Hi, you might have clicked this post with a little trepidation, right? I’ve got you. Inside this post, I talk about my favorite legal products in this article, and if you click on a link, I may get a commission if you make a purchase. But don’t worry! This is my own personal lawyer’s website, so I would have recommended these products anyway!
Warning! This article contains a very important, butttttttt very un-sexy topic. Please proceed if you like sleeping soundly at night, are serious about starting or running your business, and can hang with the content. Legal stuff isn’t sexy. Actually, it’s really scary for most of us. If you’re still using the “cross your fingers” technique in lieu of getting legit, it’s time to realize that what you don’t know can hurt you.
Luckily, it’s really easy to understand and fix. For instance, did you know that every website is required to have a privacy policy? Even if you’re new? Even if you’re not selling anything yet? And, it takes less than 10 minutes to get a good one up. Let’s get into what you need, and why.
A Privacy Policy Page
A ‘privacy policy’ is a page where you tell anyone who visits your site what kind of information you collect on them, how you store that information and what you do with that information. It creates transparency and trust with your audience and shows that you’re not just professional– you really care.
If you’re missing this page, don’t worry– the internet police aren’t going to come to knock on your door and arrest you for running a shady enterprise. But, you could get kicked off the platforms, like Facebook or your email provider, that you worked so hard to build, and ruin the trust you’re building with your audience who doesn’t know if they can trust your site. Oofta! That hurts. Plus with the new European law– the “GDPR,” you could also be fined for your lack of a privacy policy.
Writing your own privacy policy or stealing one from Google is a bad idea because you might leave something important out, and… let’s be real, it’s a super boring task. You could be doing way better things with your time, like building a list!
It’s a one-time investment if you buy one through a reputable source, like The Contract Shop® who has lifetime updates on their GDPR-Compliant Privacy Policy. If anything changes– er, I should say when things change, you’ll get a notification that an update is available. All without becoming an expert in online privacy!
A Terms Page
For a long time, I didn’t know what to do about people who bought my products but wanted to return them. While I have less than a 1% refund rate, it’s unrealistic to think I’d never have to deal with a refund request– we are selling an average of 15+ courses every day. Not even counting our launches, that’s over 5500 new students a year! You don’t have to be selling a bunch, or heck– anything at all, to need some clear terms for your website.
Your terms page can do things like:
- List any terms or conditions for using your site, such as reminders that your site content (photos, blog posts, etc.) is copyrighted and illegal to steal
- Prevent illegal or bad activity, like leaving mean comments or spamming you as a business owner
- If you sell any products or services, these terms are where you can put your refund policy– trust me, this really comes in handy so you’re never wondering where you put that dang thing as you’re building a sales page or dealing with customers
- Provide your contact and company details
- Reserve the right to ban certain visitors for breaking your terms (such as comment trolls)
- Tells people what you’ll do if you need to take legal action, and where that will happen– after all, you don’t want to deal with a legal problem in California if you’re based in New York! Or worse, another country!
And, with my favorite pre-made Terms & Conditions for online entrepreneurs and creatives, you get a 2-for-1 because the Terms are sold pre-made with the Privacy Policy you need too!
A Contact Page, and Some Real Contact Info
You’d be shocked at how many websites don’t have an easy or clear way to contact the business owner. Or how many Instagram profiles go to someone’s Youtube channel, or Style Me Pretty feature. This is not helpful if someone is trying to get in touch with you to book you, buy from you or if there’s some kind of legal sitch going on they need to inform you about.
It’s critical you make it as easy as possible for people to get in touch with you or your team so they can quickly get the answers + info they need from you. No matter how big you get, or how small you are now, communication is key!
Do you have all three of these? A few? What cover-ya-butt pages have you put up on your own site beyond those listed here? I read every comment and appreciate you checking in.
*And by the way, I’m not a lawyer. This article is for educational and entertainment purposes only. If you have a legal Q or problem, you need to hire a licensed attorney to help you out.
