Terms of Enrollment & Use

1. Agreement and seller identity

These Terms of Enrollment & Use (“Terms”) govern access to and use of Message & Method websites, accounts, educational programs, materials, tools, Guided Cohorts, Private Coaching, and related offerings and services. Message & Method is operated by Cumbo, Inc., a New York corporation doing business as Message & Method (“Message & Method,” “we,” “us,” or “our”).

By checking an agreement box and completing a purchase, creating an account where acceptance is requested, signing an agreement, or otherwise affirmatively accepting these Terms, the purchaser and participant agree to be bound by these Terms, the applicable offer and order details, and any product-specific policies or terms presented before purchase.

“Purchaser” means the person or organization that pays for an offering. “Participant” means the individual who receives access to or participates in the offering. When the purchaser and participant are the same person, both terms refer to that person.

These Terms apply to individual consumer purchases unless a separate proposal, order form, enterprise agreement, or other written agreement applies. Organizational purchases, sponsored enrollments, bulk or multi-seat licensing, and custom engagements may be governed by additional or different terms.

2. Incorporated policies and product-specific terms

The Privacy Policy, applicable refund policy, and any product-specific terms presented before purchase are incorporated into these Terms for the applicable offering.

Eligible individual purchases of the Self-Directed Program are also governed by the 90-Day Completion-Based Refund Policy. Guided Cohort purchases are also governed by the Guided Cohort Terms presented before purchase. Private Coaching purchases are also governed by the Private Coaching Terms, proposal, offer, order confirmation, or separate written agreement presented before purchase.

If a product-specific written term conflicts with these general Terms, the more specific product-specific term controls for that offering. A separately signed written agreement controls over these Terms and other general policies to the extent of a direct conflict.

3. Offer and order details

The applicable offer, checkout, order confirmation, proposal, or written agreement identifies the commercial terms of the purchase, which may include the offering, participant, price, taxes, payment arrangement, access period, live-session schedule, included services, and special conditions.

The purchaser is responsible for reviewing the applicable offer, checkout information, incorporated policies, and order details before completing the purchase and for promptly reporting a material error in the order information.

4. Eligibility, authority, and accurate information

Purchasers and participants must be at least 18 years old and must satisfy any additional eligibility requirements stated for the offering. Message & Method does not currently offer a minor-enrollment pathway.

The purchaser and participant must provide accurate, current, and complete information. A person purchasing for an employer, organization, or another participant represents that the person has authority to make the purchase and provide the submitted information.

Where the purchaser and participant are different, the purchaser is responsible for ensuring that the participant receives and accepts the terms governing participation before access or services are used.

5. Access period and enrollment

Unless the applicable offer states otherwise, access to the Self-Directed Program begins on the purchase date and continues for 12 months. The purchase date is the enrollment date for purposes of the 90-Day Completion-Based Refund Policy.

Access is personal, limited, revocable, non-exclusive, and non-transferable. Guided Cohorts, Private Coaching, and other live or scheduled services follow the dates, access periods, and schedules stated in their applicable offer or product-specific terms.

Expiration of access to a course, tool, recording, account area, or other service does not transfer ownership of any hosted material or create a right to continued platform access.

6. One-time purchases and installment plans

Unless expressly identified otherwise, enrollment is a one-time purchase and does not renew automatically.

When a purchaser selects an installment plan, the installments divide a fixed purchase obligation and do not create a cancel-anytime subscription. The applicable checkout or order information will identify the installment amount, payment cadence, and total installment-plan price. The installment-plan total may be higher than the pay-in-full price.

The full installment-plan balance remains due unless a refund is approved under an applicable refund policy, the parties agree otherwise in writing, or applicable law requires otherwise. Stopping participation, failing to use the offering, or allowing access to expire does not cancel remaining installments.

7. Payment authorization and overdue payments

The purchaser authorizes Message & Method and its payment providers to charge the selected payment method for the amounts and on the schedule disclosed at purchase.

If a scheduled payment fails or becomes overdue, we may retry the payment, request updated payment information, restrict or suspend access, and pause live participation or services while the account remains overdue.

Unless the applicable offer states otherwise, a purchaser will ordinarily have a seven-calendar-day grace period after a failed scheduled payment to provide a valid payment method and bring the account current. A second payment failure or failure to cure the overdue amount may result in cancellation of access or services.

Suspension or cancellation for nonpayment does not extend an access period or waive amounts already due. We will not charge interest or a late fee unless it was clearly disclosed and agreed before purchase.

8. Refunds, cancellations, and payment disputes

Eligible direct, individual purchases of one Self-Directed Program enrollment are governed exclusively by the 90-Day Completion-Based Refund Policy presented before purchase. That policy is a completion-based refund mechanism and is not a general satisfaction, cancellation, or change-of-mind guarantee.

The 90-Day Completion-Based Refund Policy does not apply to Guided Cohorts, Private Coaching, organizational or enterprise purchases, bulk or multi-seat licensing, sponsored enrollments, transferred seats, custom engagements, or other purchases made under separate offer terms. Refund, cancellation, credit, replacement-seat, and rescheduling rights for those purchases are governed by their applicable offer, product-specific terms, or written agreement.

Before initiating a payment dispute concerning access, service delivery, cancellation, or refund eligibility, the purchaser is encouraged to contact Message & Method and use the applicable support or refund process so that we have an opportunity to investigate and address the matter. Nothing in these Terms limits a payment-dispute or consumer right that cannot lawfully be limited.

We may suspend access while a payment is disputed. If a payment is reversed, charged back, or otherwise withdrawn, access and services associated with that payment may be terminated. Access may be restored when appropriate if the dispute is resolved in our favor or the account is otherwise brought current.

9. Course changes and service availability

We may update, correct, replace, reorganize, or discontinue individual lessons, examples, tools, instructors, schedules, technical features, or platform components to maintain, improve, secure, or adapt an offering.

During an active paid access period, we will continue to provide the purchased offering in a form substantially consistent with its description at enrollment or provide a reasonably equivalent substitute. Later additions to the Self-Directed Program do not automatically become retroactive completion requirements for a learner’s refund eligibility.

Maintenance, updates, outages, technical failures, and temporary interruptions may occur. A temporary interruption does not automatically create a refund or extension right. A material cancellation by Message & Method will be addressed under the applicable offer terms, these Terms, and applicable law.

10. Technology and participant responsibilities

The participant is responsible for compatible equipment, current and supported software, reliable internet access, a suitable environment, and sufficient technical ability to use the offering.

The participant must follow reasonable technical and participation instructions and must use the service only for lawful purposes. The participant is responsible for obtaining any permission needed to record, upload, display, discuss, or share third parties, workplaces, locations, slides, music, images, documents, confidential information, or other protected material.

Message & Method does not guarantee compatibility with every device, browser, operating system, assistive technology, network, security configuration, or third-party service.

11. Accounts and security

Accounts, login credentials, access links, and licensed seats may not be shared, sold, transferred, or made available to another person unless Message & Method expressly authorizes the arrangement in writing.

The account holder is responsible for protecting account credentials and for activity occurring through the account to the extent reasonably within the account holder’s control. Suspected unauthorized access or misuse must be reported promptly to [email protected].

We may require reasonable identity, enrollment, or purchase verification. We may restrict or suspend activity that appears fraudulent, abusive, insecure, automated, unauthorized, or inconsistent with these Terms.

12. Educational service and limited access license

Message & Method is offered as an educational service. Any limited right to access course software, interactive tools, or technical functionality is incidental to participation in the educational program and does not transfer ownership of any software, system, or platform.

Message & Method and its licensors retain all rights, title, and interest in the curriculum, videos, audio, lessons, workbooks, card decks, templates, assessments, instructions, prompts, examples, interactive tools, software, site design, graphics, trademarks, and other program materials.

During the applicable access period, the participant receives a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and use the offering and its materials solely for the participant’s own learning and original speaking or professional work, subject to these Terms.

Nothing in these Terms prevents a participant from applying learned principles, methods, or skills to the participant’s own original speeches, presentations, communications, or professional activities. The participant may not reproduce or commercially exploit the protected expression, structure, materials, or tools of the program.

13. Protected materials, downloads, and prohibited copying

Course materials are provided for access through the authorized platform and may not be downloaded, copied, screen-captured, photographed, screen-recorded, audio-recorded, scraped, extracted, reproduced, or otherwise preserved unless Message & Method expressly provides a download or export function for that material.

Without prior written permission, a purchaser or participant may not:

• share accounts, credentials, protected links, recordings, or licensed access;
• circumvent or attempt to circumvent access, download, printing, copy-protection, or security controls;
• copy, reproduce, publish, distribute, sell, sublicense, translate, or adapt program materials for distribution or commercial use;
• remove copyright, trademark, confidentiality, attribution, or other rights notices;
• use automated tools, bots, scripts, scraping systems, artificial-intelligence systems, or similar technologies to extract, collect, reproduce, index, or analyze protected program content;
• create or operate a course, workshop, coaching program, training product, assessment, tool, dataset, model, or competing service derived from protected program materials;
• teach, facilitate, resell, license, or deliver the program or a substantially similar commercial training experience using Message & Method materials; or
• use confidential Guided Cohort, coaching, or participant information for any unauthorized purpose.

A provided export function authorizes only the export expressly produced by that function and does not authorize access to, copying of, or extraction from other parts of the platform.

14. Participant-created content and exports

The participant retains ownership of original content created or submitted by the participant, subject to any rights belonging to other people or organizations.

The participant grants Message & Method and service providers acting on our behalf a limited, worldwide license to host, store, process, reproduce, display, transmit, back up, migrate, and technically format participant content as reasonably necessary to provide, operate, secure, maintain, troubleshoot, and support the contracted service; comply with law; and enforce these Terms.

This operational license does not authorize public, testimonial, promotional, or advertising use of a participant’s name, image, voice, recording, statement, or substantive learner work. Any such use requires separate permission appropriate to the intended use.

Where an authorized export function is provided for a journal, script, plan, assessment result, or other participant-created work, the participant may download and retain the resulting exported copy for personal or internal professional use. Access to export functions is ordinarily available only during the participant’s active access period.

We may use aggregated or de-identified information for service analysis and improvement as described in the Privacy Policy.

15. Participant-created work, data availability, and backups

Participants are responsible for exporting and securely retaining permitted copies of participant-created work they wish to preserve. Course tools and platform storage are provided for educational and operational convenience and are not intended to serve as a permanent archive, records-management system, or backup service.

Participant-created work and course records may be lost, corrupted, overwritten, reverted to an earlier version, become inaccessible, or fail to export because of user error, device or browser issues, software defects, synchronization problems, maintenance, security events, service-provider failures, restoration from backup, or other technical causes.

A restoration or recovery process may preserve some information while removing more recent entries, revisions, uploads, completion activity, saves, or other changes made after the applicable backup or recovery point.

Participants should regularly export permitted copies of important journal entries, scripts, plans, assessments, and other participant-created work where an export function is available. The availability of an export function does not guarantee that every type of information can be exported, that all prior versions will remain available, or that an export will always complete successfully.

Data may remain in our systems after access expires or is terminated, but continued storage, availability, recovery, or later export is not guaranteed. Expiration or termination of access ordinarily removes the participant’s ability to view or export stored work even if the underlying information has not yet been deleted.

Loss, corruption, reversion, unavailability, or inability to recover some or all participant-created work or course records does not by itself create a right to a refund, access extension, or other remedy. We may provide restoration assistance, an access adjustment, replacement functionality, credit, refund, or another proportionate remedy when appropriate under the circumstances or required by applicable law.

16. Participant-content responsibilities

The participant represents that content submitted, displayed, recorded, uploaded, or used through an offering is lawful and that the participant has the rights, permissions, and authority necessary for that use.

The participant must not submit malware, malicious code, illegal content, content that infringes another person’s rights, another person’s sensitive or confidential information without appropriate authority, or regulated or highly sensitive information that the applicable system is not designed to receive.

Unless a written agreement and the applicable system expressly permit it, participants must not submit payment-card information, government identification numbers, protected health information, export-controlled information, trade secrets, or third-party confidential information.

The participant remains responsible for the accuracy, originality, clearance, appropriateness, and final use of the participant’s speeches, presentations, documents, visual aids, recordings, and other work products.

17. Guided Cohorts

Guided Cohorts are governed by these Terms, the applicable offer and schedule, and the Guided Cohort Terms presented before purchase.

During a Guided Cohort, participants may see or hear one another’s names, images, voices, chat messages, spoken contributions, feedback, and other material shared in the group. Participants must respect the privacy and confidentiality of other participants and may not disclose or redistribute cohort communications or materials except as expressly permitted.

The applicable Guided Cohort Terms will describe attendance requirements, session access, recordings, recording availability, participant conduct, confidentiality, missed sessions, schedule changes, and any cohort-specific cancellation or refund terms.

Participants may not create their own audio, video, photographic, screen, transcript, or other recording of a Guided Cohort unless Message & Method provides prior written permission.

Separate express permission is required for Message & Method to use a participant’s name, image, voice, recording, statement, or work publicly or promotionally.

18. Private Coaching

Private Coaching is governed by these Terms and the applicable proposal, offer, order confirmation, scheduling terms, Private Coaching Terms, or separate written agreement.

Each Private Coaching engagement is individually scoped. The agreed scope may include coaching, review, editing, research, design, speechwriting, production, rehearsal, consulting, or other services only when expressly included in the applicable written terms.

Work outside the agreed scope requires additional written approval and may involve additional fees, revised timing, or a separate engagement.

Private Coaching schedules, session duration, expiration, support, confidentiality, recording, rescheduling, cancellation, deliverables, and any organization-sponsored reporting are governed by the terms applicable to that engagement.

19. Professional and respectful conduct

Participants must behave lawfully, professionally, and respectfully. A participant may not harass, threaten, discriminate against, impersonate, exploit, intimidate, or intentionally disrupt another person; disclose private or confidential cohort or coaching information; interfere with service operation; violate another person’s rights; or use an offering for unlawful, fraudulent, or abusive purposes.

Depending on the circumstances, we may issue a warning, restrict a feature, remove a participant from a live session, suspend access, or terminate participation. We may act immediately when conduct presents a safety, security, legal, privacy, infringement, fraud, or substantial disruption risk. In other situations, we may provide notice and an opportunity to correct the problem where reasonable.

Access terminated because of serious or repeated participant misconduct, unlawful conduct, intentional infringement, fraud, or another material breach is not refundable except where applicable law requires otherwise.

20. Educational nature, participant responsibility and no guaranteed results

Message & Method provides education, training, tools, exercises, practice, feedback, coaching, consulting, facilitation, strategy, and related professional services. These services may be provided through self-directed programs, guided cohorts, private coaching, organizational or enterprise training, workshops, speaking engagements, consulting engagements, or other formats.

Message & Method does not provide medical, mental-health, legal, tax, financial, employment, or other licensed professional advice.

All recommendations, strategies, techniques, examples, exercises, feedback, templates, tools, and other guidance provided by Message & Method are offered for the participant’s consideration and judgment. The participant retains final authority and responsibility for deciding whether, when, where, and how to use or implement that guidance.

Participants are responsible for evaluating whether any recommendation or technique is appropriate for their particular circumstances, audience, organization, professional environment, obligations, and objectives. Message & Method does not control the participant’s decisions or implementation and cannot evaluate every circumstance in which its guidance may be used.

No particular improvement, speaking performance, audience response, business result, promotion, employment result, income, sale, acceptance, confidence level, relationship outcome, or other result is guaranteed.

Results depend on participation, practice, preparation, judgment, implementation, individual circumstances, audience conditions, organizational conditions, timing, and other factors outside Message & Method’s control.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, Message & Method is not responsible for adverse consequences arising from a participant’s independent decision to use, adapt, disregard, or implement program guidance, except to the extent responsibility cannot lawfully be limited or excluded under applicable law.

21. Privacy and service providers

We process personal information as described in the Privacy Policy. The Privacy Policy explains the categories of information collected, purposes of use, disclosures to service providers and others, cookies and similar technologies, retention, security practices, and available privacy choices.

We may use service providers that support hosting, content delivery, learning management, payments, email and communications, customer relationship management, forms, scheduling, live meetings, video hosting, file storage, analytics, security, support, accessibility, professional services, and other business operations.

22. Accessibility

Accessibility requests and feedback are handled as described in the Accessibility Statement. Participants may contact us regarding an identified barrier or requested alternative.

We will consider reasonable means of addressing identified barriers, including practical alternative formats, assistance, or completion methods where appropriate and feasible. Not every requested format or modification will necessarily be available.

23. Suspension, termination, and expiration

We may suspend or terminate access or participation for material breach, nonpayment, security risk, unlawful conduct, infringement, fraud, abuse, serious disruption, or misuse of an account or offering, using reasonable notice where circumstances permit.

A participant may stop using an offering at any time, but stopping use does not itself cancel a purchase, create a refund right, or eliminate an unpaid installment obligation.

Upon expiration or termination, the participant’s right to access hosted course materials, tools, recordings, account areas, and stored participant-created work ends. The participant may retain permitted exports lawfully downloaded before access ended, subject to the intellectual-property and use restrictions in these Terms.

Provisions concerning payment, refunds, intellectual property, prohibited uses, participant content, confidentiality, privacy, disclaimers, liability, indemnification, disputes, and other provisions that by their nature should continue will survive expiration or termination.

24. Disclaimers and limitation of liability

Except for express commitments stated in the applicable offer or written agreement, the website, platform, tools, materials, and services are provided on an “as available” basis to the fullest extent permitted by law.

We do not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free operation, permanent retention or recoverability of participant content, compatibility with every device or technology, continuous availability of a third-party service, or any particular educational, professional, financial, or personal result.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Cumbo, Inc. and its officers, employees, contractors, and agents will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, exemplary, punitive, or consequential damages, or for lost profits, lost revenue, lost opportunities, loss of data, loss of goodwill, or business interruption arising from or related to an offering.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the aggregate liability of Cumbo, Inc. arising from or relating to a paid offering will not exceed the amount paid by the claimant for that offering.

These exclusions and limitations do not apply to fraud, willful misconduct, gross negligence where liability cannot lawfully be limited, or another liability that applicable law does not permit us to exclude or limit.

25. Indemnification

The purchaser or participant will indemnify and hold harmless Cumbo, Inc. and its officers, employees, contractors, and agents from third-party claims, damages, liabilities, judgments, and reasonable costs arising from the purchaser’s or participant’s unlawful conduct, infringement of another person’s rights, unauthorized copying or distribution of program materials, privacy violation, fraud, or material breach of these Terms, except to the extent caused by Cumbo, Inc.’s own wrongdoing.

We will provide reasonable notice of a covered third-party claim where practicable. We may control the defense and settlement of the claim, but we will not agree to a settlement that imposes a direct admission of wrongdoing or a nonmonetary obligation on the indemnifying party without that party’s reasonable consent.

26. Events beyond reasonable control

Events beyond our reasonable control may delay, interrupt, reschedule, or alter delivery. These events may include serious illness, power or network failure, platform or service-provider outage, cybersecurity incident, severe weather, emergency, labor disruption, government action, natural disaster, or another event that could not reasonably be prevented.

Depending on the circumstances, we may respond with substitute delivery, a substitute instructor or coach, rescheduling, an access extension, replacement functionality, credit, refund, or another proportionate adjustment.

A temporary disruption does not automatically create a refund right. A material cancellation by Message & Method will be addressed under the applicable offer terms and applicable law.

27. Electronic communications and records

The purchaser and participant agree that we may provide receipts, order confirmations, agreements, notices, disclosures, policy updates, account communications, and other records electronically through email, the website, or the participant’s account.

Electronic records and signatures may be used to the extent permitted by applicable law. The purchaser and participant are responsible for maintaining a current email address and for reviewing communications sent to the address associated with the purchase or account.

28. Feedback and suggestions

A participant may voluntarily provide feedback, ideas, corrections, or suggestions concerning the website, curriculum, tools, or services. We may use and incorporate that feedback without restriction or compensation.

This provision does not authorize public or promotional use of private learner content, recordings, journals, scripts, assessments, or other substantive participant-created work.

29. Governing law and informal dispute resolution

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to conflict-of-law rules, except where nonwaivable consumer law requires otherwise.

Before filing a claim concerning these Terms or an offering, the parties will attempt in good faith for 30 days to resolve the dispute informally after written notice describing the issue and requested resolution. Notice to Message & Method must be sent to [email protected].

The informal-resolution requirement does not prevent either party from seeking emergency relief when reasonably necessary to prevent immediate harm, preserve rights, or comply with a filing deadline.

30. Courts and venue

Subject to an eligible small-claims proceeding and any right to seek emergency relief, a claim arising from these Terms or an offering must be brought in a state court located in Erie County, New York, or in the federal court having jurisdiction over Erie County, New York.

Nothing in these Terms waives a consumer protection, forum, venue, or other right that applicable law does not permit the parties to waive.

31. Assignment

The purchaser or participant may not assign these Terms, transfer an enrollment, or delegate access or participation rights without prior written approval from Message & Method.

We may assign these Terms in connection with a merger, reorganization, financing, sale, transfer of the business or relevant assets, or a change in the entity operating Message & Method, subject to applicable law.

32. Entire agreement, severability, and waiver

These Terms, the applicable offer and order details, and incorporated policies and product-specific terms constitute the agreement concerning the applicable purchase and participation, except to the extent a separate signed written agreement applies.

If a provision of these Terms is determined to be invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable, the provision will be enforced to the greatest extent permitted or removed to the minimum extent necessary. The remaining provisions will continue in effect.

A failure or delay in enforcing a provision does not waive the right to enforce that provision or another provision later. A waiver is effective only when made in writing by an authorized representative of Message & Method.

33. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms to reflect changes in our services, technology, operations, or legal obligations. The effective date and version will be updated when these Terms change.

The version accepted or otherwise applicable at purchase will continue to govern the purchase price, purchased access period, promised included services, and accepted refund rights unless the parties agree otherwise or a change is required by law.

We will not retroactively increase the purchase price, shorten purchased access, reduce promised coaching or services, alter accepted refund terms, or add a new payment obligation without agreement or legal necessity.

Material changes affecting an active paid offering will receive appropriate notice and renewed assent when required by applicable law.

34. Contact

Support questions may be sent to [email protected].

Legal notices may be sent to [email protected].

Message & Method
Cumbo, Inc.
PO Box 119
Clarence Center, NY 14032-0119