|
||||
faQ frequently asked Why can submissions only be made via email? This is primarily an email-based service. We do this partly for reasons of security and liability; your sensitive information is never stored on web servers, where it could potentially be vulnerable to hackers. Our opinions and ideas are likewise delivered to you by email. If you don't have an email account, arrangements can be made to conduct the process by telephone (more expensive) or through the postal service (much slower). For more information on our process, see here. When making a concept submission or idea request, can I attach an MS-Word document? Supplementary photos, drawings, and on-line reference links (URLs) may be attached to your email, along with the completed RFQ (quote request form). All written information should be contained entirely within the RFQ that you have downloaded from this site. Get the free Adobe Reader ® software from adobe.com -- it will enable you to work with our PDF documents. How long will I have to wait to receive a quote? Generally, quotes are delivered within 0-36 hours of being received by our system, depending on how busy we are. Each quotation contains an estimate of the time required to complete the assignment; the amount (in Canadian dollars); terms of payment; and instructions on how to approve the quotation. Unlike the rest of our services, submissions made under our "open-concept" process are not quoted, but are subject to a service fee of $5.00 (CDN), payable when, and if, the content of the submission is deemed suitable, by site management, for display on our blog. There is no charge if your submission is, for any reason, not selected for display. What topics are suitable for this service? Try us. We have excellent research capabilities and a brilliant crop of specialists (and generalists) upon whose expertise we may draw as needed, but if we are unable to service your request, we'll simply tell you so. What if I can't describe my problem or concept within the 250 or 500 word limit? Keep trying. You will definitely benefit from the exercise of condensing your ideas into the allotted space, which costs you absolutely nothing. Even if we are unable, for one reason or another, to accept your request for service, we are confident that you will already have learned something of value by going through the motions of the declarative process -- even if you make no submission to this service. Do I have to write 500 words to describe my concept? Not at all. If you can supply a shorter abstract of your vision, then please do. It cuts down on our reading time and we really do appreciate that. Just be sure not to leave out any important details. The same guideline applies to the 250 word limit when expressing a need for fresh ideas. What's the difference between the "concept review" service and the "idea generation" service? We act as a reservoir of sober second thought for people who have concepts, inventions or business ideas that they wish to roll out in the real world. We supply concept reviews based on their completed submissions, in line with their declared objectives. In the case of idea generation, a client would typically describe a need or difficulty for which they would like to find a solution or, at minimum, a range of potentially viable options. This may include anything from an assortment of prospective business logos, to suggestions on how to improve a service, product or workflow. We have been called upon to create lists of potentially suitable (and available) company and product names, stock ticker symbols, and internet domain names; the latter being, by far, our most popular service. What if I don't approve of the supplied quotation? You may simply elect not to respond to the quote that you receive. It will expire from our system in 90 days, along with the main body of your submission, in accordance with our Privacy & Discretion Policy. Some clients do prefer that we keep their information on hand as date-stamped proof of the content of their ideas. While we believe that our prices are very fair, considering the time-intensive nature of our work, everyone perceives value in a relativistic way. The price for an opinion or idea starts out at under $20 and rises from that point according to the workload we perceive to be inherent in fulfilling the requirements of each submission. If I accept the quotation, how do I pay my bill? It's easy. As a PayPal-verified merchant, we can accept payment by any PayPal-approved instrument: Visa, MasterCard, PayPal bank transfer, etc. (No PayPal membership required for credit card payments.) If you approve our emailed quotation, you will be sent instructions for making your secure on-line payment(s), according to the terms agreed in the approved quotation. When you approve one of our quotations, you can select which one of several registered charitable organizations you favour; and when you pay your bill, seven percent (7%) of the pre-tax amount of the invoice will go to help the charitable account indicated. Cheques to these charities are issued on a semi-annual basis. How long will I have to wait for my requested opinions or ideas? That will vary with each submission, but an estimate of time to completion is included with each quotation. Most reviews and ideas are delivered between 0-36 hours from the time of quotation approval, but complex work will obviously take longer. What if I don't agree with the review or ideas that I receive? Can I get my money back? All opinions and ideas are provided on an "as is" basis. Payments are generally non-refundable, but we will, upon request, re-examine our work to ensure that it meets our normal standards of service; and, if found lacking, we will undertake remedial action to correct the problem. Disagreement with (or dislike of) a review, concept or idea provided under this service does not constitute a repudiation of the effort undertaken in good faith to produce it. We make no warranty as to the correctness of the opinions expressed or the ideas generated through the "humblerock process". We don't promise "answers" and "solutions". Just ideas. And, of course, ideas about ideas. Why does each submission need to be quoted individually? All ideas are as different as the people who come up with them. We respect that and we take the time to discover why your ideas are important to you. Consider our service a rare personal touch in this age of ultra-fast, on-line automation. Can't quotations be done automatically for faster turnaround? It would certainly be easier and quicker if we could do it that way, but the truth of the matter is that heuristic algorithms haven't reached that stage of development... yet. Also, we like to think that there's no substitute for real people when dealing with human-generated logic. I live and work in South Africa. Why can't I use this service? At this time, we are only servicing accounts in Canada and the USA. We may decide to expand our service reach at some point, but due to our existing familiarity with Canadian and US intellectual property laws, business regulations and internet domain practices, we have elected to confine ourselves geographically until such time as we develop similar expertise and resources for other jurisdictions. Does humblerock do graphics work? If so, what formats are used? We assist in corporate identity work, logo creation, brand & product development, and market strategy -- all of which may include graphical elements. The formats in which these graphics are delivered will vary depending upon your needs as explained in your submission. This may include, but is not limited to: JPG; GIF; PDF; TIF; InDesign files; Photoshop PSD files; Illustrator AI files, etc. Large graphics files (3+ MB) can be downloaded from a secure FTP server or delivered to you on CD or DVD. Submit a question
|