timeline for payments). In another concession, I authorized our developer to begin coding the project based on Ms. [redacted]’s emails that she wished to continue working with us for the coding project. At least a week after Ms. [redacted] had approved the website layouts for each page and after I had authorized our developer to begin coding the approved design, Ms. [redacted] emailed me to complain about the layout on two pages, the Home page and Contact page. I notified our developer to delay coding those pages and informed our senior designer that we needed to provide alternate layouts to Ms. [redacted]. No additional fee for this Change OrderClaim: When we requested a logo we were told we were getting an original design. The designs (all twelve of them) were found on line by my 15 year old son. When I confronted [redacted] with the issue, he said he had no idea this was happening and offered to give us the logo for free.ResponseMuch of this statement from Ms. [redacted] is accurate. Our senior designer readily acknowledges adapting shapes she located in stock imagery for some, but not all, of the design concepts she submitted in Round 1.Our senior designer disputes Ms. [redacted]’s implication that Round 1 designs were in any way substandard.Our senior designer disputes Ms. [redacted]’s implication that our senior designer did not follow widely used design practices when she adapted and incorporated these shapes. Please see the explanation above for additional information. When Ms. [redacted] initially complained about the use of stock imagery, I immediately offered to withdraw our logo design service at no charge. There was no fee for the logo work we’d provided and no penalty to hire another designer. Ms. [redacted] was under no obligation to resume work with our designer. She chose to do so with no pressure or threats of undue delay from my firm.I disagree with “we were not satisfied.” Ms. [redacted] reengaged our designer. At the time she approved the logo, as stated above, Ms. [redacted] did not inform us she was dissatisfied with the logo she approved. She did mention later that she wasn’t sure she liked the logo until she saw it in the website design comps, at which point she said she was pleased. She also indicated she was pleased with the website design during that discussion. (audio shared on [redacted] Drive) Claim: The original estimate for services with the web designer we chose was twice as much as the estimate for designer we ended up with on the project.Response:No. Before Ms. [redacted] signed our initial contract, I provided two estimates.Lower estimate was $6,500 to design and code a website This would have been design and code only No writingNo editingNo consultingNo marketing personas No marketing adviceNo workshop billable at $2,400Contract (paragraph 11) rates for this workshop:Writer research: $125 * 2 hours = $250Writer at workshop: $125 * 4 hours = $500Design & Marketing research : $150 * 2 hours = $300Design & Marketing at workshop : $150 * 8 hours = $1,200Design post-workshop: $150 * 1 design hour = $150Total billable for workshop = $2,400Travel time ~ 5 hours (waived)Higher estimate was $12,000 for design and coding plus marketing help Did not include subsequent change orders for:Logo design Tagline workIn late September, we provided yet another concession to Ms. [redacted], offering a choice of two options.Option 1: No balance due to deliver all items in the list below except coding and page-speed optimizationOption 2: $3,000 balance due upon coding completion and acceptance of delivery for all items listed below. Our normal fee would be $12,000 + $1,000 + hourly fees for unlimited edits to provide this work:Website design Completed until Ms. [redacted] changed her mind about two pages she had approvedDesign re-approval was pending and subject to our offer of unlimited design changes prior to coding the siteLogo design Completed and approved by Ms. [redacted]Whiteboard session Completed in AprilMarketing help to formulate content to engage target audienceCompletedWriting and editing Completed, but pending final approval or additional requests for editing from Ms. [redacted]Also subject to our offer of unlimited content edits prior to building the siteTagline creation or helpCompletedConversion rate optimization CompletedCoding Page speed optimizationBy the time we offered Ms. [redacted] these 2 options:Our regular billable rate for services already rendered would have exceeded $15,000. We projected our cumulative fees to complete the project as proposed in Option 2 above might exceed $25,000 at our contract rates. Our total project fee was capped, nevertheless, at $11,000. September 29, Ms. [redacted] emailed us saying she accepted the second option for us to code the site. She agreed to pay the $3,000 coding fee upon acceptance of the coded site for a capped project total of $11,000.“Hi [redacted],We have decided we would like your firm to complete the website and agree

to pay the additional $3000.00 for completion and coding. We made comments regarding changes that need

to be made to the website. We still need video integration, forms integration

and form uploads. We will send you text

that we need to write by COB Wednesday.

Please let us know next steps.[redacted] and [redacted] ”Claim: We were not satisfied, however we accepted it because we were told we needed it to move forward with the project and we were already three months behind.ResponseTo the contrary:I encouraged Ms. [redacted] to hire another logo designer. At that time, Ms. [redacted] was responsible for 75 days of delays, not including scheduling challenges. (see above)Our senior designer reported at least one “significant delay” as she awaited logo feedback from Ms. [redacted], who was on vacation. Such delays, for which Ms. [redacted] inappropriately blames our team, further contributed to our efforts to complete the project in a timely manner. Claim: [redacted] continuously found ways to incorporate more fees into the project.ResponseThis is patently false and defamatory. We bill for our time, as is stipulated in our contract. But for Ms. [redacted], we capped the total fee below the contract price she originally agreed to pay. We continuously made financial sacrifices by waiving, discounting and capping fees to appease Ms. [redacted]. (abundant evidence available on [redacted] Drive)We offered to withdraw from the coding project after providing our estimate of 45 hours to code, test and launch, in which case our final fee would have been the $8,000 Ms. [redacted] had already paid.Had we completed the project, Ms. [redacted] would have been invoiced $3,000 for coding. For a reduced fee total of $11,000 (including payments received), she would have received considerably more work than the contract stipulated. See fees and options above.Correspondence from Ms. [redacted] indicated she wanted us to complete the project quickly so I authorized my developer to begin coding the project before Ms. [redacted] provided final approval of all design and copy. My firm paid our developer $1,000+ (invoice available on [redacted] Drive) for his initial coding work. We did not charge Ms. [redacted] for the developer’s time, even though her Sept. 29 email, above, states her consent to engage and compensate us for this coding work.Claim: [redacted] also informed us of an additional coding cost of $3000.00.ResponseMs. [redacted]’s assertion is misleading. Please refer to project pricing above. To recap:The original contract price was $12,000.To appease Ms. [redacted], my firm lowered the fee to $11,000 while adding more services including unlimited editing and design revisions.Ultimately, Ms. [redacted]’s demands would have required us to deliver $15,000 to $25,000 of services for $8,000 total instead of the $11,000 total fee she reconfirmed two days before terminating the agreement. Claim: Website design estimates should include this cost.ResponseMs. [redacted]’s assertion is misleading. Design and coding fees were included in the $12,000 contract and later in the $11,000 Option 2, detailed above.Please see costs and options above.Claim: We agreed to pay for some marketing writing due the fact that we had at that point in the project paid more than the estimate for designer that was now on the project. ResponseThis claim doesn’t make sense. Claim: Then we informed we needed to do our own writing because "he couldn't light a fire" under his writer.ResponseMs. [redacted] received a workshop, wireframes, information architecture, marketing guidance, marketing personas, and copywriting prior to one missed July 28 deadline by my writer.When I apologized to Ms. [redacted] about our writer missing a deadline, I told Ms. [redacted] she could hire another writer, wait for my writer (an independent contractor), or write the remaining copy in house. If Ms. [redacted] had chosen to write the copy or hire a writer, she would not have been charged for our writer’s time. Ms. [redacted] was not charged for writing delivered after the missed deadline Ms. [redacted] was not charged for extensive subsequent editsMy writer and I were working on Home page copy the week of Aug. 3, when Ms. [redacted] emailed us another Change Order in which she instructed us to stop writing so we could expedite the design. I notified my writer to stop writing. I alerted my designer that Ms. [redacted] wanted us to proceed with designing layouts for unwritten content.Claim: They finally delivered comps for the website most of which was unacceptable.ResponseMy designer and I received praise from Ms. [redacted] when we delivered the design comps. (audio available on [redacted] Drive)It was not until shortly before Ms. [redacted] terminated our agreement that she complained about the layouts , and even then she complained only about layouts for two pages, both of which she had previously approved. When Ms. [redacted] did complain, I offered to do whatever was necessary to make her happy, including creating a new design, and/or hiring a new designer. I assured Ms. [redacted] that I would absorb all future design costs until she was completely satisfied. (email available on [redacted] Drive)Senior designer’s reaction that Ms. [redacted] was dissatisfied with design work:“That is just unbelievable. I'm totally shocked. She never once said she didn't like her logo. We discussed the process of a launch pad series of drafts, and she agreed it made sense. She liked the website design that was suggested, we were all on the call when she said she loved the look. It wasn't until several rounds of revisions that she decided she didn't

like the home page design any longer. And no one ever asked me for anything other

than what I supplied. Yep, the truth is definitely contorted.

Disappointing isn't the word, I'm positively gobsmacked. I've never ever

ever encountered anything remotely like this. I'm just astonished and so so

very sad.”Claim: In addition, the new web designer and [redacted] did not know how to intergrate services we needed on our website.ResponseThis is inaccurate, false and defamatory.First, it is our developer’s responsibility to implement website functionality. Our senior designer is responsible for design only.Second, although Ms. [redacted] later asserted that she expected more coding than I had contractually agreed to deliver, my firm agreed to provide the additional work at no extra charge to Ms. [redacted]. (audio available on [redacted] Drive)The developer assigned to code Ms. [redacted]’s site is experienced and extremely capable. (quantitative proof available on [redacted] Drive) The additional work was not complicated. It posed no coding challengesThe additional coding would have required an additional day or two to complete and thus would have increased my firm’s costs. (developer’s revised estimate available on [redacted] Drive) Third, at no charge to Ms. [redacted], I researched new technologies and conducted international calls to review Ms. [redacted]’s project with principals of companies that provide video conferencing services. The services appeared easy to implement and maintain. I presented these service options to Ms. [redacted] as a courtesy, free of charge. Ms. [redacted] chose not to implement the services. Ms. [redacted] cited third-party cost concerns.We terminated the contract when we realized we would never get an acceptable website.ResponseThis is baseless and defamatory.Ms. [redacted] had no way to assess the competence of our developer.Nothing in my comments to Ms. [redacted] suggested my developer could not build the website to meet or exceed her requirements.We were about one week from delivering a coded site when Ms. [redacted] abruptly terminated the contract via email.Adjusting (per contract paragraph 5) for delays Ms. [redacted] caused surrounding her company’s name change and logo design, my firm was on schedule to complete the project within the timeframe as estimated in our contract. Adjusting for additional delays and Change Orders, we were on schedule to deliver ahead of our estimate.Oct. 14, Ms. [redacted] reconfirmed her agreement to pay us $3,000 when coding was completed and approved by her. Here is an excerpt of that Oct. 14 email exchange:“I will email you a link to the site on our server. My team will correct any issues you identify or we identify, including missing pages, problems with forms, problems with links, and any pre-cutoff edits I may have overlooked.”Ms. [redacted]: “Sounds fine.”“You will pay the remaining $3k when you are satisfied (a) that everything works, and (b) that I have inserted the text changes you provided by the cutoff”Ms. [redacted]: “We will pay $3000 upon receipt of a coded functional website.”Oct. 16, Ms. [redacted] terminated the same agreement she had reconfirmed two days prior. Ms. [redacted] terminated…before delivering items she agreed to provide as coding prerequisites.…without ever seeing the site in progress on our server, which we had begun coding a few days prior and which would have been ready for her review about a week later.Closing thoughtsMs. [redacted] did not contact us by phone or email to notify us she was terminating the agreement In the six months we provided services to Ms. [redacted], not once did she express concern to me or my team about our ability to code her site.In the ten years I have operated this small business, I have maintained our outstanding reputation for exemplary customer service, making concessions to resolve concerns directly whenever clients are not completely satisfied. Of the hundreds of clients we have served during the past decade, Ms. [redacted] is the only client who has chosen to file a Revdex.com complaint and the only client to assert that not a single piece of work our team delivered in 6 months had value, in spite of the fact that she accepted, approved and praised our design and copywriting before terminating our contract.Ms. [redacted] was unapologetically relentless in her demands for services. Each time Ms. [redacted] complained, we offered her additional concessions in ongoing efforts to appease her. This was a costly project for my firm (evidence available on [redacted] Drive), but we never stopped trying to satisfy Ms. [redacted].We are disappointed Ms. [redacted] chose to terminate our agreement inches from the finish line. We believe she provides a valuable service to her clients. We hope her new business proves successful.