Terms of Service

Effective Date: November 1, 2026

Welcome to Groundswell Insights. These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your use of our website, products, reports and services.

Groundswell Insights is operated by Groundswell Insights, LLC, a Virginia limited liability company ("Groundswell," "we," "us" or "our").

By using our website or requesting or purchasing our products and services, you agree to these Terms to the extent applicable to your activities. Purchases require separate acceptance of these Terms at checkout.

Please read them carefully. If you have questions, contact hello@groundswellinsights.com.

1. Our Products and Services

Groundswell Insights provides research, assessments and tourism intelligence designed to help tourism businesses and destination organizations identify information gaps, visitor planning obstacles, unreliable details and opportunities for improvement.

Our offerings include Freshness & Authority Checks for eligible tourism businesses, Freshness & Authority Checks for destinations, complimentary sample reports and other research or advisory products that may become available.

Our assessments generally review publicly available information, visitor-facing website content, selected visitor actions and relevant outside sources. Depending on the product, we may also test selected questions using artificial intelligence tools.

Each product has its own scope, deliverables and pricing, as described on the applicable product page, at checkout or in a separate written agreement.

Groundswell identifies findings and recommends improvements. Unless expressly agreed in writing, we do not implement website changes, manage customer accounts or provide ongoing monitoring.

2. Purchases and Payment

Prices and product descriptions are displayed on our website or provided in a written proposal before purchase.

Payment is required at checkout unless other arrangements have been agreed upon in writing.

By purchasing a product or service, you confirm that you are authorized to make the purchase and that the information you provide is accurate and complete.

Payments may be processed through third-party payment providers. Groundswell does not require or store your full payment card details directly.

We reserve the right to decline orders that fall outside the scope of our current services, cannot reasonably be completed or cannot be accepted for other legitimate business reasons. If we decline a paid order before providing the service, we will issue a full refund.

3. Delivery and Timing

For standard Freshness & Authority Checks purchased through our website, our target is delivery within three business days after receipt of payment and the information needed to begin the assessment.

Business days are Monday through Friday, excluding U.S. federal holidays.

Delivery periods for destination assessments, customized engagements and other services may differ and will be communicated separately.

Delivery timelines are targets, not unconditional guarantees. Research complexity, website access limitations, technical issues or other circumstances may affect completion.

If we anticipate a material delay, we will notify you and provide an updated delivery estimate.

Reports are generally delivered electronically to the email address provided at purchase. Customers are responsible for providing a valid email address and accurate business information.

4. Cancellations and Refunds

All purchases are final and nonrefundable, except as required by applicable law.

Groundswell may make exceptions in cases of mistaken purchases, orders outside the scope of our services, or circumstances in which we are unable to provide the purchased assessment.

If Groundswell determines that an order cannot be fulfilled, we will issue a full refund.

Questions about an order may be directed to hello@groundswellinsights.com.

5. Report Accuracy and Limitations

Groundswell takes care to base findings on information and evidence available during the assessment. However, our reports represent observations made within a defined period, not a permanent evaluation of a business or destination.

Website content, operating hours, prices, policies, availability, links and outside information may change before or after an assessment.

Some information may be unavailable, restricted, inconsistent or inaccessible during our review. These limitations may affect the findings we can make.

Reports may identify missing information, conflicting details, broken links, visitor friction and other issues that could influence visitor decisions. Such findings do not establish that a particular number of visitors, bookings or sales has been lost.

Groundswell does not guarantee:

• Increased bookings, revenue, visitation or conversion rates.
• Improved search rankings, indexing or search visibility.
• Placement in artificial intelligence responses or recommendations.
• Any particular business outcome from implementing our recommendations.

When relevant, we may test selected visitor questions in AI systems such as ChatGPT. AI responses can vary by question, context, location, timing, platform and other factors. Results observed during testing do not guarantee future AI responses or recommendations.

Our assessments may check whether a reservation, ticketing or purchase link reaches a third-party platform. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, we do not evaluate the full transaction process conducted on that third-party platform.

Our findings reflect the evidence available within the scope of the purchased assessment and should be interpreted accordingly.

6. Corrections and Reassessments

We aim to provide accurate, useful reports.

If you identify a possible factual error in your delivered report, please contact us with an explanation and any supporting information.

Groundswell will review the concern and correct verified factual errors at no additional charge.

Corrections do not include a complete reassessment, new research outside the original scope or reevaluation of changes made to a website after the assessment.

Additional reviews or updated assessments may be offered separately.

7. Customer Responsibilities

Customers are responsible for providing accurate information needed to complete their assessments, including the correct business name, website address and contact details.

Customers are also responsible for deciding whether and how to implement Groundswell's recommendations.

Unless specifically included in a separate written agreement, Groundswell does not make changes to customer websites, booking platforms, outside listings, marketing accounts or business operations.

Customers should independently evaluate recommendations in light of their operations, technical requirements, contractual obligations and applicable laws.

Groundswell is not responsible for changes made by customers or their service providers, or for the results of those changes.

8. Intellectual Property and Report Use

Groundswell retains ownership of its original research methods, assessment frameworks, templates, tools, report designs, written materials, branding and other intellectual property, except for materials owned by customers or third parties.

Purchasing an assessment does not transfer ownership of Groundswell's methodology, templates or underlying intellectual property.

Upon payment, customers receive a nonexclusive, nontransferable license to use their completed reports for their own business or organizational purposes.

Customers may share reports internally and with employees, web developers, marketing agencies, consultants and other service providers working on their behalf.

Recipients may use the reports only to support the customer's legitimate business needs and may not independently reproduce, resell or commercially exploit them.

Customers may not publicly publish, post, distribute or substantially reproduce purchased reports without Groundswell's prior written permission.

Customers may not sell reports, represent Groundswell's work as their own, remove identifying attribution to Groundswell or use its proprietary materials to develop or market a competing assessment product without written authorization.

These restrictions do not prevent customers from using the factual information about their own businesses or implementing the recommendations contained in their reports.

9. Complimentary Sample Reports

Groundswell may offer complimentary sample reports for prospective customers to review.

Samples are provided for evaluation and internal reference purposes only. They may be shared privately with colleagues involved in evaluating Groundswell's services.

Recipients may not sell, publicly redistribute, republish, modify for redistribution or commercially exploit sample reports without written permission.

Sample reports are illustrative and may not represent the exact findings, scope or format applicable to every customer or future product.

Requesting a sample does not obligate the recipient to purchase a service.

10. Confidentiality and Use of Findings

Groundswell treats nonpublic customer information, purchase details, communications and completed customer reports as confidential, subject to the exceptions described below.

We may share information with service providers as reasonably necessary to process payments, conduct assessments, prepare reports, deliver services and maintain business operations, subject to appropriate confidentiality and data-protection arrangements.

We may also disclose information when required by law, necessary to protect legitimate legal rights or authorized by the customer.

Information already publicly available, independently obtained lawfully or made public without a breach of confidentiality is not considered confidential solely because it appears in an assessment.

Groundswell may use generalized, non-identifying observations and aggregated findings from its research in educational materials, marketing, presentations and future product development.

We will not identify a paying customer, publish identifiable report excerpts, use customer logos or publish attributed quotations without permission.

We will not present an example as anonymous if its details could reasonably identify the customer.

Customers may request additional confidentiality arrangements through a separate written agreement.

11. Website Content and Acceptable Use

The Groundswell website and its original content, including text, graphics, logos, downloadable resources and other materials, are protected by applicable intellectual property laws.

You may use the website for legitimate informational, business and purchasing purposes.

You may not interfere with website functionality, attempt unauthorized access, submit fraudulent requests, misrepresent your identity or misuse our content or services.

You may not systematically extract, copy or commercially exploit substantial portions of Groundswell's proprietary website content, reports, templates or resources without authorization, except as permitted by applicable law.

We may restrict access or decline service in response to misuse, unlawful activity or violations of these Terms, subject to applicable law and existing contractual obligations.

12. Third-Party Websites and Services

Our website and reports may reference or link to websites, reservation platforms, payment processors, AI tools and other services operated by third parties.

Groundswell does not control these third-party services and is not responsible for their content, functionality, policies, availability or changes.

References to outside sources do not necessarily constitute endorsements.

Your use of third-party services may be subject to their separate terms and privacy policies.

13. Privacy

Groundswell collects and processes information necessary to respond to inquiries, fulfill purchases, deliver sample reports and operate its services.

Our separate Privacy Policy explains our data practices, including information collection, use, disclosure, retention and applicable privacy rights.

Requesting a complimentary sample report does not, by itself, enroll you in a Groundswell newsletter or unrelated marketing email sequence.

We may send communications necessary to fulfill requests, administer purchases or respond to customer inquiries.

Any additional marketing communications will be handled in accordance with applicable law and our Privacy Policy.

14. Disclaimer of Warranties

Groundswell provides its website, assessments, reports and recommendations using reasonable care and professional judgment within the agreed scope of service.

However, except for obligations expressly stated in these Terms or a separate written agreement, and to the extent permitted by law, our website and services are provided without additional warranties, express or implied, including warranties of fitness for a particular business purpose or that results will be uninterrupted, error-free or achieve a particular outcome.

Nothing in this section excludes an express commitment made in a product description or written agreement, including our obligation to review and correct verified factual errors as described above.

15. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, Groundswell Insights, LLC will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages arising from use of our website, assessments or services, including alleged lost profits, lost bookings, lost business opportunities or lost revenue.

To the extent permitted by law, Groundswell's total aggregate liability arising from or relating to a purchased product or service will not exceed the amount actually paid to Groundswell for the specific product or service giving rise to the claim.

These limitations apply regardless of the legal theory asserted, to the extent permitted by applicable law.

Nothing in these Terms limits liability for fraud, willful misconduct or other liability that cannot legally be excluded or restricted.

16. Changes to These Terms

Groundswell may update these Terms to reflect changes in our business, products, practices or legal requirements.

When changes are made, we will update the effective date shown at the top of this page.

We will provide additional notice of material changes when appropriate or legally required.

Changes will generally apply prospectively and will not retroactively alter the terms of completed purchases without agreement or another lawful basis.

Customers purchasing a new product or service after updated Terms take effect may be required to accept the revised Terms.

17. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, without regard to conflict-of-law principles, except where mandatory applicable law provides otherwise.

If a disagreement arises, we encourage you to contact Groundswell first at hello@groundswellinsights.com so we can attempt to resolve the matter informally.

If a dispute cannot be resolved informally, it may be brought before a court with appropriate jurisdiction, subject to applicable law.

These Terms do not require mandatory arbitration.

18. General Provisions

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue in effect to the extent permitted by law.

Our failure to enforce a provision on one occasion does not waive our right to enforce it later.

These Terms, together with applicable product descriptions, checkout disclosures and any written agreements governing a specific engagement, form the agreement between Groundswell and the customer concerning the relevant services.

If a separately signed agreement expressly conflicts with these Terms, the separately signed agreement will control for that engagement.

19. Contact Information

For questions about these Terms, purchases, cancellations, report corrections or permitted uses of Groundswell materials, please contact:

Groundswell Insights, LLC
113 W. Washington Street
PO Box 552
Middleburg, VA 20117-9998
hello@groundswellinsights.com