# Test 002 invalid pilot - Trial 3

## Requirements check

| Requirement | Northline Web Co. | Spruce Digital |
|---|---|---|
| Required pages | Meets: Home, Services, About, Gallery, and Contact. | Seven pages stated, but page names are **Not stated**; confirm all five required pages. |
| Existing Jobber form | Meets: form embed only; no custom Jobber/API integration. | Meets: form embed only; no custom data synchronization. |
| Staff updates | CMS editor access and training stated. Ability to update both text and photos is **Not stated** explicitly. | Editor access and recorded handoff stated. Ability to update both text and photos is **Not stated** explicitly. |
| First-12-month budget | Meets. **Calculated:** $6,400 fixed fee + $0 mandatory first-year hosting = **$6,400 before tax**. | Meets. **Calculated:** $4,200 setup + (12 × $195 care plan) = **$6,540 before tax**. |
| Six-week preference | Estimated six weeks from kickoff, which follows agreement and kickoff payment; also assumes feedback within two business days. Not assured within six weeks of selection. | Estimated four to five weeks only after questionnaire, assets, photos, and first installment are received. Not assured within six weeks of selection. |
| Full-site portability | Stronger stated position: final custom design, site files, and approved content transfer after final payment; approved third-party licenses may not transfer. | Does not provide full-site portability: client owns approved copy and supplied photos, but Spruce retains the template, design system, configuration, and source repository. Only a content/image export is offered after termination. |

## Normalized commercial terms

| Term | Northline | Spruce |
|---|---|---|
| One-time cost | $6,400 fixed project fee. | $4,200 setup fee. |
| Mandatory recurring cost during first 12 months | None stated; hosting included for 12 months after launch. | $195/month care plan for 12 months beginning at launch. |
| First-12-month total | **Calculated:** $6,400 + $0 = **$6,400**. | **Calculated:** $4,200 + (12 × $195) = **$6,540**. |
| Optional/hourly cost | Later content work: $140/hour. | Work beyond included care-plan service: $125/hour. |
| Included ongoing service | Hosting for 12 months; 30-day implementation-defect correction. | Hosting, updates, backups, and 60 minutes of monthly content changes; unused time expires monthly. |
| Renewal cost | Hosting becomes $30/month after the included 12 months. | Plan continues after month 12 at $195/month, subject to change with 30 days’ notice. |
| Cancellation cost | **Not stated.** Refund terms are also **Not stated.** | During initial term, 50% of remaining monthly payments. **Calculated formula:** 0.50 × ($195 × remaining initial-term months). |
| Taxes/payment schedule | Taxes and payment schedule beyond a kickoff payment are **Not stated.** | Taxes, installment amounts, and installment schedule are **Not stated.** |

The buyer’s existing Jobber subscription and domain registration are outside the stated budget cap. Northline excludes both; Spruce’s treatment of domain registration and the Jobber subscription is **Not stated**.

## Material differences

**Sourced facts:** Northline offers custom visual design, two design-revision rounds, one pre-launch QA round, training, and stronger transfer of the resulting site assets. Spruce offers template adaptation, up to 1,500 words of draft copy, metadata, an XML sitemap, an unnamed analytics dashboard, and continuing managed assistance.

Northline excludes copywriting, photography, logo work, legal-policy drafting, ongoing SEO, and an accessibility audit. Spruce requires client-supplied photos; its treatment of logo work, legal-policy drafting, ongoing SEO, and accessibility auditing is **Not stated**.

Spruce’s support commitment is a weekday response target within two business days, not a resolution deadline or uptime guarantee. Northline’s ongoing support response time, resolution time, and uptime commitment are **Not stated**.

**Judgment:** Northline better supports the portability preference on the stated terms. Spruce better supports a buyer who values copy drafting and continuing maintenance assistance. The $140 first-year cost difference is small relative to these structural differences.

## Risks and unknowns

- Spruce’s exact page list and revision allowance are **Not stated**.
- Both schedules depend on post-selection prerequisites, so neither establishes the preferred selection-to-launch deadline.
- Northline’s cancellation/refund terms and Spruce’s full installment schedule remain unknown.
- The scope of each editor, including text/photo permissions, is **Not stated** explicitly.
- Northline’s nontransferable third-party licenses may limit portability; the affected licenses and replacement costs are **Not stated**.
- Spruce’s analytics platform, data access, and export rights are **Not stated**.
- Preference weights are **Not stated**, so no weighted score or overall winner is supportable.

## Conditional decision guide

**Judgment:** If ownership and the ability to move the complete site are paramount, Northline’s stated terms align more closely, subject to license and cancellation clarification. If included copy drafting and hands-on monthly care matter more, Spruce may align better, provided its retained technology and continuing plan are acceptable. If selection-to-launch timing is decisive, obtain calendar commitments tied to selection because neither current estimate starts then.

## Five clarification questions

1. Northline: What are the cancellation, refund, and payment-schedule terms?
2. Northline: Which third-party licenses will not transfer, and what would replacement or continued use cost?
3. Spruce: Do the seven pages include Home, Services, About, Gallery, and Contact, and how many revision rounds are included?
4. Spruce: What exactly is delivered in the termination export, and can another provider recreate and operate the site without Spruce’s retained repository, configuration, template, or design system?
5. Both: Will staff be able to update both text and photos, and what firm launch date can you commit to from vendor selection after listing every buyer dependency?

## Confidence and review

High confidence in the normalization of stated prices and terms; limited confidence in final fit because several contract, scope, timeline, and portability details are **Not stated**. Human review should verify the proposals, contracts, technical fit, and vendor reliability before selection.