Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Blackbear Creative Studio ("Blackbear Creative," "we," "us," or "our") is a creative studio based in Austin, Texas. We build websites and SMS communication systems for home service businesses.

This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have. It applies to visitors of blackbearcreativestudio.com and to people who contact us or opt in to receive text messages from us.

Questions about this policy can be sent to gabrian@blackbearcreativestudio.com or (231) 292-8304.

2. Information We Collect

We only collect information you choose to give us. When you submit a form on this website or opt in to text messages, we may collect:

• Your name
• Your email address
• Your mobile phone number
• Your business name, trade, and service area
• Project type, budget range, and the details of your message
• Your SMS consent status, along with the date, time, and method of that consent
• Basic technical data such as IP address, browser type, and pages visited

We do not collect payment card details on this website, and we do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information you provide to:

• Respond to your inquiry and provide a quote or proposal
• Deliver the services you have hired us to perform
• Send you service-related messages such as appointment confirmations, reminders, and project updates
• Send marketing or promotional messages, but only where you have separately opted in
• Keep records of consent as required by telecommunications regulations
• Maintain, secure, and improve our website

4. Mobile Information & SMS Consent

Text message consent is collected separately from any other agreement, and it is never required in order to purchase anything from us. You may use our contact form and hire us without ever opting in to SMS.

Mobile phone numbers and SMS consent records are used only to send the messages you agreed to receive, and are shared only with the messaging infrastructure providers required to deliver those messages on our behalf, as described in Section 6.

You can withdraw SMS consent at any time by replying STOP to any message from us. Full program details, message frequency, and support keywords are described in our Terms of Service.

5. Information We Do Not Sell

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We do not share your personal information with third parties for those parties' own marketing purposes. We do not use your information to build advertising profiles or sell audience data.

6. Service Providers We Use

We share limited information with the vendors that make our services function. Each processes data on our behalf and is bound to protect it:

• Twilio — telephone number provisioning, call forwarding, and SMS delivery
• Brevo — contact records and email delivery
• Vercel — website hosting and serverless functions
• Google — calendar scheduling and business email

We may also disclose information where we are legally required to do so, or where necessary to protect our rights, safety, or property.

7. Clients Who Use Our SMS Service

When a home service business hires us to run its text messaging system, that business is the sender of its own messages and is responsible for the consent it collects from its own customers. We act as a service provider to that business.

Consumers who receive texts from one of our client businesses should direct privacy requests to that business. We will assist our clients in honoring those requests, including opt-outs and deletion.

We do not use one client's customer list to message another client's customers, and we do not merge client contact lists.

8. How Long We Keep Information

We keep contact information for as long as needed to provide our services and to maintain the consent records required by telecom regulations, and then delete it. You may request deletion at any time.

Records of an opt-out are retained indefinitely so that we can honor your request and avoid messaging you again.

9. Security

Data is stored with reputable providers that use industry-standard encryption in transit and at rest, and access is limited to people who need it to do the work. No system is perfectly secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security, but we take reasonable steps to protect what you give us.

10. Your Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
• Request correction of information that is inaccurate
• Request deletion of your information
• Withdraw consent for marketing email or SMS at any time
• Opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information — note that we do neither

To exercise any of these rights, email gabrian@blackbearcreativestudio.com. We will not discriminate against you for making a request.

11. Cookies

This website uses only the minimal cookies and local storage required for the site to function. We do not run third-party advertising trackers or sell browsing data.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with a new "last updated" date. If a change materially affects how we handle your information, we will make reasonable efforts to notify you.

13. Contact Us

Blackbear Creative Studio
Austin, Texas
gabrian@blackbearcreativestudio.com
(231) 292-8304