How a Project Starts

Every project follows the same path, in this order:

1. Discovery call — A 30-minute conversation to understand what you need, whether it's a fit, and what the rough shape of the work looks like.
2. Scoping — I review the discovery details, ask follow-up questions if needed, and put together a Statement of Work (SOW).
3. SOW review and approval — You review the SOW, ask questions, and approve it within the greenlight window (see below).
4. Deposit — A deposit invoice is sent and must be paid before work begins.
5. Work begins — On the agreed start date, not before.

No work happens without an approved SOW and deposit. This isn't a formality — it's how I make sure we're aligned on scope, timeline, and price before any time is spent.

Lead Times

I'm a one-person shop with a day job, ongoing client work, and a life. Lead times reflect that.

• Minimum lead time: 5 business days from scoping to project start
• Typical project start window: 2–4 weeks after SOW approval, depending on current workload
• Rush work: Available at a 25% premium, subject to capacity. Not guaranteed.

If you need something done yesterday, I'm probably not the right person. If you can plan ahead a few weeks, we'll work great together.

The Greenlight Window

Once I send you a SOW, it's good for 3 business days. After that, pricing and timeline are subject to re-quoting based on current availability. This isn't me being precious — it's that my calendar moves quickly. A project that fits this week may not fit next week, and a quote based on this month's workload doesn't hold if you come back two months later. If you need more time to decide, just let me know and we can extend it.

How We Communicate

• Email is the primary channel for project work. It creates a record, it's easy to reference, and it respects everyone's time.
• Slack or DMs are only for active project work, and only during normal working hours (Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm CT). I will not respond to project messages outside of those hours unless it's a true emergency on an active retainer.
• Response times: I aim to respond to emails within 1 business day. Active project communication is typically same-day during work hours.
• Meetings: Scheduled in advance via calendar invite. I do not take ad-hoc same-day meetings except in emergencies.

If you tend to think out loud through messages, I respect that — but please consolidate your thoughts into one message rather than sending 12 in a row. It helps me give you a thoughtful response instead of trying to catch a moving target.

What I Build

The shortlist of what I actually do:

• HubSpot custom modules (HubL, JavaScript, CSS)
• HubSpot workflows with custom code actions (Node.js)
• HubDB architecture, integration, and frontend display
• Cloudflare Workers and serverless integrations
• API integrations between HubSpot and third-party services
• Webhooks and event-driven automation
• HubSpot form architecture and data flow

If your project fits this list, we should talk. If it doesn't, I can probably refer you to someone who'd be a better fit.

What I Don't Do

Just as importantly:

• Design from scratch. I can implement designs you (or a designer) provide. I'm not your art director.
• Content writing or copywriting. I can wire up your forms, but I'm not writing the form labels for you.
• Ongoing IT support or general HubSpot administration. I'm a developer, not a CRM admin.
• Training your team to use HubSpot. Documentation handoff is included with projects. Live training sessions are a separate engagement.
• “Quick favors.” If it takes more than 15 minutes and isn't covered by an existing SOW or retainer, it's billable work.
• Free discovery work. The 30-minute discovery call is free. Scoping a complex project beyond that conversation may incur a discovery fee, applied as credit toward the project if you proceed.

Maintenance vs. New Projects

This is one of the most common areas of confusion, so it's worth being explicit:

• Project work = building something new. Scoped, quoted, and billed as its own engagement.
• Maintenance = keeping existing systems running smoothly. Bug fixes, monitoring, minor adjustments, system activation/deactivation.

Maintenance is not included by default with project work. After a project wraps, you have two options:

• Maintenance retainer — Quarterly retainer with a set number of hours, billed in advance.
• On-demand — No retainer. When something breaks or needs adjusting, I scope it as a small engagement.

If you anticipate needing ongoing support after a project, the retainer is the better choice. If issues are rare and you'd rather not pre-pay, on-demand works.

Scope Changes

Once a SOW is signed, the scope is locked. If you want to add, change, or expand the work mid-project, that's a scope change.

• Small adjustments (under ~10% of original hours) can often be absorbed with a quick conversation.
• Larger changes require a SOW addendum or a new SOW.
• Either way, the change is documented before the work happens — not after.

I never do scope changes silently and then surprise you with a bigger invoice. You'll always know before extra work is performed.

Payment

• Project work: Deposit invoiced before work begins. Final invoice on completion. Net 7 payment terms.
• Retainer work: Quarterly retainer billed in advance.
• Payment methods: ACH (preferred), credit card, or check.
• Late payment: Invoices more than 15 days past due may result in work being paused. Invoices more than 30 days past due may result in the engagement being terminated.

I use Stripe for cards and ACH because it's fast and easy. Checks are accepted but slow everything down — please send a note when one is in the mail so I know to expect it.

Who I Work With Best

I do my best work with clients who:

• Plan ahead and respect lead times
• Communicate clearly and consolidate questions
• Trust my expertise once they've hired me
• Pay invoices on time
• Treat me as a partner, not a vending machine

If that sounds like you, I'd love to hear from you.