What you can hold us to
Ten commitments, written down so you can point at them later. Each one is either verifiable right now or something we will be judged on at handover.
Identity, not anonymity
quietmason is owner-operated: the person who scopes your work is the person who builds it. There is no sales layer, no subcontract chain, and one address for everything.
Money on published terms
Ranges are on the pricing page before you email us. A quote is one fixed number for a written scope, half up front and half on handover, split into milestones above $3,000. Nothing renews on its own unless you ask for a retainer in writing. Accepted payment methods are listed below.
You own the output
Code, data and credentials are yours from the first commit. We keep no license over your work, and we do not reuse your data, your catalog or your copy in another client's project.
Worth knowing: in the UK and the EU a freelancer keeps copyright unless the contract says otherwise, and plenty of contracts never say. Ours spells it out, in your favor, before work starts.
Minimum access, cleaned up after
We ask for the least access that lets the work happen: a staging copy over production, read-only over write, a sample export over your full database. Credentials stay out of source control.
Claims you can reproduce
We do not guarantee rankings, traffic, revenue or that an AI assistant will mention you. When we quote a number, it comes from something you can open yourself: Search Console, a public URL, or the same input data.
Client work stays unnamed by default
We do not name clients, show their screenshots or publish their metrics without written consent. That is why our work page describes systems rather than brands.
Right of reply, and corrections
If we ever write publicly about a company or a person (a supplier, a platform, a competitor), they get the substance of what we plan to say before publication, and a correction within five business days if we got it wrong. Anything we publish is reversible.
Work we refuse
We do not buy or sell links, write fake reviews or testimonials, guarantee outcomes, scrape behind logins or paywalls, or take work whose point is to misrepresent who you are or what you sell.
Basic hygiene, spelled out
Unique credentials per project, two-factor where we hold an account, secrets outside the repository, and no shared passwords across clients. If we make a mistake that exposes your data, you hear it from us first.
Complaints go somewhere
Email with "complaint" in the subject. You get an acknowledgment within one business day and a real answer, not a template. We do not retaliate, and we do not hold your data hostage over a disagreement.
How you pay
Chosen so that paying from the US or Europe is routine on your side: an invoice with a card option, or a plain bank transfer. No platform subscription, no wallet to open.
| Method | When it fits | Who pays the fees |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice with card or bank payment Payoneer | Default for most clients. You get a USD invoice and pay by card or local transfer; we handle the receiving side. | Our side, apart from any fee your card issuer adds |
| Bank transfer (USD) | Straightforward for finance departments that prefer a wire to a named account. | Sender's bank charges are yours; ours are ours |
| Wise transfer | Convenient if you already hold a balance in Wise. | Payer's transfer fee is yours |
| PayPal on request | Only if it is the one channel your finance team can use. Its fees are real, so the invoice shows them separately. | PayPal's fee is added to the invoice, stated before you pay |
What every invoice contains
- The scope it pays for, quoted in the words we agreed
- The milestone it belongs to, and what triggers the next one
- A due date, the currency (USD) and the account details
- Whatever reference your bookkeeping needs: PO number, VAT number, cost center
What we do not ask for
- No deposit larger than half the scope
- No payment before a written scope exists
- No card details by email, and no "pay to release the work" games
- No recurring charge on a card unless you signed up for the care plan
What we need before quoting, and how "done" is defined: the brief page.
If a milestone slips on our side, the invoice for it does not go out. If it slips on yours (scope changes, access not ready), we say so in writing before any cost appears.
Things clients ask before starting
Do you sign an NDA?
Yes, if you need one: send yours or we will return a plain mutual version. For most small projects an NDA is unnecessary because we will not name you or show your data anyway.
Who owns the code?
You do, from the first commit, including the repository history. If you want the work in your own Git host from day one, say so in the scope and we will build it there.
What if it does not work?
We do not invoice for something that does not do what the scope says. If a fixed-scope build cannot be delivered as written, you owe nothing for the undelivered part, and you keep whatever was already handed over. Changes of mind are not failures; those get a new scope.
Do you subcontract?
No. Work is done by the person you correspond with. If that ever has to change, you will be told before the project starts, not after.
How do payments work from outside your country?
Bank transfer or an agreed processor, invoiced per milestone in US dollars. Tell us at the start if you need a particular invoice format, purchase-order reference or tax wording.
Can we see work like ours?
We will walk you through a comparable system, the decisions behind it and the code, by email or on a call. What we will not do is invent a case study or publish a client's numbers to win a pitch.
Is data collection always acceptable?
We collect public data, respect rate limits and robots directives, and will decline work whose purpose is to break terms of service or the law. If a collection target is borderline, we say so before quoting rather than after.