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                              MultiValue Consulting and

                              Technical Support, Inc.

 

the offices of Wayde and Mecklenberg et al

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                    Retainer Policy

                                    - and -

             Money Back Guarantee

A good name is more desirable than great riches

We work on Retainer just as many multivalue development corporations and law firms do.  In return, we guarantee your satisfaction or your money backWe accept the following Forms of Payment:  check, USPS money order, PayPal, or wire transfer.

We collect a percentage of the estimated total when a Service Quote becomes a signed Authorization or a Progress Report requests additional hours.  Work can begin as soon as your Retainer is received.  Once a Client has established a consistent, on-time payment-in-full record for three consecutive billing cycles in which a balance was due, we reduce the Retainer requirement by half.  But we waive the Retainer requirement entirely for Exceptional Clients, those who pay the Time Billing Statement balance within one week of receipt.  We also waive the Retainer requirement for Clients who sign a Software Maintenance Agreement (see Rates page for details).  If you don't have an SMA in effect, but you gave us Billable Work the prior month, and your account is current, we'll waive the Retainer for you as well.  This means work can begin as soon as requested because there is no "jet lag" while we wait to receive the Retainer.

Retainer Policy
Client Type Description Percent Collected

New Client

First 3 Billing Cycles with Balance Due

50%

Established Client

Consistent, On-Time Payment Record

25%

Monthly Client

Billable Work Performed in prior month

0%

Exceptional Client

Balance Paid within One Week of receipt

0%

Maintenance Client

Maintenance Agreement (SMA) in effect

0%

Dormant Client

No Activity for One Billing Cycle

50%

Overdue or Delinquent

Until Account is brought current

100%

Onsite Services

Onsite Services plus Travel

100%

For every rule, there is also an exception.  For New Clients who wish to sign a Software Maintenance Agreement (SMA) before they have established an on-time payment record, a Retainer equal to one full month fee at the chosen SMA Discount will be due at signing.

Need help in a hurry?

Wire Transfer from your bank to ours is a fast and cost-effective way to submit a Retainer.  Although it takes about 24 hours to verify funds, we could begin servicing your account as soon as we receive a faxed or emailed copy of the Wire Transfer Acknowledgement from your bank showing Reference Number and details.  But you will also need to include with the Retainer the fee which our bank charges for Incoming Wire Transfer, currently $15.00.  As a discount multivalue development corp, our rates are not designed to absorb that fee.  Let us know if you plan to submit your Retainer using this method so we can include the Fee on our Quote.

PayPal® is perhaps the fastest way to submit a Retainer.  You do not need to have a PayPal account to use this method.  And this is currently the only way you can submit a Retainer to us using a Credit Card.  But it may not be as cost-effective because you will also need to include with the Retainer the Merchant Fee which PayPal deducts before forwarding the balance to us, currently about 3.00%.  As a discount multivalue development corp, our rates are not designed to absorb that fee.  Let us know if you plan to submit your Retainer using this method so we can include the Fee on our Quote.  To send your Retainer via PayPal, follow these steps:  1) Use your browser to logto www.paypal.com; 2) Click the "Send Money" tab; 3) In the "To" Email text box, enter billing@mvcats.com; 4) In the "From" email text box, enter your email address; 5) In the "Amount" text box, enter the Retainer plus PayPal Fee amount in US Dollars as indicated on our Quote; 6) On the "Purchase" tab, choose the "Services" option; 7) Then click the "Continue" button and follow the remaining instructions.  We could begin servicing your account as soon as we verify receipt of these funds in our PayPal Merchant account.

The Cover Sheet which accompanies our Service Quote will supply details on how to submit a Retainer.  But if you sign any one of our Software Maintenance Agreements, there is No Retainer and No Waiting when service is requested.  See our Rates page for details.

How we do business

Upon receipt of your retainer (or statement payment), a Credit Memo will be issued, then emailed or faxed to you.  This Credit will be applied to and referenced on monthly Time Billing Statements until applied in full (or refunded).

When a Client grants MvCaTs permission to log onto their multivalue system for the first time by Secure Remote Access, we expect the Client to hand-hold our Consultant all the way through the login process until we have fully and accurately documented & tried all steps in that process.  There are scores, if not hundreds, of access methods out there so we cannot be expected to know, support, or afford them all.  If a Client has a preferred method of access which is foreign to us, the Client has two options:  1) install their preferred method free of charge on our Consultant's PC, or 2) allow MvCaTs to install a free 30-day evaluation version of AccuTerm on the Client's system (applicable only for Clients running a Windows platform).  AccuTerm is our preferred method of access and comes with tools such as a File Transfer Wizard and a Windows Editor that enable us to work faster.  And when we work faster, the Client gets results more quickly and billable time is reduced.  Another benefit of installing AccuTerm is that ALL of our Consultants would then be able to access the Client's system to provide future support.

Any Software Development on the Client’s system will be kept completely separate from applications currently running.  If existing applications require editing, each routine will be cloned to a development version before any modifications begin.  No work will be activated until demoed for the Client and approved for activation.

On the first business day of each month, we will issue a Time Billing Statement which summarizes Services Rendered the month prior and applies any earned Discounts and any Credit Memos on file.  If a Balance is Due, it must be paid by the 20th day of the Billing month so that projects can continued uninterrupted.  On the Statement, our Service Codes are listed by Category - SubCategory.  For example, Software - Consultation is where we log time spent consulting with the client about their software, whether by phone, fax, email, or live messenger (and on occasion in person).  Software - Evaluation is where we log time spent evaluating the client's software.  Software - Modifications is where we log time spent modifying the Client's software.  Software - Documentation is where we log time spent recording an audit trail of what was said, what was evaluated, and what programs were modified.

Periodically throughout a project, we provide Progress Reports and demo what has been developed thus far.  We also document any additional Client requests.  Sometimes, a Progress Report will request Additional Hours to be authorized.  All amounts on a Progress Report must be initialed and the Report itself signed by the Client, dated and faxed back to MvCaTs before work can continue.  This constitutes Approval of both the work completed and any additional hours requested.

Upon completion of a project, another demo of the Finished Product is performed and a final Progress Report is submitted for Approval.  A Time Billing Statement will be issued for any Balance Due on the project.  Payment of the Amount Due on a Time Billing Statement constitutes Approval of the services performed.  Once payment has cleared our bank, any development software will be activated for use by the Client.  Minor adjustments to the activated product will be addressed at Client request.

If a Credit Memo balance remains after final corporate Time Billing charges have been billed and deducted, the Client may opt for a refund or may leave the balance on deposit toward the next project.  However, if the Credit Memo balance is insufficient to cover final charges, a Time Billing Statement will be presented for the difference.  Payment of the Amount Due on a Time Billing Statement constitutes Approval of the services performed.

If a Progress Report or the demo of the Finished Product was disapproved, we would first remove from the Client's system any unapproved development software related to this project.  Then, a Refund (of the Client's Credit Balance as well as all monies collected which relate to the unapproved software) would be on its way back to the Client the next business day.  Future projects would be subject to review.  (Wire Transfer Fees are non-refundable.)

If a Project was canceled by the Client for reasons other than disapproval of the results, a Partial Refund would be issued for any Credit Memo balance remaining after accrued corporate Time Billing charges were deducted.  But if the Credit Memo balance was insufficient to cover these accrued charges, a Time Billing Statement would be presented instead, requesting payment for the difference.  Any development software on the Client’s system relating to this project would remain there, incomplete and inactive.

On the Clock

After a Client signs a Service Authorization, submits the Retainer, and takes advantage of the Two Hours of Free New Client Consultation, most contact which follows will be On the Clock, just as it is after you retain a defense attorney.   Once you pay the Retainer, the firm begins gathering information to prepare your defense.  If part way through the information gathering process, the suit is dropped and you inform the attorney there is no further need for his help, you will receive a bill for services already rendered.  After all, the work was begun in good faith at your request.

Another analogy may help to clarify this concept.  Once you hail a city cab, climb into the back seat, and tell the driver where you want to go, the meter starts running and you are On the Clock.  The driver does not turn off the meter at a stop light.  Nor does the driver turn off the meter if a traffic jam impedes progress.  Such delays are out of the driver's control.  The meter continues to run until you get out of the cab, whether or not you reached your destination.  But unlike the cab driver or the attorney, we offer a variety of discounts to mitigate the cost.  And of course, courtesy services such as Quotes and Administration of your account are performed Free of charge.

Time Billing

A Time Billing Statement will be issued on the first business day following a month in which any billable services were rendered.  The statement will be emailed (or faxed if the Client prefers).  Payment in full is due by the 20th day of the month of issue so we can pay our Consultants no later than the 27th (after the deposit clears).  Timecards containing Statement details are available on request.  A line near the bottom of the Statement will list the number of Timecards created during the billing month along with the Transcript Fee to include with the payment if you wish to receive copies.  The Transcript Fee of $1.25 per Timecard covers the cost of administrative time to pull them, paper, ink, & electricity to print them along with address & return labels, time to prepare & stuff the envelope, and postage to mail them.

A Payment Reminder would be emailed if payment was not received by the 15th.  This is done as a courtesy, in case the Client has forgotten to issue payment.  There is still time to avoid Overdue Penalties, Suspension of Service, Late Fees, etc.

A Payment Overdue Notice would be emailed if payment was not received by the 20th.  These Overdue Penalties would apply:  1) the Account would be flagged as On Hold; 2) All servicing would be suspended until payment was received and cleared our bank; 3) Any software that had been activated but was not yet fully paid for would be temporarily deactivated; and 4) Any new servicing requested while On Hold would require a 100% retainer until the Account was brought current.

A Payment Delinquent Notice would be emailed if payment was not received by the last business day of the billing month of issue -or- if payment was less than the amount billed.  The Account would be flagged as Delinquent and until brought current, these Consequences would apply:  1) All Overdue Penalties would remain in effect; 2) All Discounts reflected on the Time Billing Statement would be forfeited; 3) A Late Fee of 1.5% per month (18% annual) would be imposed on the new balance; 4) the Statement would be reissued to reflect the Delinquent Balance at our Full Rate plus Late Fee, and 5) The only acceptable Form of Payment once an Account goes Delinquent would be Wire Transfer (with all fees paid by Client) to avoid further delay.  After the Account was brought current, the required Retainer percentages would revert to New Client levels -and- the Client must reestablish a consistent, on-time payment record for three consecutive billing cycles in which a balance was due.

If work under a Service Authorization has not yet been completed when our new rates go into effect on March 1st, the former rates will be "locked in" and will continue to apply until that project is finished as long as billable work is requested and performed each consecutive month.  But if that project goes dormant for a full billing cycle, the new rates will take effect and the former rate lock will be forfeited.

Monthly 5% Product Discount Coupon

MvCaTs offers an Automatic Rewards Program.  As soon as you pay your monthly Time Billing Statement in full, a 5% Product Discount Coupon will be issued for the Total Number of Billable Hours paid.  This Coupon will be emailed or faxed to you along with your payment Credit Memo and will be valid through the remainder of that Billing month and all of the month following.  This Discount may be applied toward the Purchase of any Products which MvCaTs offers on the Products Menu found on our web site home page. But it may be applied only to a Product Purchase Service Authorization and may not be used to reduce a Retainer requirement.  This Discount may be combined with other Client Discounts such as 5% Two Product Purchase, 10% Multiple Product Purchase, Software Maintenance Agreement Discounts from 1% to 20%, and Volume Incentives up to a total of 20% off the Purchase Price.  So be sure to visit the Products Menu on our home web page before each Coupon expires.

The Client has so much to gain by contracting with us.  We want repeat business and will go the extra mile to ensure complete satisfaction with the finished product and the final price.  Our goal will always be to deliver twice the performance at half the price, twice the value in half the time.

(Rates and terms are subject to improvement without notice.)

(Once a Travel-related expense has been incurred, it is not subject to our Money-Back Guarantee.)

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This page was last modified on June 24, 2010.