Honesty is the BEST Policy:

BEFORE CONTACTING 999 ART DIRECTION we believe you should be very aware of how we operate. As a CREATIVE firm, we will want to know more about your business, who you are competing with, whether or not your objectives/expectations are realistic, well before any design even takes place. (Oh yes, our ideal clients also have to have a very open mind and be prepared to sometimes hear things they weren't expecting.) Conversely, if you have written your copy and a have a CD of the images you took and instructions where you want us to put your video on your home page, we are absolutely the wrong match, for sure, as that is not how we operate, I'm afraid.

That said, if you are prepared to work with us as a partner in your success, with suggestions as opposed to demands, you have certainly come to the right place, and you really should call to explore further. If everything sounds good, we will want to meet you to ask a few probing questions, see if our personalitities are a good fit and field any questions you may have. At that stage, we may be able to give you a rough 'ballpark' idea of what this initiative will come in around, so you have something for general budgeting purposes.

Below are some insights that we believe can be very useful in understanding our and your role in any major initiative we undertake for you on your behalf. Feel free to print it out if you wish, as it's easier to deal with on the subway or commuter train! If you have any questions about the material presented here and would like more detail, please do feel free to contact us!

NOTE: If you are planning to send us copy for your current project, please read here.

Time Frames:

Because of the reputation we have built for our exceptional creative work, we will work with you to establish realistic time lines and a work-back schedule that we sincerely hope will coincide with your expectations. We are very firm about meeting the time line commitments we create together.

Making Contact:

Initially, we request you email us with a very rough outline of your requirements. Please include a daytime phone number with your name, and time zone! Believe it or not, that makes life a lot simpler when it comes to returning your inquiry!

Assign Yourself a Contact Person:

We feel it best you assign a contact person (if not yourself) who has the ear of the final approver OR is authorized to make final decisions on any project we, 999 Art Direction, undertake on your behalf. We will expect this person to be computer literate, understand basic file formats, be functional on the internet and capable of sending and receiving email at the very least.

Copy Writing:

Your choice. You provide the copy if you have a copywriter at your deposal that can write for the web. Normally we engage the services of experienced copywriters who can make your business shine. You won't regret it in the long run. In this competitive global market it just doesn't pay to be 'penny wise, pound foolish'. (See COPY SUBMISSION below before sending us copy.)

Hardware/Platforms/Software:

Hardware: We operate our business exclusively on the Macintosh platform primarily on G4 PowerBooks and iBooks. We do operate a single PC, an IBM ThinkPad T42, for checking of our work.

Platforms: At present we use a blend of System 9.2 and 10.4 on our Macintosh hardware and Windows XP Pro on the PC.

Software (Mac): Our sites are built using Adobe products and tested FIRST with various classic OS9 browsers as: Netscape and Microsoft Internet Explorer, then, the highly advanced and most recent versions of OS X browsers: Safari, Firefox and Camino.
____We use Adobe Acrobat 4.0 to create PDF files that our clients can view and print our preliminary work, regardless of platform. We recommend you download Acrobat Reader for your platform now if you don't already have it installed on your computers. It is free. Occasionally we may also send you a .JPEG (.jpg) file for approval as well that is cross-platform and can be opened by a variety of programs, starting with Internet Explorer (Mac OR PC).

Software (PC): Although we employ no Microsoft products in the Macintosh environment for professional design or production work, we are sensitive to the world around us, so we also have an IBM ThinkPad T42, which we use for final browser verification of our work through Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Apple's new Safari for Windows, and Firefox, to ensure you look good to the the world, before we show anything to you.

Copy Submission: (PLEASE READ before submitting your copy / text to us)

For reasons of security (yours and ours) 999 Art Direction NO LONGER ACCEPTS files in the .DOC or either of the new .DOCx or OOXML file formats. So, to keep everything simple, we require the copy (or copy outlines) you create be submitted to us as 'TEXT' with the extension '.txt' added. Nothing else will be accepted. Be aware that TEXT files have NO formatting, so forget adding bullets, indents, tables, embedded images, etc. Send images separate as .JPGs only and bullets in copy can be indicated with dashes ( - ) or astrixes ( * ).

Follow these 2 easy steps to converting your copy as TEXT (.txt):

1. To create a 'txt' file in Microsoft Word97/2003/2007, simply "Save As" and choose a file type where it says "Save as type". You will see quite a number of choices. Choose 'Plain Text (*.txt)'. Now create the copy you want to send us.

2. If you have already created some copy in Word, and have been saving it as a '.doc' out of habit, that's OK -- you can still save it as 'Plain Text (*.txt)' by easily converting it. Simply 'Save as type', again save as 'Plain Text (*.txt)' only this time a dialogue box (see Fig. 1 below) will show you a preview of your copy (all the formatting is now stripped out) and the default text encoding radio button will be marked as 'Windows (Default)'. Change it to 'Other encoding' and scroll to 'US-ASCII' and select. Then it asks you if you want Line Breaks (YES). Leave the default End Lines with: (CR/LF). Check the box 'Allow character substitution'. Once saved, open it your file again to ensure you have preserved the correct paragraph breaks and items like quote marks. Adjust if necessary. Be aware that this time your new file will open in Notepad.

3. (Optional) If you need us to see your unique formatting, save your Word document as a PDF before saving it as a TEXT file. Then send us BOTH files. File extensions (ie. .txt and .pdf MUST be on the ends of your files). (Need to be able to make a PDF? Get 'CutePDF Writer' (FREE) from our Links page, found under 'Utilities'.)

Should you be adamant that we accept your file in anything other than .TXT, we will be obliged to levy a minimum $100.00 net UN-formatting fee. Actual fee can vary due to time spent.

When We Send You a File:

Normally we don't send editable files, as approvals normally take place over the web on a Staging Server. One exception to the rule is if we are developing a print campaign or collateral piece for you for promotion of your website for use in traditional media. Then you will receive from us a PDF file that will require you to have Adobe Acrobat Reader (free) installed on your computer . With this, you will be able to view the file, print out the file, but not edit the file. We do that here. Please consider downloading Reader today, as it is free and available from HERE. Please note, we use Adobe Acrobat 4.0 at time of this writing to make our PDFs and we ensure they are compatible with Acrobat Reader 4.0 and up.
____Second exception to the rule is small copy alterations before posting. For that we will send '.txt' files or include the copy changes in an email message.

Archival Procedure:

During your project, your website AND associated source files are backed up daily on an external hard drive (which is not connected to any network) for your peace of mind. If you want your site (and associated files) supplied on either a DVD or CD-ROM at project completion, you may request it. Should you cease to be our client, we will provide you with a DVD or CD-ROM of all your files to date but a fee will be levied and PostScript fonts will not be supplied as it is illegal for us to transfer fonts. Please see 'Ownership Of Work' below.

Hours of Operation:

Quite simply, our office hours are 'officially' 9:00am - 5:00pm, Mondays to Friday. We will oblige 'circumstances-beyond-your-control' (ie. time zones) on a case-by-case basis, and with that being said, we have been known go that extra mile for our clients, but please note we do not operate on any weekends, Canadian statutory holidays. For hours and days open between Christmas and New Years, please consult the Contact Us page of our website for details.
____In the summer between June 1st and August 31st, we try to close early on Friday afternoons at 3:30pm. Mondays to Thursdays will find us usually answering email or phones till around 6:00 - 6:30pm (depending on the weather!

Ownership of Work:

IN SIMPLE TERMS, anything that 999 Art Direction creates for you (AND is paid for in full) is yours. The exceptions to the rule may include 3rd party agreements associated with various content items that 999 Art Direction may purchase on your behalf, such as: Stock photos, original talent photography, copy writing, etc. You will be made aware of these potential issues in the Letter of Agreement (contract) that you sign before we start any work. For the record, we prefer to negotiate total 'buy-outs' that allow for your continuous use of such items.
____Should you wish to cease being a client of ours after any initial project is completed and paid for in full, we are obliged to provide you with the files that make up your project. PLEASE NOTE: There is a difference between web and print, as outlined below:

Web Projects: We will provide you with the WORKING files as well as the finished files of the original website, as you paid for. Assuming your account is paid in full with us, we will also provide you with the most RECENT version of your site as well. These will be burned to a CD-ROM in ISO 9660 format, as to be compatible with Mac and Windows platform. We are prohibited by law from including any PostScript fonts we may have used due to the industry standard licensing agreements between us and the type foundry. This legal agreement affects ALL creative firms.

Print Projects: We will provide you with the WORKING files as well as the finished files of all original print projects, as you paid for. Assuming your account is paid in full with us, we will also provide you with the most RECENT versions of these projects as well. These will be burned to a CD-ROM in Mac format only, to ensure the integrity of the original work. We are prohibited by law from including any PostScript fonts we may have used due to the industry standard licensing agreements between us and the type foundry. This legal agreement affects ALL creative firms.

Plaese be aware that in both with Web Projects and Print Projects, you will need a copy of the software we used to create the original files, to open the files on the disc(s).

Critique of Your Existing website:

Periodically we have been asked to critique an existing website. Our policy is does not permit us to do that, as we feel it is unfair to the Design Team who created it for you in the first place. This is due to the fact we are not privy to the history of the the site, the business objective, or any of the restrictions that may have been put on the Design Team at the time of creation.
____For an in-depth Usability Study (with recommendations) we'd be happy to refer you to a firm we know and trust, who are experts in that field.
____EXCEPTION: The exception to the above is when 999 Art Direction is CONTRACTED to do your site re-design, and a critique is an integral part of the discovery process, as clearly identified in our signed back Letter of Agreement.

Terms and Conditions:
METHOD OF PAYMENT:

999 Art Direction will request a non-refundable deposit and a signed back Letter of Agreement (Contract) on any projects valued at $1000 CDN or more, to start. Payment schedules will be outlined in your Letter of Agreement. Regardless, ALL deposits are NON-REFUNDABLE, should you choose to either abandon the project OR cease to progress with a project, once started. NOTE: A project is considered 'abandoned' by 999 Art Direction if client contact ceases for 60 days from last client contact. It will be 999 Art Direction's prerogative to close off abandoned projects and consider the project dead. Any funds, paid to date, will NOT be refunded on abandoned projects, nor applied to future work. We are firm on this.
____NO WORK WILL BEGIN until your deposit cheque has cleared our bank (from major Canadian Banks = 4-5 business days / from major U.S. Banks = 5-10 business days). You will be advised of any time line adjustments if required. All Payment Terms will be spelled out in full within the Letter of Agreement. We are firm on this.
____Funds are preferred in Canadian dollars if you are a Canadian firm. U.S. firms may pay by cheque drawn on a U.S. Bank. Firms outside Canada or the U.S. wishing to work with us will be required to make payment in U.S. dollars.
____WE DO NOT offer 30 days to pay your final invoice. All payments are due upon receipt of our invoice. Failure to pay your invoice without contacting us first may result in either your online work being restored to its original state, removed, blocked by us or legal action. We will not be responsible for business losses you may incur due to these actions. Please pay your invoice promptly. Thank you.

 

All fees are subject to 13% HST.

COPY AND FINAL PROOFING: Who is responsible?

999 Art Direction goes to great extremes to check the work we submit to you and attempt to catch formatting errors, inconsistencies, and any other irregularities that may occur from digital transmission or any other man-made device or application. In the end, though, YOU are responsible for the correctness of all copy submitted by you and submitted to you by us. In the event of a MINOR error (typographical) that you note AFTER we have posted your site, WE will correct it at NO CHARGE, usually on the spot. We will NOT be held responsible for your loss of business regarding these possible errors. We are firm on this.

KNOWN COPYRIGHTED MATERIALS: Our position.

999 Art Direction WILL NOT ACCEPT any known copyrighted materials (images or words) from you without the written permission of the creator, should we request it. If we suspect any material, we reserve the right to refuse to use it. We are firm on this. Conversely, any materials we use on your behalf will have the necessary permissions and documentation. You may request validation of our materials (images/words) at any time. We are also very firm on this.

ACCURACY OF CONTENT: Our position.

999 Art Direction will assume that any content provided by you (or we create for you under your direction) is accurate to the letter of the law, in accordance to the law wherever you intend to conduct business using any product created by 999 Art Direction. Accuracy of content extends to any 'offers', promotions, the moral, social and/or ethical accuracy of text, and images provided by you. 999 Art Direction reserves the right to question any of the above accuracies and may require legal sign-off by a registered legal advisor to your firm before proceeding with your project. Failure to comply on your part will result in an immediate cease-work and you will be invoiced for work done up to date. This invoice is payable immediately upon receipt. We are extremely firm on this.

A NOTE ABOUT OUR OPINIONS:

Opinions are like noses. Everyone has one! It should be noted, though, that large portions of this website are opinions we have derived from personal observations or first-hand experience and are presented here to enlighten. 999 Art Direction shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused, or alleged to be caused, directly or indirectly by the information contained on this website.