Terms of Service

1. Who We Are

Project Midlands LLC ("Project Midlands," "we," "us," or "our") creates practical digital tools, AI-supported workflows, business solutions, consulting services, research tools, and civic technology.

Our products and services may include:

• Business Tools
• Customer Care
• Reviews & Reputation
• Customer Follow-Up
• Employee Support
• Policies & Procedures
• Business Communication
• Marketing & Growth
• Competitive Intelligence
• Customer Conversation Strategy tools
• Project Midlands Consumer Understanding Engine
• Consulting and custom digital systems
• Research and recommendations
• Early Access and beta products
• HOPE Toolkit® products
• HOPE Civics
• CivCraft
• Civic education tools
• Other future Project Midlands products and services

Some services may be sold as one-time purchases. Others may be offered through subscriptions.

2. Who May Use Project Midlands

You must be at least 18 years old, or the legal age required to enter a contract where you live.

If you purchase or use a service for a business or organization, you must have authority to do so.

You are responsible for making sure your use of Project Midlands complies with laws and rules that apply to you or your organization.

3. What You Are Buying

When you purchase a Project Midlands workflow or digital product, you are purchasing the right to use that product under these Terms.

You are not purchasing ownership of:

• Project Midlands technology
• Proprietary prompts
• Master system instructions
• Workflow architecture
• Decision logic
• Research frameworks
• Consumer-understanding methodology
• Internal routing systems
• Learning systems
• Proprietary methods
• Other Project Midlands intellectual property

The product page, checkout page, order confirmation, or a separate written agreement may provide additional details about what is included with a particular purchase.

4. License to Use Project Midlands Workflows

Unless a product description or separate agreement says otherwise, Project Midlands gives the purchasing customer a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use the purchased workflow for that customer's own authorized business purposes.

You may allow authorized employees or team members to use the workflow for the business that purchased it.

You may use appropriate outputs generated by the workflow in normal business activities, including:

• Customer communications
• Internal communications
• Business planning
• Coaching
• Policies and procedures
• Follow-up
• Customer-service activities
• Other uses the product is designed to support

You may not:

• Resell the workflow
• Sublicense it to another business
• Publish the underlying workflow or prompt
• Give copies to unrelated businesses
• Sell access to it
• Extract hidden system instructions
• Reproduce Project Midlands proprietary methodology
• Reverse engineer protected parts of the system
• Remove Project Midlands ownership notices
• Use non-public Project Midlands materials to create an unauthorized competing copy of the system

These restrictions apply only to the extent permitted by law.

A one-time purchase does not automatically include future versions, upgrades, maintenance, support, or new features unless the product description says otherwise.

5. Project Midlands Intellectual Property

Project Midlands LLC keeps its rights in its underlying products, technology, content, and methods.

This may include:

• Workflow designs
• Proprietary prompts
• System instructions
• Project Midlands Consumer Understanding Engine
• Consumer-understanding frameworks
• Decision logic
• Taxonomies
• Research frameworks
• Routing systems
• Learning systems
• Training materials
• Software
• Website design
• Original written content
• Product names
• Branding
• Proprietary methods
• Documentation

Using or purchasing a Project Midlands product does not transfer ownership of these materials to you.

You receive the benefit of the Project Midlands methodology, not unrestricted ownership of the methodology itself.

6. HOPE Toolkit® and Related Products

HOPE Toolkit® is a Project Midlands LLC brand and proprietary product family.

Project Midlands LLC retains its rights in the HOPE Toolkit® name and branding, along with Project Midlands-owned materials used in HOPE Toolkit® products.

Those materials may include:

• Software
• Workflows
• Prompts and system instructions
• Original content
• Designs
• Research frameworks
• Methodologies
• Decision logic
• Product documentation
• Training materials
• Proprietary technology

Products, tools, features, and services offered as part of the HOPE Toolkit® product family remain subject to these Terms and any additional terms that may apply to a particular product.

Access Does Not Transfer Ownership

Purchasing, subscribing to, receiving, or otherwise obtaining access to a HOPE Toolkit® product does not transfer ownership of:

• HOPE Toolkit®
• Project Midlands technology
• Underlying workflows
• Underlying prompts
• Proprietary methodologies
• Internal systems
• Project Midlands intellectual property

You receive only the rights specifically provided by these Terms, the applicable product description, or a separate written agreement.

You May Not Resell or Repackage HOPE Toolkit® Products

Unless Project Midlands LLC gives written permission, you may not:

• Resell a HOPE Toolkit® product
• Redistribute it to another person, business, campaign, organization, or entity
• Sublicense it
• Sell access to it
• Repackage it as your own product or service
• Publish or distribute its underlying prompts, workflows, software, or proprietary materials
• Remove Project Midlands or HOPE Toolkit® ownership notices
• Copy protected Project Midlands materials to create an unauthorized competing version

HOPE Toolkit® Name and Branding

You may not use the HOPE Toolkit® name, branding, logos, or confusingly similar branding in a way that falsely suggests:

• You own HOPE Toolkit®
• Your product is an official HOPE Toolkit® product when it is not
• Project Midlands sponsors or endorses you when it does not
• You are an authorized Project Midlands partner, reseller, or licensee when you are not

Products Within the HOPE Toolkit® Family

Project Midlands may offer individual civic tools, digital products, educational experiences, features, or other services as part of the HOPE Toolkit® product family.

Inclusion within HOPE Toolkit® does not transfer ownership of those products or their underlying Project Midlands materials to a user, customer, client, campaign, partner, or organization.

Individual products may also have their own names, branding, intellectual-property protections, or additional terms.

Authorized Outputs

You may use outputs generated by an authorized HOPE Toolkit® product for the purposes that product is designed to support, subject to these Terms and any product-specific restrictions.

Your right to use an output does not give you ownership of the underlying Project Midlands system that produced it.

Nothing in these Terms is intended to prohibit lawful independent development, fair use, or other rights that cannot legally be restricted.

7. Your Information and Content

You keep your rights to information, documents, messages, policies, customer interactions, business materials, and other content you provide to Project Midlands.

You give Project Midlands permission to process that information as reasonably necessary to provide the service you requested.

You are responsible for making sure you have the right or authorization to provide that information.

Do not provide information you are not authorized to use.

Do not provide unnecessary sensitive information such as:

• Passwords
• Security codes
• Full payment-card information
• Government identification numbers
• Authentication codes
• Other sensitive credentials

unless a Project Midlands service specifically requests and is designed to handle that information.

Our Privacy Policy provides additional information about how information is handled.

8. Continuous Learning and Product Improvement

Project Midlands may improve its products, workflows, systems, research, and methods over time.

Where allowed and consistent with our Privacy Policy, applicable notices, and permissions, Project Midlands may use appropriate:

• Usage information
• Feedback
• Product-performance information
• Outcome information

to understand how products perform and improve them.

One customer's confidential business information does not give another customer access to that information.

Project Midlands does not automatically turn one customer's private:

• Business rules
• Customer records
• Pricing
• Internal procedures
• Proprietary information
• Confidential processes

into another customer's business information.

Project Midlands may use broader lessons, appropriately permitted information, public research, and validated patterns to improve its methods.

9. AI-Powered Services

Some Project Midlands services use artificial intelligence.

AI may help:

• Analyze information
• Identify patterns
• Explain situations
• Draft communications
• Suggest next steps
• Review customer interactions
• Organize information
• Identify possible business problems
• Provide decision support
• Identify possible consumer needs
• Analyze customer effort
• Support business communication

AI systems can make mistakes.

Project Midlands does not guarantee that every AI-generated:

• Answer
• Recommendation
• Prediction
• Classification
• Interpretation
• Draft
• Risk assessment

will be correct.

Important decisions should be reviewed before you act on them.

10. Project Midlands Consumer Understanding Engine

The Project Midlands Consumer Understanding Engine is designed to help businesses better understand people, consumers, and customer interactions.

Its purpose is to help businesses:

Understand the person. Understand the behavior. Know what to do next.

The Engine may consider information such as:

• Observable behavior
• Communication patterns
• Customer effort
• Trust signals
• Possible triggers
• Possible needs
• Engagement
• Disengagement
• Hesitation
• Behavioral changes
• Turning points
• Customer journey context
• Business actions that may have affected the interaction
• Alternative explanations
• Available evidence

The Consumer Understanding Engine does not read minds.

A behavioral interpretation is not a proven fact about a person's:

• Thoughts
• Motives
• Personality
• Emotions
• Mental health
• Intentions

The amount and quality of available information can affect the quality of an analysis.

11. Business Decisions Remain Yours

Project Midlands provides tools and decision support.

You remain responsible for your business decisions.

This includes decisions involving:

• Customers
• Pricing
• Refunds
• Discounts
• Credits
• Employees
• Hiring
• Termination
• Discipline
• Compensation
• Contracts
• Business policies
• Financial matters
• Legal matters
• Regulatory matters

A Project Midlands recommendation does not automatically give you or your employee authority to take an action.

Always confirm that your business can actually provide a promised:

• Remedy
• Refund
• Credit
• Discount
• Deadline
• Service
• Replacement
• Re-service
• Other commitment

before promising it to another person.

12. Policies and Procedures

Project Midlands may help organize existing business rules or help draft new policies and procedures.

Project Midlands does not invent an existing policy when one has not been provided.

Newly drafted policies should be treated as drafts until the business reviews and approves them.

A draft may be marked:

DRAFT. REVIEW AND APPROVE BEFORE USE.

The business remains responsible for determining whether a policy is appropriate, lawful, and suitable for its operations.

13. Employee Support

Employee Support tools may help with:

• Coaching
• Recognition
• Communication
• Expectations
• Development
• Customer-service feedback
• Organizing documentation

These tools do not make final employment decisions.

Project Midlands is not a substitute for qualified:

• Legal
• Human-resources
• Tax
• Medical
• Financial
• Other professional advice

when that type of expertise is required.

14. Consulting Services

Submitting a Project Midlands Consulting request does not mean Project Midlands has accepted the project.

Project Midlands may:

• Accept the request
• Ask for more information
• Decline the request

A Consulting relationship begins only after Project Midlands agrees to the work.

A Consulting project may also have:

• A proposal
• Statement of work
• Order form
• Project agreement
• Other written agreement

If a specific written Consulting agreement conflicts with these Terms, the more specific agreement controls for that project.

Consulting meetings may be recorded or transcribed with appropriate notice and consent as described below.

15. Meeting Recording and Transcription

Project Midlands may use recording or transcription tools during video or audio meetings to help us focus on the conversation, understand your needs, and create accurate notes instead of relying only on handwritten notes.

Project Midlands will tell participants before recording or transcription begins and will request consent when required.

If you do not want a meeting recorded or transcribed, tell us before or during the meeting. When reasonably possible, we can continue the meeting without using those tools.

Recordings or transcripts may be used to:

• Understand your business or project needs
• Prepare notes and follow-up items
• Confirm requirements discussed during the meeting
• Develop agreed services, workflows, recommendations, or project plans
• Help reduce misunderstandings about what was discussed

Meeting recordings or transcripts do not automatically create a contract, approve a project, authorize system access, change pricing, or create a commitment by either party unless that commitment is separately confirmed through the appropriate Project Midlands agreement or process.

Information from meeting recordings and transcripts will be handled according to the Project Midlands Privacy Policy and any applicable project agreement.

16. Early Access and Beta Services

Joining an Early Access list does not guarantee that you will receive access.

Early Access and beta products may:

• Change
• Contain errors
• Have limited functionality
• Be delayed
• Be discontinued
• Never become generally available

Unless Project Midlands specifically agrees otherwise in writing, joining an Early Access list does not guarantee:

• A launch date
• Invitation date
• Price
• Feature
• Beta placement
• Future access

17. Civic and Public-Information Tools

Project Midlands civic tools may help users understand public information or take civic action.

They are not official government services.

Public information can change.

Users should independently verify important:

• Deadlines
• Legal requirements
• Government contact information
• Election information
• Legislative information
• Other time-sensitive public information

when necessary.

Project Midlands civic tools do not provide legal advice.

18. One-Time Purchases

If Project Midlands offers a one-time digital product for purchase, it will be charged at the price shown before purchase.

Because workflows and other digital products can be delivered or accessed immediately, purchases are generally non-refundable once the workflow has been delivered or access has been provided.

A refund may be provided when:

• You were charged more than once for the same purchase
• You paid but did not receive the purchased product
• A technical problem caused by Project Midlands prevents you from accessing the purchased product and we cannot reasonably correct it
• A refund is required by applicable law

For purchase assistance, contact: hello@projectmidlands.tech

19. Subscriptions and Automatic Renewal

Some Project Midlands services may be offered through monthly, annual, or other recurring subscriptions.

Before you purchase a subscription, Project Midlands will disclose the:

• Price
• Billing frequency
• Material subscription terms

By knowingly choosing a recurring subscription and completing the purchase, you authorize Project Midlands or its payment provider to charge the applicable subscription fee at the disclosed billing interval until you cancel.

Subscriptions automatically renew unless the checkout terms say otherwise.

You may cancel using the cancellation method provided with the subscription or by contacting: hello@projectmidlands.tech

Cancellation normally takes effect at the end of the current paid billing period.

You may continue using the service through that paid period unless stated otherwise.

Subscription fees are generally non-refundable after a billing period begins.

Project Midlands does not normally provide prorated refunds for unused time.

Exceptions may apply for:

• Duplicate charges
• Failure to receive paid access
• Access problems caused by Project Midlands that we cannot reasonably fix
• Refunds required by law

If a subscription price changes, Project Midlands will provide appropriate notice before the changed price is charged when required.

Project Midlands will not intentionally make cancellation unnecessarily difficult.

20. Payments and Taxes

Prices are shown before purchase.

You agree to provide accurate payment information and authorize applicable charges.

Payments may be processed by third-party payment providers.

You are responsible for taxes that apply to your purchase unless Project Midlands is required to collect or remit them.

21. Prohibited Uses

You may not use Project Midlands services to:

• Break the law
• Commit fraud
• Harass or threaten people
• Violate another person's rights
• Access systems or information without authorization
• Upload stolen or unlawfully obtained information
• Circumvent security or access restrictions
• Extract protected system instructions
• Misrepresent AI-generated interpretations as guaranteed facts
• Use Project Midlands proprietary material beyond your license
• Interfere with the operation of Project Midlands services
• Resell or redistribute protected Project Midlands products without permission
• Falsely claim affiliation with Project Midlands

Project Midlands may suspend or terminate access when reasonably necessary to address serious misuse, nonpayment, fraud, security concerns, or violations of these Terms.

22. Honest Reviews and Feedback

You have the right to share honest opinions about Project Midlands and your experience with our products or services.

Nothing in these Terms prohibits or penalizes truthful:

• Reviews
• Complaints
• Criticism
• Consumer feedback

You may not use a review or public statement as a reason to unlawfully disclose:

• Another person's private information
• Project Midlands trade secrets
• Legally protected confidential information

23. Third-Party Services

Project Midlands may rely on third-party services for functions such as:

• Artificial intelligence
• Hosting
• Payments
• Email
• Communications
• Analytics
• External information
• Video meetings
• Transcription

Those services may have their own terms and privacy practices.

To the extent permitted by law, Project Midlands is not responsible for third-party outages, changes, or failures outside our reasonable control.

24. No Guaranteed Results

Project Midlands does not guarantee:

• Increased sales
• Increased revenue
• Customer retention
• Positive reviews
• Customer responses
• Employee improvement
• Successful negotiations
• Specific financial results
• Specific customer behavior
• Specific business outcomes

Project Midlands recommendations are designed to help you make better-informed decisions.

They do not guarantee what another person, customer, employee, organization, or business will do.

25. Service Availability and Changes

Project Midlands may update, improve, replace, rename, or discontinue products, services, or features.

We do not guarantee uninterrupted access to every service.

For paid services, Project Midlands will make reasonable efforts to handle material service changes fairly and consistently with the terms that applied to the purchase.

26. Disclaimer of Warranties

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Project Midlands services are provided on an "as available" and "as is" basis, except for specific written commitments Project Midlands expressly makes.

Project Midlands does not promise that every service will be:

• Error-free
• Uninterrupted
• Suitable for every business
• Accurate in every circumstance
• Compatible with every system

Nothing in these Terms removes warranties, protections, or consumer rights that cannot legally be waived.

27. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Project Midlands LLC will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages arising from use of a Project Midlands service.

For a claim involving a one-time digital product, Project Midlands' total liability for that product will not exceed the amount paid to Project Midlands for the product giving rise to the claim.

For a subscription claim, Project Midlands' total liability will not exceed subscription fees paid to Project Midlands for that service during the 12 months before the event giving rise to the claim.

These limitations do not apply where applicable law does not allow them or to liability that legally cannot be limited.

28. Resolving Problems and Disputes

Project Midlands wants to resolve problems fairly and directly whenever possible.

Before filing a lawsuit relating to these Terms or a Project Midlands service, you and Project Midlands agree to make a reasonable, good-faith effort to resolve the problem informally.

To begin that process, contact: hello@projectmidlands.tech

Please explain:

• What happened
• What you believe went wrong
• What resolution you are requesting

Project Midlands will make a reasonable effort to review your concern and work toward a resolution.

Our goal is to solve legitimate concerns directly whenever possible instead of requiring either side to immediately go through the time and expense of formal legal proceedings.

If a matter cannot be resolved directly, both sides may agree to use mediation or another voluntary dispute-resolution process.

If the dispute still cannot be resolved, either party may bring the dispute in a court with proper jurisdiction in South Carolina.

Either party may also use small-claims court when the dispute qualifies.

Nothing in this section removes a legal right or remedy that cannot lawfully be waived.

29. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of South Carolina, without regard to conflict-of-law principles, except where another law that cannot legally be waived applies.

30. Ending Access

You may stop using Project Midlands at any time.

Subscription cancellation is handled under the subscription section above.

Project Midlands may suspend or terminate service when reasonably necessary because of:

• Nonpayment
• Fraud
• Serious misuse
• Security threats
• Repeated violations of these Terms

Termination does not transfer ownership of Project Midlands intellectual property.

Rights and obligations that reasonably need to continue after termination, including intellectual-property protections, payment obligations, dispute provisions, and liability provisions, will continue to apply.

31. Electronic Agreements and Notices

Project Midlands operates online.

Contracts, notices, disclosures, and other records may be provided electronically when permitted by law.

You should keep a copy of:

• These Terms
• Purchase confirmations
• Subscription information
• Project agreements

for your records.

32. Changes to These Terms

Project Midlands may update these Terms as products, technology, laws, or business practices change.

When a change is material to an active paid service, Project Midlands will provide reasonable notice when required.

The effective date at the top of these Terms shows when the current version became effective.

33. Other Legal Terms

If one part of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining portions will continue to apply to the extent permitted by law.

If Project Midlands does not immediately enforce a provision, that does not automatically waive our right to enforce it later.

You may not transfer your rights to a Project Midlands workflow to another business unless Project Midlands allows it.

Project Midlands may transfer these Terms as part of a merger, acquisition, reorganization, sale of the business, or sale of relevant assets.

These Terms, together with applicable:

• Product-specific terms
• Privacy Policy
• Checkout disclosures
• Consulting agreements
• Statements of work
• Other written agreements

form the agreement governing your use of Project Midlands services.

34. Contact Project Midlands

Questions about these Terms, purchases, subscriptions, cancellations, meeting transcription, refunds, or disputes may be sent to:

Project Midlands LLC
Email: hello@projectmidlands.tech