Privacy policy.

1. Who we are

This website is operated by Grow Trades LLC, doing business as Character Strategy (“we”, “us” or “our”). Character Strategy helps founders of startups and small businesses find the opportunity that matters most and turn it into marketing their customers respond to. If you have questions about this policy, contact us at hello@characterstrategy.com.

2. Information we collect

When you submit our enquiry form, we collect the following information:

• Name
• Email address
• Company name (optional)
• Website URL (optional)
• Estimated monthly budget (optional)
• Description of your goals or project

This information is submitted voluntarily and used solely to respond to your enquiry and evaluate how we might help.

We also collect information automatically. PostHog and Google Analytics tell us how the website is used: pages viewed, links and buttons clicked, how far down a page people scroll, how visitors arrive including any campaign link they followed, approximate location derived from IP address, and the type of device and browser. Vercel Speed Insights measures how quickly pages load and collects anonymous performance metrics only. Our hosting provider keeps standard server logs.

The enquiry form is protected by Vercel BotID, which looks at how a submission is made in order to tell a person from an automated script.

3. Session recording

PostHog records sessions on this website. A recording is a reconstruction of a visit: the pages you saw, where you moved and clicked, what you scrolled past and how long you stayed. We use it to understand where the site is confusing or slow, and nothing else.

We do not record what you type into the enquiry form. Recordings are not sold, not shared beyond the providers named below, and not used to make decisions about you.

If your browser sends a Do Not Track or Global Privacy Control signal, or you turn tracking off at the foot of any page, we do not track or record you at all. The website works normally either way.

4. Advertising measurement

When we advertise, we use tags from Meta (Facebook and Instagram), Google Ads and LinkedIn to learn whether our advertising leads to enquiries. A tag tells the platform that a page was viewed, and that an enquiry was sent after someone clicked one of our ads. When you send an enquiry, our server also tells those platforms directly, with your email address scrambled (hashed) so that it can be matched to an account without being readable. We do not send the content of your enquiry.

The platforms may use this to show our advertising to people like those who enquire, which some US state privacy laws call sharing. Each tag loads only when we run advertising on that platform.

5. Your choices

To opt out of all analytics, session recording and advertising measurement, use “Turn off tracking” at the foot of any page. It stops every tag straight away and on later visits from the same browser, and you can turn it back on the same way. We treat a Global Privacy Control or Do Not Track signal from your browser as the same choice.

6. How we use your information

We use the information you provide to:

• Respond to your enquiry
• Evaluate whether we can help your business
• Communicate with you about potential or ongoing work
• Improve the website based on aggregated analytics

We do not use your information for automated decision-making or profiling.

7. How we share your information

We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information. We share information with the following providers, who process it on our behalf:

• Vercel: website hosting, bot protection and performance measurement
• PostHog: analytics, heatmaps and session recording
• Google Analytics: analytics
• Google Ads, Meta and LinkedIn: advertising measurement, when we advertise on them
• Resend: delivery of the email your enquiry generates

These providers are contractually obliged to protect your information. We may also disclose information if required by law or legal process, or to protect our rights.

8. Cookies

PostHog and Google Analytics both set cookies in order to recognise a returning visit and measure how the website is used. When we advertise, the Meta, Google Ads and LinkedIn tags set cookies that connect a visit to an ad that was clicked. Turning tracking off sets one cookie that remembers your choice. Your browser may also store essential cookies needed for the website to function.

You can refuse or delete cookies through your browser’s settings, and Google publishes a browser add-on that opts you out of Google Analytics on every site. Turning tracking off at the foot of any page stops every tag, and your browser’s Do Not Track or Global Privacy Control setting does the same. The website works normally in every case.

9. Data retention

We keep enquiries for as long as needed for the purpose they were collected for, typically the duration of any business relationship and a reasonable period afterwards. Analytics data and session recordings are retained by Google and PostHog in line with the retention periods set on our accounts.

10. Data security

We use reasonable administrative, technical and physical safeguards to protect your information. The website is served over HTTPS and form submissions are transmitted securely. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

11. Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• Ask what personal information we hold about you
• Ask us to correct or delete it
• Opt out of communications from us

To exercise any of these, email hello@characterstrategy.com. We will respond within a reasonable time.

12. Third-party links

This website links to third-party websites such as LinkedIn. We are not responsible for their privacy practices or their content, and we encourage you to read the privacy policy of any site you visit.

13. Children’s privacy

This website and our services are not directed at anyone under 18, and we do not knowingly collect information from children. If we learn that we have, we will delete it promptly.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy. Changes are posted on this page with a new date at the top. Continuing to use the website after a change means you accept the revised policy.

15. Contact us

If you have questions about this policy, contact us at hello@characterstrategy.com.