Don’t Be Misled by “100% Ownership” Promises Without a Written Contract
In 2025, I hired this company to design hellomydoula.com for my new business. Brian handled the design, and communication throughout that process was very smooth. I was initially delighted with the professional website he created at an affordable price. However, about a year later, I was told that a warning was appearing on my website and that removing it would cost $600. During a phone conversation, I was also quoted a price for updating the website that I felt was very high and beyond my budget. Ben handled the discussions about the additional terms and fees. I paid to have the warning removed. However, I decided not to proceed with the proposed website update. I explained that I would manage future updates myself, since I had been told I would have “100% ownership.” When I looked into this, I discovered that I did not have direct ownership or control of the domain, even though I understood it had been purchased for my business through a domain registrar. During my discussions with Ben, I was told that transferring ownership to me would cost another $500. I contacted the domain registrar directly and was told that they do not charge a fee for this ownership transfer. Based on that explanation, I understood the $500 to be a separate charge from the web design company, rather than a registrar fee. I appreciated Brian’s design work. My disappointment concerns the ownership arrangements and the additional terms and fees discussed with Ben. The promise of “100% ownership” did not match my experience when I tried to take control of my own domain. If you are considering this company, get a written contract clearly stating who owns and controls the domain and website, and what fees apply if you decide to manage them yourself. I wish I had understood these arrangements and costs from the beginning. After I posted an honest review based on my actual experience, Web Design Unit took my website offline without my consent. I currently have no access to my own website and cannot manage it. Despite this being my website and domain, I have no control over them, and the company can take my website offline at its discretion. This raises serious concerns about my ownership and control of my website and domain.
By Naoko S.




