Terms of Use

Welcome to Kudzu! These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Kudzu platform, including our website, mobile applications, and related services (collectively, the "Service"). By accessing or using Kudzu, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree to these Terms, please do not use our Service.

1. Acceptance of Terms

By creating an account, accessing, or using the Kudzu Service, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms, as well as our Privacy Policy. These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and Kudzu.

You must be at least 18 years of age and have the legal capacity to enter into binding contracts to use our Service. By using Kudzu, you represent and warrant that you meet these requirements.

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. If we make material changes, we will notify you via email or through a prominent notice on our platform. Your continued use of the Service after such changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated Terms.

2. Description of Service

Kudzu is a customer feedback and loyalty platform designed to help small businesses:

• Collect customer ratings and feedback through a simple 1-10 rating system
• Automate the process of requesting and managing online reviews
• Build and manage customer loyalty programs
• Send promotional SMS messages to customers (with explicit consent)
• Integrate with point-of-sale systems and review platforms
• Analyze customer sentiment and improve business operations

Kudzu is currently in beta and offering early access to select businesses. Features, functionality, and pricing may change as we continue to develop and improve the platform.

3. Account Registration and Security

To use Kudzu, you must create an account by providing accurate, complete, and current information about your business. You agree to:

• Provide truthful and accurate information during registration
• Maintain and promptly update your account information
• Keep your password secure and confidential
• Notify us immediately of any unauthorized access to your account
• Accept responsibility for all activities that occur under your account

You are solely responsible for maintaining the security of your account credentials. Kudzu will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from your failure to comply with these security obligations.

4. User Responsibilities and Acceptable Use

You agree to use Kudzu only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms. You agree NOT to:

• Engage in fraud or deceptive practices: Including creating fake reviews, ratings, or customer accounts
• Send spam or unsolicited messages: Only send promotional communications to customers who have explicitly consented
• Harass or abuse: Engage in harassment, threats, or abusive behavior toward customers or other users
• Violate laws or regulations: Use the Service in any manner that violates applicable local, state, national, or international law
• Interfere with the Service: Attempt to disrupt, damage, or impair the functionality of Kudzu or its infrastructure
• Reverse engineer: Attempt to decompile, reverse engineer, or access the source code of our platform
• Misrepresent your business: Provide false information about your business identity, ownership, or operations

Violation of these acceptable use policies may result in immediate suspension or termination of your account.

5. Intellectual Property Rights

The Kudzu Service, including all content, features, functionality, software, logos, trademarks, and visual design, is owned by Kudzu and is protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws.

6. Payment Terms

Kudzu is currently offering free early access to businesses on our waitlist. In the future, we may introduce paid subscription plans with the following terms:

• Subscription Plans: We may offer monthly or annual subscription options with different feature tiers
• Billing: Subscriptions will be billed in advance on a recurring basis
• Payment Methods: We accept major credit cards and other payment methods as specified
• Automatic Renewal: Subscriptions will automatically renew unless canceled before the renewal date
• Refunds: Refund policies will be clearly communicated when paid plans are introduced

Early access users will receive advance notice before any transition to paid plans, along with information about pricing and grandfathered benefits.

7. Customer Data and Ratings

As a business using Kudzu, you are responsible for:

• Authentic Ratings: Ensuring all customer ratings and feedback are genuine and not fabricated or incentivized inappropriately
• Customer Consent: Obtaining proper consent before collecting customer contact information or sending promotional messages
• Data Accuracy: Maintaining accurate customer records and promptly honoring opt-out requests
• Dispute Resolution: Addressing customer complaints or disputes about ratings professionally and in good faith

Kudzu reserves the right to remove any ratings or content that appear fraudulent, violate our policies, or result from manipulation of the rating system. We may also suspend or terminate accounts engaged in rating fraud.

8. Loyalty Programs and Promotions

Kudzu enables businesses to create and manage loyalty programs. As a business using these features, you agree to:

• Clearly communicate the terms and conditions of your loyalty programs to customers
• Honor all loyalty rewards, discounts, and promotional offers made through Kudzu
• Comply with all applicable laws regarding promotional activities and customer rewards
• Obtain explicit consent before sending promotional SMS messages to customers
• Provide clear opt-out instructions in all promotional communications

Kudzu provides the technology to facilitate loyalty programs but is not responsible for the fulfillment of rewards or resolution of disputes between businesses and their customers.

9. Third-Party Integrations

Kudzu integrates with third-party services including review platforms (Google, Yelp, Facebook), POS systems (Clover), and other business tools. When using these integrations:

• You acknowledge that third-party services have their own terms of service and privacy policies
• You are responsible for complying with the terms of any third-party services you connect to Kudzu
• Kudzu is not responsible for the availability, functionality, or data practices of third-party services
• You grant Kudzu permission to access and use data from integrated services as necessary to provide our Service

We may add, modify, or remove third-party integrations at any time. We will make reasonable efforts to notify you of significant changes to available integrations.

10. Disclaimer of Warranties

THE KUDZU SERVICE IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, KUDZU DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:

• Implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement
• Warranties that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or secure
• Warranties regarding the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of content or data
• Warranties that the Service will meet your specific business requirements or expectations

We do not guarantee specific results from using Kudzu, including improvements in customer ratings, review volume, or business revenue. Your success depends on many factors beyond our control.

11. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, KUDZU SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:

• Loss of profits, revenue, data, or business opportunities
• Cost of substitute services or products
• Damage to business reputation or customer relationships
• Personal injury or property damage resulting from your use of the Service

IN NO EVENT SHALL KUDZU'S TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL CLAIMS EXCEED THE GREATER OF $100 OR THE AMOUNT YOU PAID TO KUDZU IN THE 12 MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of certain damages, so some of the above limitations may not apply to you.

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Kudzu, its affiliates, officers, directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, costs, or expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from:

• Your use or misuse of the Kudzu Service
• Your violation of these Terms or applicable laws
• Your violation of any third-party rights, including intellectual property or privacy rights
• Content you submit or transmit through the Service
• Your business operations, loyalty programs, or customer interactions facilitated by Kudzu

13. Termination

Either party may terminate this agreement at any time:

• By You: You may cancel your account at any time through your account settings or by contacting us
• By Kudzu: We may suspend or terminate your account if you violate these Terms, engage in fraudulent activity, or for any other reason with or without notice

Upon termination:

• Your access to the Service will cease immediately
• You will no longer be able to access your account data or customer information
• We may delete your account data after a reasonable retention period
• Provisions regarding intellectual property, indemnification, limitation of liability, and dispute resolution will survive termination

14. Dispute Resolution

15. General Provisions