Partnership & sponsorship policy

GDG Indore is run by volunteers. We have no legal entity, no budget line and no staff. That shapes everything below: we can only commit to things we have written down, and we can only spend money we have actually raised for a specific event.

This policy exists so that anyone working with us — sponsor, speaker, venue, vendor or partner community — knows where they stand before they commit anything of their own.

1. Only written confirmation binds us

A partnership, sponsorship, speaking slot or any other arrangement with GDG Indore is binding only when it has been confirmed in writing by email from gdgindore@gmail.com.

If you do not have an email from that address setting out what was agreed, there is no agreement. This is not a formality we invoke selectively — it applies to every partner equally, and it applies to us too. If we tell you something in a call, ask us to put it in an email. We will.

Organizers speak for themselves until GDG Indore has confirmed something in writing. An organizer’s personal enthusiasm for your proposal is not a commitment by the chapter.

2. Discussions are exploratory until confirmed

We talk to a lot of people, and most of those conversations don’t become anything. Treat every discussion as exploratory until you have the written confirmation described above. Please do not book travel, sign contracts, print materials, announce anything publicly or incur any other cost on the strength of a conversation.

3. Costs and expenses

GDG Indore does not cover travel, accommodation, local transport, meals, visas, equipment, or any other expense — unless that specific cost is named, with an amount, in the written confirmation.

We are not able to reimburse costs after the fact. If an expense is not in the written confirmation, it will not be reimbursed, regardless of what was discussed beforehand. Where we can cover something, we say so explicitly and in advance, in writing.

This applies to speakers, sponsors and partners alike. It is not personal, and it is not a negotiating position — most of our events run on a budget that would not survive one unplanned flight.

4. Sponsorship

We’re glad to work with sponsors, and we’re straightforward about what sponsorship is and isn’t.

What sponsorship can get you, depending on what’s agreed for the specific event: your logo on event pages and slides, a mention from the stage, a table or booth where the venue allows one, materials in attendee bags, and the chance to meet a room full of developers in your own city.

What sponsorship never gets you:

• Any endorsement by Google, or any implication of one. See section 6.
• Attendee personal data. We do not sell, share or hand over attendee lists, email addresses or phone numbers to sponsors. Attendees can choose to give you their details at your table; that is between them and you.
• Editorial control over talk selection, or a speaking slot for your team. Sponsored talks, where we run them at all, are labelled as such.
• A commitment to attendance numbers. We’ll tell you honestly what we expect and what we’ve had before. We won’t guarantee a figure.
• Exclusivity, unless it is written into the confirmation for that event.

Sponsorship is per-event. Sponsoring one event does not carry over to the next one.

5. Speakers

We select talks on whether they’ll be useful to the room. Submitting a proposal is not an acceptance — you’ll hear from us either way, and an acceptance comes by email.

Speaking at a GDG Indore event is unpaid. We don’t charge speakers, and we don’t pay them. Section 3 applies: we cover no costs unless they’re named in writing in advance.

6. Use of the GDG and Google names

GDG Indore is an independent community group. Our activities and the opinions expressed at our events should in no way be linked to Google, the corporation.

Partners and sponsors may state factually that they sponsored, hosted or spoke at a named GDG Indore event. Partners and sponsors may not:

• describe themselves as a partner or sponsor of Google, or of Google Developer Groups generally
• use Google or GDG logos, marks or branding in their own materials
• suggest that Google endorses, certifies, recommends or is affiliated with their product, company or event
• use our name or our events in advertising beyond a factual statement of the sponsorship

We take this seriously because these are not our marks to lend. Getting it wrong creates a problem for the whole programme, not just for us.

7. Changes and cancellation

Events move and occasionally get cancelled — venues fall through, speakers drop out, dates clash. Where that happens we’ll tell you as early as we can and agree what happens to anything already committed. Where a sponsorship has been paid for a specific event that doesn’t happen, we’ll work out a refund or a carry-over with you in writing.

We may decline or end a partnership, at our discretion, where continuing it would conflict with our code of conduct, misrepresent our relationship with Google, or damage the community’s trust.

8. How to propose a partnership

Email gdgindore@gmail.com. Tell us:

1. Who you are and what you do.
2. Which event, or what kind of event, you’re interested in.
3. What you’re offering — money, a venue, food, prizes, hardware, speakers, promotion.
4. What you’d want in return.
5. Any deadline you’re working to.

We read everything that arrives there. We reply to what we can act on. If a proposal is a fit, we’ll come back with a written confirmation setting out exactly what each side is doing — and at that point, and only at that point, we have an agreement.

This policy applies from the date shown above and replaces any earlier understanding, written or otherwise. We version it publicly so that the terms in force at the time of any given event can always be checked.