Ownership
You own everything we build.
Not licensed. Not leased. Not "for as long as you're a client." Every account is in your name, and if you leave, you take all of it with you; working.
Yes; you own it. Your domain is registered in your name. Your website's code sits in your repository. Google Analytics, Tag Manager, Search Console, Google Ads and your CRM are created under your accounts, with us added as a user. Remove our access and everything keeps running, with your data and history intact.
Account by account
| What | Whose name it's in | What happens if you leave |
|---|---|---|
| Domain | Yours | You keep it. We were never the registrant. |
| Website code | Yours | Full source in your repository. Any developer can pick it up. |
| Hosting | Your account | Keeps running. You control billing. |
| Google Analytics 4 | Your account | All historical data stays. We are removed as a user. |
| Google Tag Manager | Your account | Your container, your tags. |
| Google Search Console | Your property | Your verification, your history. |
| Google Ads | Your account | Your billing, your conversion history, your learning. |
| Call tracking numbers | Your account | Numbers port with you. |
| CRM | Your subscription | Your contacts, your automations. |
| Content and images | Yours | Everything written or produced for you. |
There's no proprietary platform in that list. Nothing is built on something only we can operate. The site is a standard codebase; the accounts are standard Google and CRM accounts. That's deliberate; it's what makes leaving possible.
Why a whole page about this
Because it's not how this industry usually works, and business owners have learned to ask.
It's common in local service marketing for an agency to build your site on a platform it controls, on a contract running twelve to twenty-four months, where the site is licensed rather than sold. Cancel, and the site goes away. Sometimes the phone number does too, and sometimes the reviews attached to it.
That model isn't a scam. It's a business decision that makes the agency's revenue more predictable. But it puts the client in a position where the cost of leaving is starting over; which means the agency doesn't have to keep earning the relationship.
We'd rather have to keep earning it.
What you're signing
- Project work is scoped and priced in writing before it starts
- Ongoing work is month to month; no twelve or twenty-four month lock-in
- Ownership transfers as the work is delivered, not at the end of a term
- Notice period stated plainly in your agreement
- No cancellation fee, no buy-out, no "the site is ours" clause
If you leave
- You tell us. No retention call, no friction.
- We document what exists and where it lives; accounts, credentials, repository, integrations.
- We remove our access.
- That's the whole process.
You don't need us to release anything, because nothing was ever held. Every account is already yours; the only step is removing us from it.
Questions worth asking any agency
Useful regardless of who you hire. If you're comparing us with someone else, ask both of us; and get the answers in writing.
- 01Whose name is the domain registered in?
- 02If I leave, do I keep the website; and can another developer work with it?
- 03Is the site built on a platform only you can operate?
- 04Whose Google Ads account is it, and who keeps the conversion history?
- 05Whose Google Analytics property is it?
- 06How long is the contract, and what is the notice period?
- 07Is there a fee to cancel or to take the site with me?
There are no wrong answers to these; some agencies operate a leased model openly, and for some businesses that trade is fine. The problem is only when the answer arrives eighteen months in.
Questions
Do I own the website if an agency builds it?
It depends entirely on the agreement, and it varies more than most people expect. Some agencies transfer everything. Others license the site to you for as long as you pay, and it stops working when you stop. The only way to know is to ask before signing, and to get the answer in writing. With us, you own it.
Who owns my Google Ads account?
Ours is always created under your account with your billing, so you own it and the conversion history stays with you. That matters more than it sounds; the history is what the bidding algorithm has learned from, and starting a fresh account means starting that learning from zero.
Can I take my website to another developer?
Yes. It is a standard codebase in your repository. Any competent developer can work with it, and we will answer their questions during a handover.
What if I want to make changes myself?
Depends what kind. Content changes, yes; we set that up and show you. Structural changes usually need a developer, which can be us or anyone else.
Is there a contract?
Project work is scoped and priced in writing. Ongoing work is month to month. There is no minimum term.
What happens to my data if I leave?
Nothing. It is in your accounts. We are removed as a user; the data was never ours to take.
Start a project
Ask us the seven questions.
We'll answer all of them in writing before you commit to anything.