Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using any part of the Services, you confirm that you are at least 18 years of age, have read and understood these Terms, and have the legal authority to enter into a binding agreement. If you are using the Services on behalf of a business or organization, you represent that you have the authority to bind that entity to these Terms.

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. Material changes will be communicated via email and/or a prominent notice on our website at least 14 days before taking effect. Your continued use of the Services after the effective date constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms. Where you are asked to tick a box to accept these Terms, for example when you create an account, request a guide, register for a workshop or buy an engagement, you are bound from the moment you tick it, and we keep a record of which version you accepted and when.

2. Description of Services

Notebook of a COO is a fractional executive firm. Our Services include:

• Free Operator Readiness Assessment, a business operations diagnostic tool
• Free Operator Guides: the Foundation Builder Field Guide, the Stuck Operator Diagnostic Guide, and the Scale-Ready Audit Guide (PDF downloads)
• The Notebook of a COO Podcast, freely available on all major platforms
• The Small Business MBA, a free membership with every course, live financial tools, an operator community, and new programs each month
• Visibility Plans, done-for-you marketing billed monthly and month to month: Found ($495/mo), Chosen ($1,495/mo), and Known ($2,995/mo)
• The Visibility Audit, a paid one-time marketing audit at $2,500, also included in every Visibility Plan
• The Full Website Build or Rebrand, a paid one-time project at $10,000: an entire new website or a full rebrand, including everything in the Found plan, delivered in one to three months
• The 90-Day Operating Audit, a paid one-time engagement at $2,500
• Fractional COO engagements at multiple tiers (Operator Sprint $5,000/mo, Embedded Operator $8,500/mo, Full Stack Operator $12,500/mo) with minimum terms specified at engagement
• Project-based add-ons including the Quarter Launch ($3,500), Sellability Sprint ($15,000), and CMO/CFO fractional add-ons ($2,500/mo)

All free Services are provided for informational purposes. Paid engagements (the 90-Day Operating Audit and fractional COO retainers) are professional services governed by a separate written engagement agreement that incorporates these Terms. Visibility Plans, the Visibility Audit, and the Full Website Build or Rebrand are governed by these Terms and the offer you buy at checkout. We do not guarantee specific business results, revenue outcomes, or return on investment, and we do not guarantee search rankings, map placement, or mentions in AI answers.

3. Eligibility

To use the Services, you must be at least 18 years of age and have the legal capacity to enter into a binding agreement. If you are using the Services on behalf of a business, you represent that you have the authority to bind that entity to these Terms. By providing your email or business information to download a guide, take the assessment, join the community, or engage our paid Services, you agree to provide accurate information and notify us at inquiry@notebookofacoo.com of any unauthorized use of your account or engagement materials.

4. The 90-Day Operating Audit

4.1 Scope

The 90-Day Operating Audit is a one-time paid engagement at $2,500 flat. Deliverables include two calls (kickoff and delivery), a function-by-function Asset Map placement, a 15 to 20 page written audit document, and a ranked 90-day install plan.

4.2 Payment

Payment is due in full at the time of engagement booking. All payments are processed securely through Stripe.

4.3 Audit Credit

If you sign a multi-month fractional engagement within 30 days of completing the Audit, the $2,500 Audit fee is credited toward your first month of fractional retainer.

4.4 Refund

Full refund available if requested before the kickoff call. After the kickoff call, refunds are not available as work product has been initiated.

5. Fractional COO Engagements

5.1 Engagement Tiers

Fractional engagements are offered at three tiers, each with specified hours, scope, and minimum term: Operator Sprint ($5,000/mo, 16 hours/mo, 3-month minimum), Embedded Operator ($8,500/mo, 32 hours/mo, 6-month minimum), and Full Stack Operator ($12,500/mo, 48 to 60 hours/mo, 6-month minimum). Full scope and deliverables are described on the Fractional services page and detailed in your written engagement agreement.

5.2 Engagement Agreement

Every fractional engagement requires a signed written engagement agreement that covers scope, deliverables, payment terms, IP ownership, confidentiality, and exit terms. The engagement agreement incorporates these Terms by reference. In the event of conflict between these Terms and a specific engagement agreement, the engagement agreement controls.

5.3 Payment

Fractional retainers are billed monthly in advance via Stripe on the engagement anniversary date. Failed payments after a 7-day grace period may result in engagement pause until payment is current.

5.4 30-Day Check-in

Every engagement includes a 30-day check-in at the end of month one. If either party determines the fit is wrong, the engagement may be terminated at that point and the client pays only for time used to date. After the 30-day mark, the minimum term applies.

5.5 Termination

Either party may terminate the engagement for material breach with 14 days' written notice and a cure period. Refunds are issued for time not yet performed.

6. Billing, Payments, and Refund Policy

6.1 Payment Processing

All payments are processed securely through Stripe. By providing payment information, you authorize us to charge the applicable fees to your payment method.

6.2 Failed Payments

If a payment fails, we will attempt to process the charge again within a reasonable time. If payment continues to fail, your account may be suspended or downgraded. You are responsible for keeping your payment method valid and up to date.

6.3 Refund Policy

Refunds for our paid Services are as follows:

• 90-Day Operating Audit ($2,500): Full refund available if requested before the kickoff call. After the kickoff call, refunds are not available as work product has been initiated.
• Fractional COO retainers: Each engagement includes a 30-day check-in at the end of month one. If either party determines the fit is wrong, the client pays only for time used. After the 30-day mark, the minimum term applies. Pro-rata refunds are issued for any time not yet performed if either party terminates for material breach with notice.
• Project add-ons (Quarter Launch, Sellability Sprint, CMO/CFO add-ons): Full refund if requested before kickoff. After kickoff, pro-rata refund for any unperformed work.
• Visibility Audit ($2,500): Full refund if requested before the kickoff session. After the kickoff session, refunds are not available as work has begun.
• Visibility Plans: Month to month. Cancel before your next billing date and you will not be charged again. A month already paid is not refunded once its work has begun.
• Full Website Build or Rebrand ($10,000): Full refund if requested before the kickoff session. After kickoff, pro-rata refund for any unperformed work.

How to request a refund: contact inquiry@notebookofacoo.com. Refunds are processed within 5 business days to the original payment method. Beyond the windows described above, refunds may still be issued at our discretion in cases of verified failure to deliver, or as required by applicable consumer protection law.

6.4 Price Changes

We reserve the right to change engagement pricing at any time. Existing clients are not affected mid-engagement. Price changes apply to new engagements and to renewals after the current minimum term.

6.5 Visibility Plans

Visibility Plans are billed monthly in advance through Stripe, starting on the day you check out, with no setup fee and no minimum term. You can cancel at any time by emailing inquiry@notebookofacoo.com. Cancel before your next billing date and you will not be charged again; your plan runs through the end of the month you have paid for. The full scope of each plan is described on the Marketing Services page.

6.6 Full Website Build or Rebrand

The Full Website Build or Rebrand is a one-time payment of $10,000, due in full at checkout. It takes one to three months, depending on your business, and includes everything in the Found plan, so your business is set up properly from day one. When the build is complete, you can choose the Visibility Plan you want.

6.7 The 2027 Jump Start

Through October 31, 2026 at 11:59 PM PST, or until 10 clients have joined, whichever comes first, our paid Services are offered at 2027 Jump Start prices, which are lower than our regular prices. The 10 spots are one pool across all of our paid Services, and each client counts once, whatever they buy. Once the offer ends, new purchases are charged at our regular prices, which our site shows beside the Jump Start prices while the offer runs.

A Visibility Plan, Fractional COO retainer or monthly add-on bought at a Jump Start price keeps that price for as long as it continues without cancellation, and section 6.4 does not change it. If it is cancelled and started again later, the price in effect at that time applies. A one-time Service bought at a Jump Start price is charged once, at that price.

7. Confidentiality and NDA

Fractional COO engagements involve access to your business's confidential information, including financial data, customer lists, internal processes, employee details, and strategic plans. We treat all such information as confidential and protect it under industry-standard practices. Every engagement is governed by a mutual Non-Disclosure Agreement signed at the start of the engagement.

We will not disclose your confidential information to any third party except (a) to the extent necessary to perform the engagement, (b) with your prior written consent, or (c) as required by law. You agree to similarly maintain the confidentiality of our proprietary frameworks, templates, and engagement methodology that are not publicly available on our website or in the free guides.

Engagement materials specific to your business (custom SOPs, dashboards, hiring scorecards, financial cadences, audit deliverables) are your property and remain yours after the engagement ends. Our underlying frameworks and templates remain our intellectual property.

8. Intellectual Property Rights

If you believe material on our Services infringes your copyright, our DMCA Policy explains how to send a takedown notice, how to send a counter notice if your own work is removed by mistake, and who receives them.

All content, materials, software, and Services are the exclusive property of Notebook of a COO or its licensors and are protected by copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, and other intellectual property laws. This includes course videos, written materials, frameworks, templates, podcast episodes, assessment tools, website design, code, logos, and brand assets.

You are granted a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and use the free Services and engagement deliverables solely for your own business operating needs. You may not copy, distribute, publish, create derivative works, sell, or commercially exploit any portion of our proprietary frameworks, templates, or engagement methodology; use our content in a competing fractional executive offering; or share engagement deliverables with parties outside your business without our prior written consent.

For Visibility Plans and the Full Website Build or Rebrand, the work we create for your business (your audit, brand manual, website and website changes, pages, and profiles) is yours to keep and use, including after you cancel. Our underlying frameworks, templates, and methods remain ours.

9. Acceptable Use Policy

By using the Services, you agree not to violate any applicable law; impersonate any person or entity; engage in fraudulent activity; upload malicious code or harmful materials; attempt unauthorized access to any part of the Services; scrape or use automated means to collect data; reproduce or redistribute our proprietary frameworks or engagement materials in a competing offering; or misrepresent our work product to third parties.

Violations may result in immediate account suspension or termination and referral to appropriate law enforcement authorities.

10. No Professional Advice Disclaimer

The Services provide general educational content and operational frameworks for informational purposes only. Nothing in our Services constitutes business consulting, legal advice, financial advice, tax advice, accounting advice, or any other form of professional services. You should consult qualified professionals before making material business decisions. We expressly disclaim any liability arising from reliance on the information provided through our Services as a substitute for professional advice.

11. Disclaimers and Warranty Limitation

THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

No Earnings Guarantee: Any discussion of income potential or revenue improvement in our content reflects possibilities based on our experience, not promises or typical results. Individual outcomes will vary significantly based on execution, market conditions, and other factors outside our control.

12. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, NOC, LLC, ITS OWNERS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, CONTRACTORS, AGENTS, AFFILIATES AND LICENSORS, AND JT TAYLOR INDIVIDUALLY, SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES. IN ALL CASES, OUR TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY SHALL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE TOTAL AMOUNT PAID BY YOU IN THE TWELVE MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM, OR (B) ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100.00 USD).

13. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless NOC, LLC, JT Taylor, and their officers, directors, employees, contractors, agents, affiliates, licensors and successors from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from your use of the Services, violation of these Terms, violation of any applicable law, violation of any third-party rights, your content or submissions to the Services, or any false or inaccurate information you provide to us.

14. No Guaranteed Results

Everything we publish, teach, record or hand you is education. It is not a promise of income, growth, profit, valuation or any other outcome.

Any figure, case, example or result described anywhere in the Services, including the website, the podcast, the free Small Business MBA, a guide, an assessment result, an email, or a paid engagement, describes what happened in that instance. It is not typical, it is not average, and it is not a prediction of what will happen for you.

Your results depend on factors we do not control and cannot see: your market, your capital, your team, your pricing, your customers, your timing, and above all how much of the work you actually do. Two businesses handed the same framework routinely produce opposite outcomes.

We do not track, collect or verify the results of people who use our materials. We therefore make no claim about typical results, and you should treat any such claim you encounter elsewhere as unverified.

We do not guarantee that you will earn money, keep money, save time, raise capital, sell your business, or improve any metric. That applies to the 90-Day Operating Audit, a fractional engagement, a Visibility Plan, a workshop, a guide, the assessment, and the free membership alike.

Nothing in the Services is legal, tax, accounting, investment or employment advice. We are not your lawyer, accountant, broker or fiduciary. Engage qualified professionals licensed where you operate before acting on anything you read here.

15. Your Work, Your Decisions, Your Risk

You are the operator of your business. Every decision you make after reading, watching or being advised through the Services is yours.

You accept that: the work is yours to do, and no framework substitutes for doing it; business carries inherent risk, including the loss of money, customers, staff and the business itself; you are choosing to act on general information that was not prepared for your specific circumstances; you will verify anything material with your own professionals before acting; and an outcome that falls short of what you hoped for is a normal and expected result of running a business.

You knowingly and voluntarily accept that risk as a condition of using the Services.

16. Release and Hold Harmless

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you release and forever discharge NOC, LLC, JT Taylor, and each of their owners, officers, employees, contractors, agents, affiliates, licensors and successors (together, the "Released Parties") from any and all claims, demands, damages, losses, liabilities, costs and expenses of every kind, whether known or unknown, arising out of or relating to: (a) your use of, or inability to use, the Services; (b) any decision you make, or fail to make, in reliance on the Services; and (c) any outcome of your business, including lost revenue, lost profit, lost opportunity, lost data, reputational harm, or the failure of the business, whether or not you followed frameworks or recommendations provided through the Services.

This release applies whether a claim is based in contract, warranty, negligence, strict liability or any other theory, and it survives termination of your account and of these Terms.

If you are a California resident, you waive California Civil Code Section 1542, which provides that a general release does not extend to claims the releasing party does not know of at the time, and which if known would have materially affected the settlement. You waive comparable provisions in any other jurisdiction.

Nothing in this section limits liability that cannot be limited by law, including liability for fraud or willful misconduct.