Privacy Policy

Last updated: 1.16.19

Hop Studios takes privacy very seriously — the privacy of our clients, visitors, and employees. We invite you to contact us if you have any questions about this policy or any other aspect of Hop Studios’ business practices, at [email protected].

For the purposes of this document, we make a distinction between information we collect from people via this website, and information people share with us during the course of working on their website or because they have purchased something from us. The former will be referred to as “Website Visitors,” and the latter as “Clients.”  Although all information shared with us will remain private, we take extra precautions with information Clients share with us about their business, website(s), and third-party services.

Information Collection

Website Visitors
Browsing the Hop Studios website does not require you to provide personal information, unless you leave a comment, sign up for a service, or send a message to us on the site. However, we do collect some identifying information, like your IP address, in order to make our website operate effectively. In some cases, this information is stored in session cookies that are deleted when you leave the website, or after seven days. In other cases, functional cookie information may be stored by your browser for a longer period.

Cookies are small pieces of data stored on your computer via your web browser. A cookie might be used for something simple, like knowing whether a visitor has seen a particular piece of information, or to record when you last visited a site. Cookies are specific to each browser, so a cookie set while using a browser on your desktop computer might be different if you visit the same site from your mobile device. Deleting a cookie in one browsing application will not clear that cookie from other browsers.

In addition to session or functional cookies, we use third-party services such as Google Analytics to help us understand and analyze our website traffic patterns. Some of these third-party services set cookies and record information like your IP address, geographic location, the devices and browsers you use to access our website, your operating system, and other information about your system and connection.

We also use social sharing buttons on our site. If you visit our site while logged into social media accounts for which we display sharing buttons, the social media platform may record your visit even if you do not utilize the sharing button. Check the privacy and security settings in your social media accounts to understand how they track you across websites you visit, or be sure to sign out of your social media accounts prior to visiting the Hop Studios website.

Clients
Because working with a web design/development company requires that you not only give us your basic personal information, but also the “keys” to your website and associated services, we don’t joke around with privacy and security concerns.

We collect and store a great deal of personal and sensitive information during the course of working with you on your website. All such information is solicited directly from you, and provided by you, which means you have complete control over what we collect.

What We Do With the Information We Collect

Website Visitors
Information we collect via the Hop Studios website is used entirely for internal marketing purposes, and for the improvement and efficiency of using our website. We do not give, sell, or otherwise share personal information we collect via our website except with employees or contractors of Hop Studios.

Clients
Information we collect during the course of working on your website is used only to accomplish the work you request of us.

We do not give, sell, or otherwise share information collected while working with you, except with employees or contractors of Hop Studios, or organizations that you give us permission to share with.

We subscribe our clients to the Hop Studios newsletter mailing list, which is sent via the MailChimp service a few times a year to alert you to important technical news that might affect you or your website, and for Hop Studios marketing purposes.  Please review the Mailchimp Privacy Policy for Contacts to understand how Mailchimp handles your personal information.  You may unsubscribe at any time.

How Long We Keep Your Information

Website Visitors
Personal information we collect from you via Google Analytics during your visit to our website is retained for 26 months; that period resets whenever there is new activity. Although some personal information, like your IP address, is collected, we at Hop Studios do not use this data to attempt to identify individuals, but only in aggregate for improving and maintaining our website’s effectiveness. Our own log files are kept for a similar length of time.

Clients
As a rule, we archive but do not delete personal information we collect while doing business with you. Many clients return to request additional work months or years later, so it is not our policy to delete any information we may collect or create while working together. If you prefer, however, you may request that we delete all work product at the end of our working relationship.

While we do not have a policy about deleting work product materials after a certain time, neither do we promise to maintain an archive of functionality, materials, or communication indefinitely. Clients who have been inactive for a while should expect that most materials will no longer be in our archives.

How We Keep Your Information Secure

Website Visitors
The Hop Studios website uses Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) to encrypt all communication between end users, websites, and our server. This means any message you send us using a form on the Hop Studios is encrypted, as is signing up for the Hop Studios newsletter.

Clients
The security of information you provide to us while working with us is of utmost importance. We implement physical, administrative, and electronic measures to ensure that your information is safeguarded according to current web industry security and encryption standards. These safeguards include secure storage of physical documents, encryption and access restriction of electronic files, and limiting personal information access to Hop Studios employees and contractors, and organizations that you give us permission to share with.

We make every effort to ensure that all personal information is accurate, secure, and confidential, employing the latest encryption and security tools when dealing with private information, from sensitive account credentials to our communication with and about you.

Consent

Clients
Very occasionally, we may wish to share information about you or your website with another Hop Studios client, or to share details of our work together on the Hop Studios blog, social media accounts, or newsletter. In all such cases, you will be asked for your consent, and in most cases, we will ask you to review such information before it is shared or published. When we suggest information sharing between clients, it is usually because you are facing similar issues and might be able to aid or collaborate with each other. When we wish to share information about your or your website on our blog, newsletter, or via social media it’s usually because we want to brag about you (and us, let’s be honest), and to drive traffic to your website. You may, in all such cases, decline without explanation.

Clients and Website Visitors may:

  1. Access, correct, update, or have us delete any personal information we have about you. Please email such requests to [email protected].
  2. Ask questions about this privacy policy. Contact Hop Studios at [email protected].
  3. Review and change cookie consent.

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