These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Business Friendly Index platform operated by Business Friendly, Inc. ("Business Friendly," "we," "our," or "us") at businessfriendly.net. By purchasing a survey or creating an account, you agree to these Terms.
Business Friendly provides a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that enables local government entities, chambers of commerce, and economic development organizations ("Sponsors") to survey their business communities, generate scored reports, and access AI-generated analysis and action planning tools. Available plans include Benchmark, Improve, and Complete tiers for towns/townships, counties, and states, as well as a Founding Community program.
You must be at least 18 years old and have authority to bind your organization to these Terms. By creating an account, you represent that this is the case.
You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password and for all activity under your account. Notify us immediately at info@businessfriendly.net if you suspect unauthorized access. One account may be used per purchased survey.
Fees are charged at the time of purchase. All prices are in U.S. dollars.
One-time purchases provide a single survey cycle with no automatic renewal.
Annual subscriptions (including Founding Community plans) renew automatically each year at the then-current rate unless cancelled. Founding Community rates are locked at the rate in effect at the time of original purchase for the life of the subscription, as long as the subscription remains active and in good standing. A lapsed Founding subscription forfeits the locked rate.
Payments are processed by Stripe, Inc. By providing payment information, you authorize us to charge the applicable fees.
Cancellation of an annual subscription stops future renewal charges but does not entitle you to a prorated refund for the current billing period.
You agree not to:
Our IP. The Business Friendly Index survey questionnaire, scoring methodology, report design, certification marks, and all platform software are the exclusive intellectual property of Business Friendly, Inc., protected by U.S. and international copyright law. Your purchase grants you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use the platform for your community's survey during your subscription period. You may not copy, reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from our questionnaire or methodology without our prior written consent.
Your data. You retain ownership of data you provide to the platform (community information, respondent lists). By submitting survey responses, respondents grant Business Friendly a license to use aggregated, anonymized data for benchmarking, platform improvement, and research purposes.
Published reports. When you consent to publish your survey results, you grant Business Friendly a license to display your community's scores, certification status, and aggregate data on the public community map and directory.
The Action Plan, Comment Analysis, and Board Leadership Review features use third-party AI services (Anthropic Claude) to generate analysis based on your survey data. AI-generated content is provided for informational purposes only. Business Friendly makes no representations as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability of AI-generated content for any specific purpose. You are responsible for reviewing and validating any AI-generated recommendations before acting on them.
Certification status (Gold, Silver, Recognized, or Not Certified) is determined by BFI score thresholds applied at the time of each survey. Certification thresholds may be adjusted over time as the Business Friendly network grows and benchmarks are recalibrated. Your score is permanent; tier classifications may be subject to periodic review. Certification is valid for 12 months from the date the survey is closed. Annual subscribers maintain continuous certification eligibility through their renewal cycle.
THE PLATFORM IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. We do not warrant that the platform will be error-free, uninterrupted, or free of harmful components.
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, BUSINESS FRIENDLY'S TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY CLAIM ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THESE TERMS OR THE SERVICE SHALL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT YOU PAID FOR THE SERVICE IN THE 12 MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM. IN NO EVENT SHALL WE BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES.
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Business Friendly, Inc. and its officers, employees, and agents from any claims, damages, or expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from your use of the platform, your violation of these Terms, or your violation of any third-party rights.
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Michigan, without regard to conflict of law principles. Any dispute shall be resolved exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Michigan, and you consent to personal jurisdiction in those courts.
We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will revise the "Last Updated" date above. Continued use of the platform after changes take effect constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.
Questions about these Terms? Contact us:
Business Friendly, Inc.
info@businessfriendly.net