fern Studio

Terms of Service

Last updated: 4 October 2026

1. Who we are

fern Studio is a trading name of Johannes Brink, sole proprietor, George, Western Cape. Contact hello@fernstudio.co.za. fern Studio is not VAT-registered, so all prices are as quoted, with no VAT added.

2. The service

We offer two packages. The one you are on is confirmed with you in writing before you start.

Trades and services package. We set up and look after your Google Business Profile (your listing on Google Maps) once you add us as a manager: category, services, areas, hours, photos and contact details. Claiming or verifying the profile with Google is done by you, and the profile and its reviews remain yours. We give you a review link and QR code and reply to your reviews: four and five star reviews on the permission you give us when you sign up, and anything lower only once you have approved the reply. We set up a WhatsApp button and message templates, build and host a simple website, and register a .co.za domain in your name if you have none. Each month we add the job photos you send, keep your hours and details right, and send you your numbers. Up to 10 changes to the website a month are included. A new page, a new section or a new feature counts as one change and may take a few days. A redesign is quoted separately.

Landing page package. We build and look after a landing page for your business: the build itself, hosting, an SSL certificate, and domain and DNS management, plus 10 content changes a month with a 48-hour turnaround on business days.

If your landing page package includes a Google listing, we keep your Google Business Profile up to date (hours, photos, menu and booking links, and details) once you add us as a manager. Claiming or verifying the profile with Google is done by you, and we don't reply to reviews on your behalf.

A menu swap counts as one change. Unused changes don't roll over to the next month.

On the landing page package, small changes means text and photos on existing pages. New pages, new sections, new features and redesigns are quoted separately.

3. Price and payment

The trades and services package is R500 a month. The landing page package is R1000 a month for the founding package, or the monthly price we confirm with you in writing before you start. The founding rate is available to the first 10 clients and is fixed for 12 months from the date you sign. The standard rate is R1500 a month; after the founding period ends, your rate moves to it, with 30 days' written notice before the change. There is no setup fee and no minimum term. Fees are billed monthly in advance by card, through Paystack. Any add-on work (photography, branding and so on, and extra pages on the landing page package) is quoted in writing before we start.

4. What isn't included

We don't guarantee search-engine rankings, and we don't provide business email hosting, online stores, booking engines, advertising management or social media management unless separately quoted. On both packages, changes are capped as described above.

5. Your content

You confirm that you own, or have the right to use, any photos, logos and text you give us for the site, and you give fern Studio a licence to use them on your site for as long as the agreement runs.

6. Ownership

The domain is registered in your name — it's yours. You own the content you give us. fern Studio owns the site's code, design and templates, which are licensed to you for use on your site for as long as your subscription continues.

7. Cancellation

This is a month-to-month agreement. On the trades and services package you can cancel at any time with no notice: tell us in writing, a WhatsApp or an email is fine, and you are not charged again. On the landing page package you can cancel at any time with 30 days' written notice — an email is fine. If we end the agreement, on either package, we give you 30 days' written notice. If you signed up following a WhatsApp or email approach from us, the Consumer Protection Act gives you a cooling-off period: you can cancel for any reason, with no charge, within 5 business days of signing.

8. When you leave

When the agreement ends, the domain is already yours (see clause 6) — we hand over its management and login details to you, or move its management to your new provider, and give you an export of your content. The site is taken offline at the end of the notice period. On the trades and services package, where you give no notice, the site stays up until the end of the month you have already paid for and is then taken offline; that month is not refunded, except under the cooling-off period in clause 7. We never hold a domain or your content hostage.

9. Non-payment

If a payment fails, we'll send a reminder. If the account is still in arrears after 14 days, we may suspend the site until it's settled. We will never withhold your domain over non-payment.

10. Uptime and third parties

The site is hosted on Vercel. We don't guarantee uptime beyond what our hosting provider offers, and we're not liable for outages or problems caused by third parties we rely on — Vercel, your domain registrar, or Google.

11. Liability

Our liability to you is capped at the fees you paid in the 3 months before the claim, to the extent the law allows.

12. Demo sites

If we send you an unsolicited concept site as part of an approach, it's private, created without any obligation on your part, and taken down on request.

13. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms. If you're an active client, we'll give you 30 days' notice before any change takes effect.

14. Governing law

These terms are governed by the law of South Africa. If a dispute comes up, we'll raise it with you in good faith by email first.