Community Guidelines

1. Why we have guidelines

Faith On Stage exists so that churches, ministries and Christian events can find and book artists without the awkwardness of an unclear agreement: no informal WhatsApp bookings, no vague promises about payment, no wondering whether the other person will turn up.

That only works if both sides behave well. The contract and the escrow handle the money. These guidelines handle everything the contract cannot: how you describe yourself, how you speak to each other, and what you do when something goes wrong.

The short version: be honest about who you are, do what you said you would do, and treat the person on the other side as a brother or sister rather than a transaction.

2. Be who you say you are

Your profile is the basis on which someone decides to trust you with an event or an evening of ministry. It has to be true.

• Use your own name, your own photos and your own recordings. Do not present someone else's work as yours.
• Do not impersonate another person, artist, church or organisation.
• Keep your rate, availability and services up to date. An out-of-date profile wastes the other party's time.
• If you are an organisation, only create an account for a ministry you genuinely represent and are authorised to book on behalf of.

3. If you are an artist

An organisation planning a service or a conference is working to a date that cannot move. What they need most from you is a clear answer and a reliable presence.

• Reply to booking requests within 48 hours, even when the answer is no.
• Honour every booking you accept, and arrive on time.
• Deliver the service you agreed to, at a professional standard.
• If an emergency genuinely prevents you from performing, tell the organisation and tell us as soon as you know, not on the day.
• Hold any licences, permits or registrations your art form requires.
• Only upload photos, video and audio you have the right to use.

4. If you are an organisation

An artist is committing a date, travel and preparation to your event, often turning other work down to do it. What they need from you is accurate information and a safe place to minister.

• Give accurate event details: date, location, duration, expected audience and technical requirements.
• Provide a safe, appropriate and faith-affirming environment for every performance.
• Pay into escrow on time: 14 days before the event, or straight away once the artist has signed if your booking is last-minute (less than 14 days before the event).
• Tell the artist promptly if anything material about the event changes.
• Provide the equipment, sound and technical support you agreed to; a technical rider is part of the agreement, not a wish list.
• Arrange your own permits, insurance and music licensing (CCLI or equivalent).

5. Talking about money

Money is the part people find hardest to raise in a ministry setting, so the Platform is built to make it explicit rather than awkward. The honorarium is agreed before anything is signed, the organisation pays the service fee on top, and the artist receives the full amount they agreed to.

• Agree the honorarium in writing on the Platform before the contract is signed. Do not renegotiate it afterwards.
• Some artists choose to minister for a love offering, or for no payment at all. That is their decision to offer, never something to press for.
• Do not pressure an artist to lower their rate by appealing to their faith or their calling.
• Do not ask an artist to invoice for a different amount than the one agreed, or to take part of the fee off-platform.
• Cover the costs you said you would cover, such as travel or accommodation, in full and on time.

6. Keep bookings on the Platform

The contract, the escrow, the dispute process and the ability to get your money back all depend on the booking existing here. A booking taken off-platform has none of that protection, for either side.

• Do not move a booking off the Platform to avoid the service fee.
• Do not exchange personal contact details before a booking is confirmed. Until then, keep the conversation in Platform messages.
• For twelve months after an introduction made through the Platform, book that artist or organisation here rather than privately.

This is not about controlling your relationships. Once a booking is complete you are free to build on it; the rule exists so that neither party loses the contract and the escrow that protect them.

7. How we treat each other

Disagreements happen: a date moves, a sound system is not what was promised, an expectation was not shared. How you handle it is what matters.

• No harassment, threats or abuse, in messages or in reviews.
• No spam, unsolicited promotion or mass messaging.
• No discrimination against anyone on the Platform.
• Raise a problem with the other party first, plainly and early. Most disputes come from something that was never said out loud.
• If you cannot resolve it between you, open a dispute rather than escalating in public.

8. Honest reviews

Reviews are how the next organisation decides who to trust. Both parties review each other, and neither review is published until both are in, so nobody is writing a reply to what the other person said.

• Write what actually happened. Do not exaggerate in either direction.
• Do not offer, ask for or accept anything in exchange for a positive review.
• Do not use a review to settle a disagreement that belongs in a dispute.
• Review the booking, not the person's character, appearance or theology.

9. What belongs on your profile

This is a Christian platform and the content on it should be something you would be comfortable showing to the congregation you are ministering to.

• Nothing sexually explicit, hateful, or promoting violence.
• Nothing that contradicts the Christian faith values this Platform is founded on.
• Nothing that infringes someone else's copyright or trademark, including backing tracks and cover recordings you do not have the rights to.
• No malware, scraping, bots, or automated collection of Platform data.
• No using content or data from the Platform to train generative AI models.

10. When guidelines are broken

We would rather correct something than remove someone. Most first problems end with a conversation. Where that is not enough, the response is proportionate to what happened and whether it is repeated:

• A warning, and a request to put it right.
• Removal of specific content from a profile.
• Withdrawal of the Verified badge, which can be restored if conduct improves.
• Suspension of the account while we look into it.
• Permanent closure of the account, for serious or repeated breaches.

Fraud, impersonation, harassment and anything that puts someone's safety at risk go straight to suspension. Pending payouts are handled according to the Terms before an account is closed.

11. Reporting a problem

If someone is behaving in a way that does not belong here, tell us. Reports are handled privately and we do not disclose who raised them to the person being reported.

For anything to do with a specific booking, open a dispute on the booking itself; that keeps the chat, the contract and the files together where we can see them. For anything else, email us.