Terms & Conditions
Table of Contents
Introduction
Definitions
Our Services
Client Responsibilities
Website Design
Website & Email Hosting
Website Care Plans
Website & Email Migration
SEO & Website Growth
Payment Terms
Late Payments
Suspension of Services
Data Retention & Deletion
Intellectual Property
Confidentiality
Limitation of Liability
Termination
General Conditions
Contact Information
1. Introduction
These Terms and Conditions govern all products and services supplied by SEO Web Design.
By engaging our services, placing an order or making payment, you agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions.
These Terms apply to all website design, website hosting, email hosting, website maintenance, website migrations, search engine optimisation (SEO), AI Search Optimisation (Generative Engine Optimisation), consulting services and any related digital services supplied by SEO Web Design.
2. Definitions
Throughout this document:
“SEO Web Design” means SEO Web Design and its owner.
“Client” means the individual, business or organisation purchasing services.
“Services” means any products or services supplied by SEO Web Design.
“Website” includes all website files, databases, media, email accounts and associated software.
“Disk Usage” means the storage space used by a client’s website, databases, media files, email accounts, backups, logs and any other files or data stored within the hosting environment.
“Hosting-Only Client” means a client receiving website and/or email hosting without an active Website Care Plan or other maintenance agreement that specifically includes hosting management.
3. Our Services
SEO Web Design currently offers the following services:
Website Design
Professional website design using WordPress and Elementor.
Website & Email Hosting
South African hosting including:
Website Hosting
Business Email
SSL Certificates
Domain Management
DNS Management
Daily Server Backups
Technical Support
Hosting provides the infrastructure required for your website and email services.
Hosting does not include ongoing website maintenance, content updates, SEO, email management, disk usage monitoring or storage optimisation unless specifically included in a Website Care Plan or other written agreement.
Website Care Plans
Monthly maintenance plans may include:
WordPress Updates
Theme Updates
Plugin Updates
Security Checks
Website Health Checks
Backup Management
Technical Support
Hosting and Disk Usage Monitoring, where applicable
Website Care Plans are intended to keep websites secure, updated and functioning correctly.
The services included depend on the selected Care Plan.
Website & Email Migration
Migration services include:
Website Migration
WordPress Migration
Business Email Migration
Domain Transfers
DNS Configuration
SSL Configuration
Testing
Migration is a once-off service and does not include ongoing maintenance.
SEO & Website Growth
SEO services are customised for every client and may include:
Technical SEO
AI Search Optimisation (Generative Engine Optimisation)
Keyword Research
Local SEO
Google Business Profile Optimisation
Content Optimisation
Website Audits
Schema Markup
SEO is quoted individually depending on the website’s condition, competition and business objectives.
4. Client Responsibilities
Clients agree to:
Provide accurate information.
Supply all requested content and access details.
Maintain current contact details.
Review completed work promptly.
Advise SEO Web Design of any changes affecting the website.
Use hosting resources responsibly and not knowingly store unnecessary or excessive files.
Maintain appropriate control over the storage used by their website, email accounts and other hosted data where they are Hosting-Only Clients.
5. Website Design
Website design quotations include only the work specifically stated in the quotation.
Additional work requested after approval may be quoted separately.
Ownership of the completed website transfers to the client once all outstanding invoices have been paid.
6. Website & Email Hosting
Hosting fees are billed monthly or annually in advance.
Hosting includes the services stated on the selected hosting package only.
SEO Web Design cannot guarantee uninterrupted internet connectivity or third-party service availability.
Scheduled maintenance may occasionally require temporary downtime.
6.1 Hosting Infrastructure and Disk Usage
SEO Web Design provides hosting through third-party hosting infrastructure.
Hosting resources may be provided through a shared or pooled hosting environment. Disk usage may include, but is not limited to:
Website files
Databases
Images and media
Email accounts and attachments
Website backups
Log files
Temporary files
Other data stored within the hosting environment
SEO Web Design may incur additional hosting costs based on the total disk usage of the hosting infrastructure.
6.2 Hosting-Only Clients
Hosting-only services provide hosting infrastructure only and do not include ongoing hosting management.
Unless otherwise agreed in writing, Hosting-Only Clients are responsible for the management of their own:
Website storage
Email storage
Email housekeeping
Unnecessary files
Website-generated backups
Other files or data stored within their hosting environment
SEO Web Design does not provide continuous monitoring of individual disk usage, routine storage housekeeping or storage optimisation for Hosting-Only Clients.
6.3 Excessive Disk Usage
Clients must not use hosting resources in a manner that creates unreasonable or excessive storage demands.
If a client’s website, email accounts, backups or other stored data result in excessive disk usage or cause additional hosting or infrastructure costs to SEO Web Design, SEO Web Design reserves the right to:
Require the client to reduce their disk usage;
Remove unnecessary or redundant files where authorised by the client;
Require the client to upgrade to a more suitable hosting arrangement;
Move the client to an alternative hosting solution;
Charge the client for additional storage or hosting costs attributable to their usage; or
Suspend hosting services where excessive usage is not addressed within a reasonable period.
Where practical, SEO Web Design will notify the client before taking action.
6.4 Additional Storage Costs
Additional costs arising from excessive disk usage may be charged to the responsible client.
This may include additional costs incurred by SEO Web Design from its hosting provider where the client’s usage contributes to an increase in the cost of the hosting infrastructure.
Additional storage or infrastructure costs may be charged monthly, annually or for another applicable billing period.
SEO Web Design will make reasonable efforts to identify the source of excessive usage. However, where hosting resources are provided within a shared or pooled environment, the client acknowledges that individual usage may contribute to overall infrastructure costs.
6.5 No Included Disk Usage Management for Hosting-Only Services
Hosting fees do not include payment for ongoing manual monitoring, investigation, file cleanup or storage management.
Any work required from SEO Web Design to investigate, identify, manage or reduce excessive disk usage for a Hosting-Only Client may be charged separately at the applicable hourly rate or as otherwise agreed.
7. Website Care Plans
Care Plans provide preventative maintenance designed to keep websites secure and operating correctly.
Depending on the selected Care Plan, services may include reasonable monitoring and management of hosting-related issues, including website health and disk usage.
Where disk usage monitoring is included in a Care Plan, SEO Web Design may identify and address issues such as unnecessary website backups or excessive website-generated files.
However, Website Care Plans do not automatically include unlimited storage, unlimited email storage or responsibility for excessive data generated or stored by the client.
Clients remain responsible for responding to requests relating to excessive email storage, unnecessary files or other client-controlled data.
Care Plans do not include:
Website redesigns
New website development
Large content additions
SEO campaigns
Third-party software licensing unless specifically included
Unlimited hosting storage or unlimited email storage
Services included depend on the selected Care Plan.
8. Website & Email Migration
Migration services are performed with the aim of achieving minimal downtime.
However, temporary interruptions may occur due to factors outside our control including:
DNS propagation
Third-party hosting providers
Domain registrars
Email providers
SEO Web Design cannot guarantee zero downtime.
9. SEO & Website Growth
SEO is an ongoing marketing service.
Search engine rankings cannot be guaranteed.
SEO Web Design follows industry best practices but cannot guarantee:
First-page rankings
Specific keyword positions
Traffic increases
Sales increases
SEO performance depends on many factors outside our control, including competitor activity and search engine algorithm updates.
10. Payment Terms
Recurring services are invoiced monthly or annually in advance.
Payment is due on or before the 1st day of each month, unless otherwise agreed in writing.
SEO Web Design is required to pay hosting providers, software licensing fees and infrastructure costs in advance. For this reason, recurring services cannot normally be provided on credit.
The client acknowledges that additional infrastructure costs may arise as a result of excessive hosting or disk usage.
Where additional costs are attributable to a client’s excessive use of hosting resources, SEO Web Design reserves the right to invoice the client for the applicable additional costs.
Failure to pay by the due date may result in service suspension.
11. Late Payments
Accounts outstanding after the due date may incur a R50 late payment administration fee.
Interest is not normally charged; however, SEO Web Design reserves the right to recover all reasonable costs associated with overdue accounts.
12. Suspension of Services
If payment is not received, SEO Web Design reserves the right to suspend any or all services, including:
Website Hosting
Email Hosting
Website Access
Website Maintenance
SEO Services
Domain-related services where permitted
SEO Web Design may also suspend or restrict services where excessive disk usage creates a significant technical or financial impact and the client fails to address the issue within a reasonable period after notification.
Suspended services will normally be restored within one business day after cleared payment has been received and any relevant issues have been resolved.
13. Data Retention & Deletion
Clients are responsible for maintaining their own copies of website files, emails and business data.
Accounts remaining unpaid for 90 days may be considered abandoned.
SEO Web Design reserves the right to permanently remove:
Website files
Databases
Email accounts
Backups
Media files
Associated website data
without further notice where permitted by law.
Once deleted, data may not be recoverable.
SEO Web Design accepts no liability for data lost after account termination due to non-payment.
14. Intellectual Property
All software, coding techniques, templates, graphics and documentation developed by SEO Web Design remain the intellectual property of SEO Web Design until paid for in full.
Third-party software remains subject to its own licensing agreements.
15. Confidentiality
All client information will be treated as confidential.
SEO Web Design will never intentionally disclose client passwords, databases or business information unless required by law.
16. Limitation of Liability
SEO Web Design shall not be liable for:
Loss of profits
Loss of business
Search engine ranking changes
Third-party software failures
Hosting provider failures
Internet outages
Cyber attacks beyond reasonable preventative measures
Data loss arising from a client’s failure to manage or maintain appropriate copies of their own data
Our total liability shall not exceed the amount paid by the client for the affected service during the previous twelve months.
17. Termination
Either party may terminate recurring services by giving 30 days’ written notice, unless otherwise agreed.
Outstanding invoices remain payable after termination.
Where a client’s hosting requirements become unsuitable for the hosting infrastructure provided by SEO Web Design, SEO Web Design may require the client to migrate to an alternative hosting arrangement.
18. General Conditions
SEO Web Design may update these Terms and Conditions from time to time.
The latest published version supersedes all previous versions.
South African law shall govern these Terms and Conditions.
19. Contact Information
SEO Web Design
Port Alfred, Eastern Cape
Email: info@seowebdesign.co.za
Website: https://seowebdesign.co.za