Terms & Conditions

These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern your use of the Referist website and services ("Services") provided by Referist LLC ("we," "us," or "our"). By accessing or using our Services, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Services.

1. Membership Eligibility

To use our Services, you must be at least 18 years of age and provide accurate, complete information during the application process. Membership is not automatic — all applicants are subject to a brief interview and review before acceptance. We reserve the right to reject any application or terminate any membership at our sole discretion, with or without cause.

2. Application and Group Formation

Upon submitting an application, you may be contacted for a short interview. Conditionally accepted applicants are asked to submit a $10 refundable deposit to secure their spot while their group is being assembled.

• Groups are formed with 8–15 members, one professional per industry, with a local market focus.
• Groups launch once a viable set of members has been assembled.
• If a suitable group does not launch within 90 days of your deposit, you may request a full refund of your deposit.
• If your group launches, your deposit is applied toward your first month or held as a placement fee, as communicated at the time of acceptance.

3. Membership Plans, Fees & Payments

Referist offers the following membership plans, billed monthly via Stripe:

• Core — $59/month. Local referral circle, category exclusivity, referral tracking, and resource library.
• Forum — $99/month. Everything in Core, plus access to a national peer circle of non-competing professionals in your industry.
• Engage+ — Add-on to Core ($159/month) or Forum ($199/month). Includes a dedicated Network Guide, monthly 1:1 growth calls, and quarterly strategy sessions.

All fees are billed on a recurring monthly basis beginning on your group's launch date. If a payment fails, you will have a 7-day grace period to update your billing information before your account is suspended. All fees are non-refundable except as expressly stated in these Terms.

Fees are for platform access, not referral outcomes. Your membership fees pay for access to the Referist platform, category exclusivity within your circle, programming (such as 1:1 matches, spotlights, and challenges), and the community of curated members. Fees are not paid in exchange for any specific number of referrals, leads, or business outcomes. Receiving referrals depends on the voluntary actions of other members, and Referist does not guarantee any referrals will be sent to you. Dissatisfaction with the volume or quality of referrals received is not a basis for a refund, chargeback, or dispute.

4. Minimum Commitment & Cancellation

Because meaningful referral relationships take time to develop, all memberships carry a 6-month minimum commitment beginning on your group's launch date. You will be billed for all 6 months regardless of usage during that period.

After your initial 6-month period, you may cancel your membership at any time by providing 30 days' written notice to hello@referist.io. Cancellation takes effect 30 days from the date we receive your written notice. You will continue to have access to the platform and will be billed for the full 30-day notice period. No refunds are issued for partial billing periods.

Cancellation is forward-looking only. Cancellation ends your ongoing billing. It does not entitle you to any refund of fees previously paid. You acknowledge and agree that the value you received during your membership included access to the platform, category exclusivity, moderator-led programming, and the opportunity to participate in a referral community — regardless of how many referrals you personally sent or received. A decision to cancel, or dissatisfaction with the volume or quality of referrals, is not a basis for refund of fees paid prior to cancellation.

5. Acceptable Use

By using the Services, you agree to:

• Use the platform solely for legitimate professional networking, including referrals, one-on-one meetings, and peer collaboration.
• Treat all circle members and Referist staff with professionalism and respect.
• Maintain the confidentiality of information shared within your circle. What members share — including business strategies, client referrals, and personal insights — should be treated as confidential. You may not share any information obtained through the platform (including but not limited to member contact details, business information, or message content) outside the platform without the express written permission of the member who shared it and, where such information includes Referist business or platform data, without Referist's permission as well.
• Maintain only one account. Accounts may not be transferred to another individual or business without prior written approval from Referist LLC.
• Respect the exclusivity model: one professional per industry per group. You may not refer a direct competitor into your circle.
• Refrain from spamming, harassing, or engaging in any conduct that disrupts the experience of other members.

Prohibited Uses. The following are strict violations of these Terms and may result in immediate account suspension or termination without refund:

• No Recruiting for Outside Business. You may not use Referist, its platform, member directory, messaging tools, or member contact information to recruit members for employment, for multi-level marketing or direct sales programs, or for investment in other ventures. Referist is a referral network — not a hiring or recruiting tool.
• No Solicitation for Competing Networks. You may not use the platform to invite, recruit, or encourage members to join another networking group, referral organization, mastermind, or professional association. Members discovered organizing or promoting outside groups through Referist channels will be removed.
• No Unauthorized Disclosure. You may not share, publish, repost, screenshot, or otherwise distribute the content of any message, member profile, or platform data outside of Referist without the explicit written consent of the member who contributed it and, where applicable, Referist LLC.
• No Misrepresentation. You may not impersonate another member or misrepresent your professional credentials, licensing, or business affiliations.
• No Automated Data Collection. You may not scrape, harvest, or use automated tools to collect member information from the platform.

Platform Monitoring and Message Access. To enforce these Terms, investigate complaints, ensure platform safety, and comply with legal obligations, Referist LLC reserves the right to access, review, and retain any content on the platform — including direct messages between members. Access may also be granted to circle moderators or other authorized personnel where reasonably necessary, including in response to a member report, an investigation of a suspected Terms violation, or a request from law enforcement. Members should not have an expectation of privacy for content shared on the platform with respect to Referist's ability to access that content.

We reserve the right to monitor platform usage and to suspend or terminate any account that violates these standards. In the event of termination for cause, no refund of prepaid fees will be issued.

6. Intellectual Property & Content License

All platform content, branding, technology, and design created by Referist LLC is our exclusive intellectual property. You may not reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from our content without written permission.

By using our Services, you grant Referist LLC a perpetual, royalty-free, worldwide license to use, reproduce, display, and distribute content you contribute to the platform — including but not limited to testimonials, uploaded resources, profile information, and aggregated or anonymized usage data (such as total referrals given, membership statistics, or industry participation rates) — for any business purpose, including marketing, product development, and platform improvement.

This license does not allow us to identify you personally in public-facing materials without your explicit consent.

7. Disclaimer & Limitation of Liability

Our Services are provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, express or implied.

No Referral Guarantee. Referist is a platform that connects professionals who may choose to refer business to one another. All referrals on the platform are sent voluntarily, at the discretion of individual members, based on fit, trust, and their own business judgment. Referist LLC does not generate, source, match, require, or guarantee any referrals. Some members may receive many referrals, others may receive few, and some may receive none. We make no representations about:

• the number of referrals any member will send or receive,
• the quality, value, or close rate of any referrals,
• the revenue, business growth, or return on investment resulting from membership, or
• the level of participation or responsiveness of other members.

You acknowledge that the success you experience on Referist depends primarily on your own engagement, professional reputation, and the voluntary behavior of other members — factors outside Referist's control.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Referist LLC shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages, including but not limited to lost profits, lost referrals, lost business opportunities, or business interruption, arising out of your use of the Services.

Our total liability to you for any claim arising under these Terms shall not exceed the total fees you paid to Referist LLC in the six months preceding the claim.

8. Dispute Resolution

Informal Resolution First. Before initiating arbitration, you agree to contact us at hello@referist.io and attempt to resolve the dispute informally. Most issues can be resolved quickly without formal proceedings. You must engage in good-faith informal discussion for at least 30 days before filing for arbitration.

Binding Arbitration. If informal resolution is unsuccessful, any dispute arising from or relating to these Terms shall be resolved through binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association ("AAA") under its then-current Consumer Arbitration Rules. The arbitration shall be conducted in Wisconsin or, at your election, remotely. You waive any right to participate in a class action lawsuit, class-wide arbitration, or any other representative proceeding against Referist LLC.

Arbitration Fees. For claims under $10,000, Referist LLC will pay the arbitration filing and administrative fees required by the AAA to allow the arbitration to proceed. However, the arbitrator may reallocate some or all fees to the member if the arbitrator determines that:

• the claim is frivolous, meritless, or not brought in good faith;
• the claim was brought for an improper purpose such as harassment, coercion, or to gain leverage in an unrelated matter;
• the member has failed to comply with material obligations under these Terms; or
• the claim seeks refund of fees based on the volume, quality, or absence of referrals received (see Sections 3, 4, and 7, which make clear that referral volume is not a basis for refund).

Attorney's Fees. The arbitrator may award reasonable attorney's fees and costs to the prevailing party where authorized by applicable law, or where the arbitrator finds that a claim or defense was frivolous or brought in bad faith.

9. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Wisconsin, without regard to its conflict of law principles. Any legal proceedings not subject to arbitration shall be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Wisconsin.

10. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will post the revised Terms on this page with an updated effective date. For material changes (such as changes affecting fees, cancellation rights, or data practices), we will also provide reasonable advance notice by email to the address on your account. Your continued use of the Services after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated Terms.

11. Contact Us

If you have questions about these Terms, please contact us at hello@referist.io.