1. Who we are
Vantage Media ("Vantage Media", "we", "us", or "our") is a digital agency based in Bloemfontein, Free State, South Africa. This policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and protect personal information when you visit our website (vantagemedia.online) or engage us for services, and it is written to comply with South Africa's Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 ("POPIA"). Where relevant to visitors from other regions, we also have regard to internationally recognised data protection principles, including the EU/UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
2. Information we collect
We collect information in the following ways:
- Information you give us directly — such as your name, email address, company name, project budget range, and project details, when you submit our contact form, email us, message us on WhatsApp, or otherwise get in touch.
- Information collected automatically — such as your IP address, browser and device type, pages visited, and time spent on the site, collected via cookies and similar technologies where you have consented to them (see Section 5, "Cookies and tracking").
- Information from third parties — for example, if you're referred to us by an existing client or partner, we may receive your name and contact details from them.
3. How we use your information
We use personal information to:
- Respond to enquiries and prepare quotes or proposals;
- Deliver, manage, and support the services you engage us for;
- Communicate with you about your project, invoices, or account;
- Improve our website, services, and client experience;
- Understand site usage and traffic (only with your consent — see Section 5);
- Meet our legal, accounting, and regulatory obligations.
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties.
4. Our legal basis for processing
Under POPIA, we process personal information only where at least one of the following applies:
- Consent — you have given clear, opt-in consent, such as by ticking the consent checkbox on our contact form or accepting non-essential cookies;
- Contract — processing is necessary to perform a contract with you (for example, delivering a project you've engaged us for);
- Legitimate interest — processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests (such as responding to enquiries), balanced against your rights; or
- Legal obligation — processing is required to comply with the law (for example, financial record-keeping).
5. Cookies and tracking
Our website uses two categories of cookies:
- Strictly necessary cookies — required for the site to function correctly (for example, remembering your cookie preferences). These cannot be switched off and do not require consent.
- Analytics cookies — help us understand how visitors use the site so we can improve it. These are only set if you explicitly opt in via the cookie banner or the "Cookie Preferences" link in our footer, and you can withdraw your consent at any time from the same place.
You can accept all cookies, reject non-essential cookies, or choose your preferences the first time you visit the site, and change your mind at any time by selecting "Cookie Preferences" in the footer of any page.
6. How we share information
We only share personal information with:
- Service providers who help us run our business and website — such as hosting providers, email providers, and (where you've consented) analytics providers — under obligations to keep it confidential and secure;
- Legal or regulatory authorities, where required by law, court order, or to protect our rights; or
- A successor entity, in the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of business assets, subject to equivalent privacy protections.
7. Data retention
We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary to fulfil the purpose it was collected for — typically for the duration of our engagement plus a period afterwards to meet legal, accounting, or dispute-resolution requirements. Contact form enquiries that don't proceed to an engagement are retained for a limited period and then securely deleted or anonymised.
8. Data security
We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, and disclosure. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and while we work to protect your information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.
9. International transfers
As we work with clients and service providers outside South Africa, personal information may be processed in other countries. Where this happens, we take reasonable steps to ensure it receives a comparable level of protection to that required under POPIA.
10. Your rights
Subject to applicable law, you have the right to:
- Request access to the personal information we hold about you;
- Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information;
- Request deletion of your personal information;
- Object to, or request that we restrict, certain processing;
- Withdraw consent at any time, without affecting processing carried out before withdrawal; and
- Lodge a complaint with South Africa's Information Regulator (or, for visitors elsewhere, your local data protection authority) if you believe we have not handled your information properly.
To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details in Section 13.
11. Children's privacy
Our website and services are intended for businesses and individuals over the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will delete it.
12. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. We'll update the "Effective date" above when we do. Significant changes will be highlighted on this page.
13. Contact us
For any questions about this policy or to exercise your privacy rights, contact us at protea@vantagemedia.online or 063 259 0691. We're based at Bloemfontein, Free State, South Africa.