“I thought it was okay to copy/paste from other websites!”

“I pieced together my own contract by copying others and finding some online.”

These are three very common admissions I hear from customers of mine, and those who attend my quarterly free Legal Basics training sessions. (Click here to join my email list and be notified of future trainings!) The fact is, if any of these three sentences sound like you: you are not alone…BUT – you are most likely currently breaking the law.

WHAT?! WHY?!

If you don’t know what you need in order to have a legally compliant business…your business is not legally compliant. This means you don’t have a privacy policy on your website, are not properly protecting your business with the right disclaimers, and are not entering into agreements with your clients and customers with legally-binding contracts. Not having this stuff in place can cost you THOUSANDS, if not more, if the FTC catches wind of it, or someone else reports you. You may also have to give a refund, lose out on a client’s payment plan funds, and encounter other legal woes from failing to have the right things in place.

LET’S AVOID THAT ASAP.

Additionally – if you have copied legal documents from other people / from Googling and pasting things together that sound legitimate…it is VERY likely you are committing copyright infringement – a violation of Federal Law. This is NO DIFFERENT than stealing someone else’s content, photos, blogs, course copy, etc. Legal documents are typically protectable, and you may be stealing from the attorney who drafted the agreement.

This is true EVEN if the person who gave it to you gave you permission. Unless the ATTORNEY who wrote it gave you permission = you do not have permission to use it. I have dealt with many entrepreneurs (even the 6 and 7-figure ones) try to copy documents from my customers, and it’s just NOT worth it guys. In a world where we are all trying to be original and build businesses to serve others, do not try to protect your business with stolen goods! 

SO how can you get your own, and what the heck do you even need?

If you have a WEBSITE: You need a privacy policy, terms & conditions, and a disclaimer. You can get them all RIGHT HERE in my website bundle, or as part of the full BEGINNERS’ BUNDLE HERE. These documents go (1) in the footer of your website and ALL other landing pages/sites you have, (2) privacy policy goes EVERYWHERE you collect information – so any pop-up boxes, landing pages, purchase pages, anywhere people can give you personal information.

If you offer 1:1 Services: You need a Client Agreement, drafted by an attorney who knows the online space. Get yours HERE, or as part of the full BEGINNERS’ BUNDLE HERE. Your client will sign this document (by printing and scanning or via a digital signature + email confirmation that they have signed it).

If you sell online courses or digital products: You need Terms of Use for each course or product. (Same template, tweaked to apply to the specific thing customers can purchase.) This is different from your website Terms & Conditions. Get yours HERE, or as part of the full BEGINNERS’ BUNDLE HERE. Your customers will agree to the Terms of Use by checking a box at checkout, where you will also link the Terms of Use document.

I highly recommend you take advantage of these templates, if you need any of these documents. I see WAY too many business owners in hot water because they did not want to spend the money up front and tried to do it themselves, only to end up in court, at odds with a client, or stuck not being able to collect money owed to them because the contract was not valid. In these situations, the cost of NOT complying is way more than the cost of getting things set up correctly in the beginning.

Let’s make sure your virtual businesses are properly set up, so you can work remotely and depend on your income during these uncertain times!

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post Are you breaking the law with one of these common pitfalls? appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

As a business owner, this may be impacting you greatly! Do you have a live event coming up? Are you hosting a retreat? Have you agreed to serve as a speaker at an upcoming event? Booked travel or a venue for an out of town event? These are all obligations and commitments that we are now taking a second look at, which raises the question: How do I get out of my contract, or cancel an event without being sued by everyone that was supposed to come? How do I cancel a speaking engagement without breaching my contract?

[NEED A CONTRACT? CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE TEMPLATE SHOP!]

If you find yourself needing to cancel a contract, event, or other occasion, here are a few things to know about contracts, and tips on how you may be able to use them.

(Note, this is not an exhaustive list, nor intended to be legal advice for you to rely on – just some helpful tips to get the conversation going.)

1. The implied “Impracticability” clause

This unnecessarily long and legal sounding word may be your new best friend. An “Impracticability” clause is IMPLIED in many contracts (depending on the state you live in), meaning it most likely does not need to be physically written in the contract for you to be able to use it. If there’s a valid contract and your state allows this implied provision, you may be in luck.

So what does this impracticality clause mean? Impracticability = impractical = not practical = not possible or realistic. An impracticability clause essentially means that whatever you and the other party agreed upon, and what you were supposed to do under the contract is now not possible or will be so difficult that it is not practical to continue. If that happens, this clause may excuse you of your responsibilities under the contract IF whatever is happening is something outside your control and not caused by you. The event or issue needs to be “unforeseeable” or something that was not predictable by the parties when they entered into the contract.

Essentially, it allows one person to be excused from performing under the contract, if something unforeseeable and unpredictable happened, that made performing completely unrealistic or impossible.

The COVID-19 frenzy is VERY likely something that falls within this category. Because there are now travel restrictions, bans on large gatherings or crowds, school closures, venue closures, and general requests from leaders to self-quarantine and engage in social distancing until further notice, holding a large event or retreat where attendees were expected to travel and stay in close quarters with others is now highly impracticable if not impossible/against current regulation.

So what do you do? To activate this clause in your contract, simply advise the person you entered into the agreement with, (whether it’s the vendor, venue, speaker, attendee, etc.) that your performance has been rendered impracticable due to COVID-19, and unfortunately you are going to need to cancel the agreement. From there, you can work out any additional issues that will arise due to your need to cancel the contract, but it should be relatively easy to work out.

2. Force Majeure

While many business owners may not know what this phrase means, it may be in your agreement. Review the contract you signed with the person/company/venue to see if this provision is included. While it depends on how it was written, typically this paragraph says something to the effect of:  the parties agree that should an event beyond our control occur, sometimes called an “Act of God” – like weather issues, fire, earthquake, terrorist attack, or – in this case – a virus,  one or both parties may be excused from performing under the contract.

If this paragraph IS in your contract, you’ll need to read it very carefully (and ask the attorney who wrote it for you to explain the meaning) as the wording of the paragraph is very important to whether or not you’ll be able to use it, and if it will apply to the current COVID-19 situation.

Without going into too much detail – sometimes by including this paragraph and listing out all the possible “Acts of God,” you can only use the paragraph if the actual issue was something that was specifically listed.

Many force majeure paragraphs include more predictable acts of God, e.g. hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, fires, and other similar weather-based catastrophes, and do not typically include a nationwide pandemic. So again, if this IS in your contract – reach out to the attorney who drafted it (or reach out to me at christy@christywesterfeld.com for general insight) and you’ll be able to figure out if you can use this paragraph to excuse your performance under the contract.

3. The Aftermath

Once you have successfully excused performance under the contract, you’ll likely still need to address a few things:

If you are canceling an event, retreat, or gathering of some kind where you sold tickets, you will likely want to offer your guests a refund on their ticket, a free ticket to the next event you hold, or the option to choose a refund or free future ticket.

If you are also needing to cancel contractor agreements, vendor agreements, and others who were lined up to assist with an event, the specifics on what you may need or want to do to smooth things over will vary greatly. Be open and honest, and don’t be afraid to consult with an attorney (ideally the one who drafted your contract!) if you need help. I am always available to email / chat about general issues and information: christy@christywesterfeld.com.

To make sure you’re prepared for next time, CLICK HERE for my Signature Event Legal Bundle.

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post Tips for Legally Cancelling a Contract Due to COVID-19 appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

Building a business is like building a house – sure, the interior design and décor is more “fun” just like the social media strategy, photoshoots, and branding are more fun in online business. But the foundation of the house is also the most important – if there’s a problem with the foundation, you can bet the house isn’t going to last long. Same with legal protection in your business. You need to make sure the foundation is good, so as you’re building, you’re building on something solid, and you don’t need to keep questioning, worrying, or wondering if what you’re doing is actually legit.

Here’s a quick rundown of the top 5 illegal mistakes I see online businesses making.

(Want the full list? CHECK IT OUT HERE.)

1. You Don’t have an ACCURATE Privacy Policy on your Website & Opt-In Pages

If you’re collecting any kind of personal information from people (name, email address, billing/purchase info, or even just the “contact” tab on your website) a privacy policy is legally required to be on BOTH your website and ALL your opt-in or landing pages. The privacy policy must:

1. Be complete, meaning it has to include everything required by the FTC
2. Drafted by an attorney in the online space
3. GDPR compliant (yes, even if you’re located in the U.S.!) and
4. Must be accurate for your business – meaning, it must state ALL the ways you personally collect information in your business (and yes! You must update if you add things like Facebook pixels, etc.)

Once the privacy policy is complete, you’ll need to put it in the footer of all your websites, and in the footer of any and all landing pages, opt-in pages, purchase pages – anywhere you collect information from people. (Download my full guide here to see examples!)

Need a privacy policy?? I’VE GOT YOU COVERED HERE. 

2. You’re accidentally using someone else’s business name and/or trademark

If you started your business without doing some serious research on the business name/course name/product name you want to use, there’s a chance you may be infringing on someone else’s rights, even if you didn’t do it on purpose! Why? If someone else was using the name first (even if you didn’t copy on purpose, AND YES even if they haven’t registered their name as a trademark with the US Patent & Trademark Office) you won’t be able to use the mark if your use is remotely confusing to their use. Meaning, if you’re in similar markets, the names are very similar, or a consumer could otherwise confuse one business or product for the other, you’ll likely be out of luck as soon as the other person realizes you’re using the name.

(And before you ask – if you’re in the U.S., no, registering the mark before the other person will not grant you any superior rights. If you do register the mark before they do, but they started using the mark in their business first, they’ll still have priority to continue using the mark, and will likely object to your trademark registration.)

3. Using #sponsored and #ad hashtags incorrectly

Like testimonials, the FTC also heavily regulates influencer marketing and sponsored content/endorsements. If you’re paid to post content, given something for free, or otherwise have any sort of material relationship with the brand you’re posting about, the hashtags #sponsored and/or #ad on Instagram MUST be in the very beginning of your post, before the “more” button.

This is important because the FTC requires it to be very clear and easy for all consumers to see there’s a material relationship between you and the brand/person you’re posting about, so the consumer can factor that in, as they’re deciding whether or not to purchase something you’ve posted about. If the hashtags are below the “more” button, a consumer may not click “more” and never see that it was a sponsored post…which can mean you’ve exposed yourself to false or misleading advertisement charges.

4. Using a Client Agreement Someone Gave You

THE most important document to have when you start working  with clients is your Client Agreement. This is the ONLY document that will help you if there’s a disagreement (or lawsuit) between you and a client, so you need to make sure if says the right things, is specific to your agreement with that client, and actually protects you and your business.

The #1 thing NOT to do, that I see happen so often in the online business space, is to use an agreement someone else purchased from an attorney, and gives to you to use for free. Why? Well, in order to be able to legally use an agreement in this scenario, you’d need permission from the attorney who drafted it, not your friend who purchased it. Just like we need permission from the person who wrote a blog post or took a photo in order to use that piece of content, we need permission from the person who wrote the agreement. It doesn’t matter if we have permission from our friend, coach, mom, sister, or whoever has the agreement – if you don’t have permission from the writer, don’t come anywhere near it! If you do, and the person who wrote it finds out, you may be liable for copyright infringement – a hefty fine/penalty that could cost WAY more than the price to get your own drafted in the first place.

GET YOUR OWN CLIENT AGREEMENT TEMPLATE HERE!

5. Hiring designers, assistants, and other contractors without the right agreements, OR treating them like employees.

When you hired someone to work for you on a project basis, they are likely independent contractors, which means they are not employees, and you are simply paying them to complete a project or task. Common independent contractors in our industry = website designers, social media managers, virtual assistants, etc. All people who have their own businesses and other clients, and simply complete work for you that is within their area of expertise.

In order to make sure you’re handling this relationship correctly, you need to make sure you (1) have an independent contractor agreement in place between you and this person, that outlines the relationship, as well as the main terms and (2) make sure you aren’t treating them like employees.

GET YOUR INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR AGREEMENT HERE

In most states, the main thing courts look at when determining whether someone is an independent contractor or employee, is the amount of control the employer has over the individual when he/she is completing the work. When you hire a typical IC – let’s say a website designer – you aren’t giving them much instruction on how to complete the work, where they need to be when they’re working, they don’t typically check with you on every tiny detail, and they are able to complete the project with little to no supervision. Compare that with a typical employee, who reports to the same office at specific hours, is trained on the work he/she is to complete, has a manager who supervises work daily, and everything the employee does is typically approved by the employer.

When you’re hiring contractors, you want to make sure your relationship looks like example one, with the IC, not example two, with the employee. Coming down on the wrong side of this could mean massive penalties for not having the right benefits, insurance, workers’ compensation plans, and payroll available for the employees you’ve had working for you (even if you wrote in a contract they were independent contractors!)

To see ALL EIGHT of my top illegal moves for online business owners, CLICK HERE!

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post 5 Ways Your Online Business Could Be Illegal (without even realizing!) appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

However, there are a few important legal considerations to keep in mind when adding coaching to the list of services therapists provide, as coaching is absolutely not the same as (nor a substitute for) therapy, and must operate as a completely different service. In order for a licensed therapist to succeed as a coach, whether he/she is closing the practice and moving entirely to coaching, or simply adding it as another service, there are a few key things to keep in mind, from a legal and business perspective, to make sure you don’t end up in trouble with your state licensing board. I always recommend that therapists check in with their state’s licensing board with any specific questions regarding how to legally operate a coaching business alongside a private practice.

Before beginning your coaching business, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with the general differences between coaching and counseling. The International Coaching Federation (ICF) defines coaching as “partnering with clients in a through-provoking and creative process that inspires them to maximize their personal and professional potential.” In other words, as a coach, you’re working with an objectively “healthy” individual, “inspiring” them to work toward a personal or professional goal, whether that be in health and wellness, relationships, business, or general personal development.

By contrast, Counseling or Therapy – as you all know – is much more rooted in the medical field, and is defined as form of treatment to an individual who has been diagnosed with a medical condition of some sort, and is working toward healing, becoming objectively healthy or whole again. Many have often noted a difference in the type of conversations that go on between therapists, versus that of coaches, citing therapy as an experience where the individual is asked to look into the past for hidden or unresolved issues, and to work toward healing those in order to become a successful person in the present. On the other hand, coaching is more present and future-based, working on inspiring in the here and now, and how the individual would like to proceed in the future.

In addition to the overall concepts, there are a few other legal and business considerations that are important:

 1. Create a Separate Coaching Business Entity, so it’s totally separate from your Practice

One of the biggest principles to abide by when working as a therapist and a coach, is to completely separate your coaching business from your private practice, in all aspects of the business. This means, for those starting a coaching business, it’s a good idea to create a completely new business entity under which you will house your coaching. This could mean forming a new LLC, operating as a sole proprietor, or otherwise operating separately. In addition, I’d also recommend opening a separate bank account, just as you did with your private practice, as this is a completely new business venture, separate from your personal assets, and separate from your private practice. Additionally, many states have regulations regarding what types of business entities professional individuals may operate under; for example, in California, businesses which require a professional license, such as lawyers, therapists, physicians, etc., may not operate as Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) – they must be a Professional Corporation (PC). Other states allow for a Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC). If you’re in one of those states, and operate your private practice under a professional entity, you’ll likely be able to create an LLC (or operate as a sole proprietor if you’d like) when serving as a coach. As always, I highly recommend speaking with a CPA or tax expert, as well as an attorney in your state to determine the right business entity and structure for your coaching business.

2. Create a new, separate coaching website

This is the tip that usually gets the most grumbles from my audience, as most would like to simply add “coaching” as a service they offer to the website they already have going for their private practice. While this isn’t objectively wrong, it’s not ideal, and here’s why: remember our general principal that our coaching and therapy practice should remain 100% separate in all facets, so as to avoid confusion in services. Keeping this in mind, offering these services on the same website may cause potential patients or clients to become confused about the services, and when each may be right for them.

For example, let’s say potential patient Carol finds your website after recently being diagnosed with depression, looking for a counselor to help her through this time. While on your website, she stumbles onto the “coaching” tab and begins reading about how you work with coaching clients. Carol may become confused about which service she needs, and end up purchasing a coaching course or other coaching package from you, perhaps because it’s more cost effective, doesn’t require her to come in for sessions, or any number of reasons. When that occurs, Carol may now not get the treatment she needs, simply because she strayed off path into your coaching services, and ended up in the wrong place.

When your coaching website is completely separate from your private practice, these potential confusion cases are greatly reduced, if not eliminated. Those who are looking for coaching will be able to seek you out there, and those looking for therapy will be able to find your private practice site.

3. Coaching Certification

While not mandatory, many state license boards recommend or look highly upon therapists obtaining a coaching certification in order to provide coaching services. The theory behind this, is that you are already educated and licensed in therapy, with all the required qualifications, and it would serve you and the board well to also become certified in the additional form of services you’re looking to provide. Plus, obtaining this additional education and training will likely allow you to learn even more about coaching and how it differs from therapy, so you are better equipped to provide these services (and not veer over into counseling) when working with coaching clients.

4. Obtain all new documentation to ensure you are legally protected

As a therapist, you likely have all the required documentation needed to operate your private practice. (If not, look into hiring an attorney to draft these for you ASAP!) When starting a coaching business, it’s equally important to obtain the correct documentation, which will be different from your private practice documents. If you find you need some or all of these documents, I do offer a Legal Bundle for Therapists Offering Coaching Services, which includes the top 6 documents needed, drafted specifically for therapist offering coaching services. FIND MORE INFO HERE. Here’s a basic rundown of what you may need:

                         A) Website

This applies to both your coaching website and your private practice website – when running a business online, there are 3 documents you need to have on your website: (1) Privacy Policy, (2) Disclaimer, and (3) Terms & Conditions. They go in the footer of your website and help protect you from liability should someone consume content from your site and suffer a negative result, as well as help to provide information and insight into the services you do and don’t provide. For example, your coaching website disclaimer will outline that your website content is not personalized coaching and is designed as general information which may or may not be right for the person reading it.  (For more information on these documents in greater detail, check out this post.

                      B) Coaching client agreement

This is likely the most important document you will need in your coaching business. This document outlines exactly what you are providing to your coaching client, as well as all relevant terms, including payment, any payment plans you offer, how disputes will be resolved, etc. It also includes all your disclaimers, including those which advise your client that while you are a licensed counselor, your coaching services do not include any counseling, are not a substitute for counseling, and bear no similarities to counseling treatment. It also advises them that during your work with them, if you determine they are in need of treatment, not coaching, you will cease your work with them and point the in the direction of a therapist (or type of therapy) they should obtain. The importance of this document cannot be understated. This is NOT something you want to try and draft yourself, piece together from things you find online, or use from someone else. You need something drafted specifically for therapists offering coaching services!

                    C) Terms of Use for an online course

Many therapists decide they want to offer an online coaching course, to help individuals (or families of individuals) work through issues or achieve certain goals. When you work in this “one to many” model, it stops becoming practical to send each client a contract, since they’re purchasing directly from your website with little to no interaction from you. However, you still need a legal document in place between you and these customers! Enter: Terms of Use. This document, similar to a client agreement, will be linked on your checkout page for your course. Before customers purchase your course, they will need to check a box that says something like “by checking this box, I confirm I have read and agree to the terms of use associated with this program.” The words “Terms of Use” will be a link to your agreement for the course the customer is purchasing. When they check the box, the customer is telling you yes, I have read it and agree to it. THIS IS HUGE. It helps protect you from liability should a customer have any issue with your course, want a refund, or just have questions/want clarity about what the course offers. This document will also include the same disclaimers as your client agreement regarding therapy as well.

If you need any or all of these documents, check out my Bundle for Therapists Offering Coaching Services. 

5. Do not mix coaching clients with private practice patients

If someone is a patient of yours, they cannot be a coaching clients, and vice versa. If you are coaching someone and you see, based on your experience and expertise, that they are in need of counseling, do not simply begin counseling them – refer them to someone in their area, or advise them you are pausing the coaching work until they can be treated by a local therapist in their area.

6. Market yourself as a coach, not a therapist

Often times I’m asked how or when a therapist may use his or her credentials and licenses in marketing as a coach. While there is no black and white answer – my recommendation is this: you do not need to hide or lie about your credentials, so it’s okay to keep the letters at the end of your signature, or answer honestly if someone asks about your credentials. However, do not use the credentials as a marketing method in order to obtain coaching clients. In other words, don’t market yourself as a credible coach because of your therapy background, even if that might absolutely make you more qualified as a coach than another individual with no training.

instead of doing this, focus on your years of experience working with individuals in a 1:1 capacity, guiding them toward their goals. Have 20 years of experience as a therapist, working with a specific type of individual or problem? Focus on that! Tell your coaching audience that you have 20 years of experience working with the exact problem they’d like support on, without using your degrees or licenses to lure people to your coaching.

Overall, the biggest thing to keep in mind is the separation. If you are always thinking from that mentality, and ensuring your coaching services and therapy practice do not overlap, merge, or blend, you’re off to a good start. Congratulations on your new coaching business!

Disclaimer: While I am a licensed attorney with knowledge and education in this field, this article does not constitute legal advice, nor am I your attorney. No attorney-client relationship is formed by you reading this post. Please consult an attorney in your state for personalized legal advice.

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post Take the Right Steps to Protect Your Business! appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

Beginners’ Bundle for Coaches & Entrepreneurs

This is the “standard” bundle, meant for business coaches, and most other entrepreneurs that don’t fall into the category of health & wellness, web designer or virtual assistant, or licensed therapist. The language in these documents is meant to cover those who provide coaching and consulting in a variety of fields, including business or mindset coaching, career coaching, and any other type of consulting business.

Beginners’ Bundle for Health and Wellness Professionals

This is the bundle meant for anyone in the health and wellness space. It includes all the language from the standard bundle, as well as additional medical disclaimers, and reminders to your prospective customers and clients to consult their doctor or other medical professional before beginning a program with you. It also reminds clients that your programs and services are not meant to be medical advice, and do not replace advice from a physician or other relevant professional. This is extremely important for you in the health and wellness space, as you need to make sure you are clear regarding disclaimers like this, and want to do everything possible to make sure you aren’t liable if someone in your program is injured or harmed medically. Even if you aren’t a health coach – if your program includes anything in the wellness space, this bundle could be the best choice for you.

Beginners’ Bundle for Technology and Web Designers

This bundle is for web designers, virtual assistants, and anyone whose business includes coming into contact with clients’ personal information or credentials. The most common example of this is a web designer, as you will be selling packages to clients, and will likely have access to numerous usernames and passwords while you’re building their site. Additionally, you want to make sure you are covered, should there be some kind of hacking, virus, or computer glitch while you’re working on a client’s website. This bundle includes all language from the standard bundle, plus these additional disclaimers regarding confidential information and limitations of liability for creating websites. There is also language here to help you out with scheduling, and to remind clients you aren’t responsible for maintenance of the site following the end of your relationship with the client.

Deluxe Bundle for Therapists Offering Coaching Services

Lastly, this bundle is for licensed therapists looking to offer coaching services either in addition to, or instead of, individual therapy services. This bundle is specialized, and includes numerous additional disclaimers designed to protect those looking to keep a license in good standing, including reminders to clients that any coaching provided is not a substitute for therapy, that those looking for therapy should look elsewhere, and that the coach has the right to end all work with a client should the coach believe he or she is in need of therapy, rather than coaching. There are some specific regulations and requirements for those offering coaching services while maintaining a therapy or counseling license, and it’s important to make sure your legal documents include this language!

If you’re ready to purchase your bundle now, CLICK HERE! If you have any questions – email us at christy@christywesterfeld.com.

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post Which Bundle is Right for You? appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

Okay so I’ve had a LOT of confusion around this issue lately, so I wanted to take a sec and get this confusion cleared up and get you squared away: Terms of Use, versus Terms and Conditions.

Before you glaze over at the thought of how dry and boring this topic is…WAIT! PAY ATTENTION!

These documents are VERY important to have on your website, and could save you thousands in legal fees and headaches if you have them done correctly…so listen up! J

WEBSITE TERMS & CONDITIONS

This is the document that goes at the bottom of your website, and covers everything related to your website. (Not your group programs, not your 1:1 coaching, just your website). Terms & Conditions act like an agreement between you and everyone who visits your website – so these are not your clients yet…just those who come to your site and check things out.

This is important for a LOT of reasons – however, given the concern lately for content protection, and what to do when someone swipes your website content…i’ll start there. THIS is the document that will help you in the event someone comes along and swipes your latest blog post, only to paste it into their website as their own content (THE NERVE!!!)

So how does this document help in that situation?? THIS is where you protect your content, and advise everyone who comes to your website that the content on the site is YOURS; is your intellectual property, and that it may not be copied, sold, repurposed, stolen, etc. without your express, written consent. IF someone does steal your content without your permission, this document also advises them they understand this is a violation of U.S. Federal law, and that you reserve your right to go after them.

WHY does this help? In short…it puts them on notice, and by having this document in place, your website visitors agree to it just by visiting your site. Because of this, they are essentially agreeing that if they steal your content, it is a violation of federal laws. This makes it easier to send them a nice little email or letter, show them your Terms & Conditions, advise them that they have violated your Terms & Conditions (which they agreed to by coming to your website), and request they take down the infringing work ASAP.

Your Terms & Conditions also define which state laws apply to any disputes related to your website (hint: choose YOUR state), and limit your liability as to the content you post.

SUMMARY: Website Terms & Conditions are like an agreement between YOU and your WEBSITE VISITOR. Not your client, not related to your programs or packages. JUST your website and the content on your website.

TERMS OF USE

This document, (also called Terms of Service or Terms of Purchase) is what you need as soon as you begin selling group programs, or any digital products that can be purchased by a customer directly from your website, without any direct communication or contact with you…. aka a passive product.

THIS document acts as the agreement between YOU and the PURCHASER OF THE PRODUCT. So, this document will include all relevant information about that product only, and is similar to what you’ll have for working with clients privately, in a Client Agreement.

Your Terms of Use will include all product/program information for the specific product or program the client is about to purchase, as well as information on your payment policy (and payment plan!), refund policy, how disputes related to the program are resolved, and that the content in the specific program they are purchasing belongs to you and is your intellectual property that they may not use without your permission. Also, in group programs, this is also where you’d include confidentiality and language similar to a non-disclosure, as each member of the group program will likely learn private information about the other members in the group and the programs they are working to create. (You don’t want to be on the hook if someone in your group program steals another members’ idea!)

SO OFTEN I see coaches and online business owners complete their sales page, and require their new customer to agree to their website Terms & Conditions at checkout. (SO CLOSE!) BUT – as you can probably see now, this doesn’t help you at all! Your new customer needs to agree to the Terms related to the specific product they are purchasing…NOT your general website terms.

SO! To sum it all up:

Your Website Terms & Conditions are for your WEBSITE only, and go at the bottom of your website. Everything in this document relates to your website only; not your programs, packages, or other detailed information about your services.

Your Terms of Use documents (remember – it’s best to complete one for each program you offer) are for THAT group program or digital product, and are placed on the checkout page where your customer completes purchase of that program. This document acts as the contract between you and this customer relating to their purchase of that specific product. Everything in this document is related to that specific program (payment, payment plans, what happens if they don’t pay, program outline, etc.)

Need either document? CLICK HERE to get your Website Terms & Conditions, or CLICK HERE to get your Terms of Use template now!

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post Terms & Conditions vs. Terms of Use – when do I use each document?? appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

If you’re an entrepreneur or business owner of any kind, chances are you work with clients in some capacity, and if you do, one of the main documents you need is your CLIENT AGREEMENT! This is not something you can take lightly, copy from someone else, or think you’ll deal with later, once you have more money to invest in an attorney.

If you think about it – what is the agreement you and your client have? How much is he/she paying you? What are the terms? What if something goes wrong – is there a signed, legal document in place that will ensure you AND your business are protected?

I have seen this problem way too many times – new business owners complete a discovery call with a prospective client, and after the call, feel like they know the client and can trust them. Additionally, they assume their client perfectly understands what is included in the package or program, and don’t consider the possibility that somewhere along the line, something may go wrong! I know we don’t like to think about something going wrong, and I don’t mean to scare you with this thought, but it is something that is hugely important to the well-being of your business, and just good practice overall to have a signed document in place BEFORE you start working with ANY client!

Now, you may be saying “I know that Christy, but I’m covered because my coach told me I could copy her Client Agreement!”

…STOP RIGHT THERE! There are two main issues with this plan:

First: Her Agreement may not cover what you need in YOUR Agreement: As yourself a few questions: what type of coach is your coach? Does her agreement cover everything you need in yours? For example, let’s say she’s a business coach – her agreement will be geared toward this type of business, and will ensure the agreement covers HER business. What if you are a health coach, or specialize in building websites for new entrepreneurs? The issues that will come up, and the items you need in your Agreement would be somewhat different from your coach!

Second: Who Drafted Her Agreement? This is potentially a bigger issue, as it could expose you to legal issues and liability. Who drafted your coach’s agreement? Chances are – it wasn’t her; most likely, it was an attorney she hired to make sure her business was covered. The problem here? Because she didn’t draft the agreement, she doesn’t have the ability to give you permission to use it. And because she doesn’t have this authority, you don’t’ have permission to use it…meaning you are committing copyright infringement each time you use this document!! I won’t go too far into the legal issues here, but take my word for it that this is NOT a good idea. If the drafter of the agreement has registered this contract as copyrighted material, you could automatically be on the hook for a LARGE amount of money, or “damages” owed to the drafter.

Now that we’ve addressed why you can’t use someone else’s agreement…what are the top 5 things YOUR agreement needs?

1. Program Outline

One of the main purposes of having a client agreement in place is to provide transparency and clarity between you and your client as to the scope of the agreement, and what is included in your program or package she or he is purchasing. What does working with you include? Does your client get phone calls? Unlimited email access? Are there modules and workbooks to follow? Does she get access to a membership site that will act as a portal to all the material included in the program? As the coach, this information may all seem obvious to you, since you are the one who came up with the program, and most likely you had some type of discovery or clarity call with this client where this was explained. BUT – you don’t want to risk this, or assume your client is 100% clear on the program just from the phone call. She may have been distracted, or may have written something down incorrectly, leading her to believe your program includes something it doesn’t.

This is where many client relationships go south – misunderstandings about what is/isn’t included in a purchased program. BUT, if everything is perfectly laid out in a client agreement prior to your client issuing payment, she has another opportunity to read and understand everything that is (and isn’t!) included in your program she is planning to purchase. If she has any questions, concerns, or issues, THIS is the time she will bring them up, and you can address them before you start working together.

2. Payment Plan or Schedule

The second most common way client relationships go south? Money. Maybe you agreed to a payment plan with your client, but didn’t clearly map out when payments were to be issued and when, and you didn’t get a credit card number to automatically deduct payment from each month. If there is no clear plan on how your client will pay the agreed upon installments, or if this isn’t clear, there is a good chance something will go wrong. And if you don’t have it clearly stated in writing…you may not be able to do anything to require her to complete payment as planned. This can cause you to lose money in your business, and can add a TON of unnecessary stress and headache.

A great plan here is to include all payment information in your agreement, and attach a separate, detailed Payment Plan or Payment Schedule to the agreement, which specifically maps out when payment is due, how much is to be paid on each date, consequences of paying late or failing to pay, and allowing automatic deduction of the client’s owed payment each month with a credit card on file.

3. Clearly Stated Refund Policy

This is another hot topic – what is your refund policy? Is it okay to tell clients you don’t offer refunds at all? Do you need to offer refunds? The best answer I can give to these questions is that it is totally up to you! If you feel best not offering refunds, you can absolutely state that in your agreement! More often than not, coaches and consultants do not offer refunds, or offer a very limited window of refunds (such as a 30-day money back guarantee) in case a client is not satisfied with the program.

One great strategy here is to include the strictest language in your agreement (e.g. stating you do not offer refunds), knowing you would always have the option to make a one-time exception if a client encountered an emergency or was otherwise unable to complete the program, and you wanted to offer them a refund. However, if you include in your agreement that you offer refunds, you will have a much more difficult time refusing a refund from someone, since it was already stated that you offer them.

4. Dispute Resolution

As you know, one of the wonderful parts about being an online business owner is the ability to reach and work with people all over the world! However, this can create a bit of a snag should there be any sort of claim or controversy with a current or former client, where he or she wishes to take legal action against your company. Although we hate to think of this happening, in the unlikely event it does, where would the claim be filed?

Let’s say your client lives in Spain, and you are in California. Naturally, your client would file the claim in Spain, as it’s convenient for her, and she knows the local laws. Although you are likely a California business, if your website is viewable in Spain and you had the requisite “minimum contacts” required by law, there’s a very real possibility you would be required to go to Spain to defend yourself in that claim. (Not to mention hire local counsel, learn the laws, possibly learn the language, etc.) …sounds like a huge financial strain and stressor, no? Who wants that??

So how do we prevent it? The Dispute Resolution Paragraph. This is the portion of your contract where it states that the contract operates under the laws of your state/country, and any and all disputes are to be resolved via a local court (or arbitration) in your state/country. Your client agrees to this when they sign your agreement, and as such, are bound to it should a dispute occur.

5. Intellectual Property Protection

Last but certainly not least, another important piece of the client agreement is the ability to protect the content you provide to your client, once you start working together. Depending on what kind of work you do and what people hire you for, this could be informational worksheets, handouts, modules, verbal instruction you’ve given them on certain processes, marketing structures or processes, etc. Anything protectable under intellectual property laws should be addressed here. The important piece of this paragraph is to let your clients know (in the legal world “put them on notice”) that everything you share with them is your content, and not available for them to redistribute, sell, or share without your written permission. This could come up as an innocent mistake – say your client learns something incredible from you that creates success in her business! She likely would want to share that information with her clients, members of her Facebook community, etc. because she is excited, and wants to help others. Even though it’s coming from an innocent place, however, we need her to know she is not able to take your work (that she became privy to by paying you!) and share it with others who have not enrolled in your program.

Overall, the client agreement is an extremely important legal document to have in place as soon as you start taking on clients. And as we talked about – not one you have drafted yourself, stolen from someone else, or tried to piece together using bits of other agreements that may or may not be related to the kind of work you do. This is your business! Your livelihood! And it’s absolutely important and necessary to invest in protecting how you work with your clients.

Need a client agreement? I’ve got you covered HERE.

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post 5 Things Your Client Agreement Should Include appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

Many coaches, influencers, and online entrepreneurs take their businesses from behind the laptop to the beaches, hosting amazing retreats, mastermind events, and similar affairs. This is a beautiful way to connect on a deeper, personal level with your clients, business partners, other coaches and influencers, and your audience! Plus, it doesn’t hurt to be on the beach in Mexico, or in a beautiful hotel ballroom in Paris, right? Definitely not. But before you start packing your bags and selling tickets to your high-end event, it’s important to get the proper legal documents in place, to avoid and mitigate the additional liabilities that arise once you start encouraging others to travel, especially to other countries.

The Waiver

Before you or anyone else sets foot on the ground at your retreat, you’ll need a rock-solid Liability Waiver, signed by all guests and attendees of your event.

So…Why is this important?

Need to Confirm Voluntary Attendance:

It’s important for your guests to agree they are choosing to attend your event voluntarily, do not hold you responsible for their trip, travel, safety, and belongings they bring, and release you and your company of any liability, should something negative happen to them on their trip.

Right to use Likeness and Image:

If you’re planning to host a live event, retreat, or mastermind – chances are you want to photograph and film the heck out of it, right?? Photos of amazing women masterminding together, footage of women connecting and enjoying themselves in a gorgeous location – you may even hire someone just to take pictures and film clips from the event! This footage and these photographs will not only be wonderful keepsakes for your clients and attendees, but will also serve as invaluable content for your future sales pages promoting the event, and your services in general.

So what’s the problem??

Before we can take photographs and video footage, we need to be sure we have permission from everyone at the event to use their image! Now, you’re probably saying…what?! Why wouldn’t my guests want to be photographed at this gorgeous retreat, masterminding or relaxing with some amazing fellow entrepreneurs?? I’m sure most or all of your guests would love to have these memories captured, so they can include them on their website, or just have photographs to remember this amazing trip! Because of this, getting each attendee to sign a waiver confirming they understand they are going to be photographed at this event, and that you have the right to use their name, likeness, and image however you wish, will likely be an easy task. Good!

But just because we assume everyone is on board, doesn’t mean we can skip this step! Make sure you’ve got a complete and thorough waiver at EACH event, carefully detailing how your guests will be photographed or filmed, and confirming you have the rights to use these images and clips however you see fit.

Many times, guests may assume they are going to be photographed, and wouldn’t have any problem being featured on your website in retreat photos…but what if they don’t like the way they look in the photo? (How many times have you had to delete a photo because one of your friends insists they look terrible? It happens.) What if someone assumes you will be using the photo, but doesn’t predict that it will be used in your Facebook Ad the following quarter, advertising next year’s retreat?

It’s not that we are trying to trick anyone, or trying to publicize a photo that emphasizes someone’s double chin. It’s that you want to have total control over how you decide to use these photos, and don’t want to deal with obtaining individual permission from each person in each photo after the event has ended, just to use the photos…much less deal with someone NOT giving you permission to use a photo, creating an awkward situation, and preventing you from effectively marketing your event for the following year!

Bottom line: anytime you are hosting any kind of event – whether in your home town or across the world – make sure you have all guests sign a waiver or release BEFORE the event begins.

How do they sign??

Ideally, include this release with the client agreement, if clients are signing an additional agreement to attend the event, or if it’s included in a larger coaching package. If not, you can have all guests agree to this waiver in the same way they agree to your Terms of Use, on the checkout page of your website, before they purchase their ticket to the event. It’s important attendees agree to and sign the Waiver AT or BEFORE the time of payment.

Need a waiver? Contact me at christy@christywesterfeld to get more information or to have your document created! And don’t forget to share this post!

ps – this is not attorney advice, nor is an attorney-client relationship formed by you reading this blog. This is just legal information designed to help you!

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post Hosting a Retreat or Event? Don’t Forget this Legal Protection! appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

FIRST, LET’S RUN THROUGH LOCAL COPYRIGHT LAWS.

In the United States, copyright laws protect original works that are fixed in a tangible medium, which basically just means you have written them down, drawn them, or somehow gotten your ideas from your head onto paper in some way. In the online business world, this is typically your content – blog posts, graphic designs, ebooks, course modules, etc. You can register the work(s) with the U.S. Copyright Office, but you don’t have to in order to maintain your copyright in the work. (However, you DO need proof that you’ve registered your copyright if you want to file a claim of infringement against someone else in federal court.)

SO HOW DO WE PROTECT THESE WORKS IN OTHER COUNTRIES?

Well, asserting your rights with U.S. Copyright Laws will not work, as other counties do not use these laws. Registering your work or claiming ownership of your copyright here in the U.S., under U.S. copyright laws, won’t provide you with protection in another country that does not use or follow U.S. laws. Whether or not you can seek protection of your work depends on the laws of the other country where you seek protection.

HUH? SO WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR MY WORK??

Well, it means if someone is using your content without your permission (aka “infringing” on your copyright) in another country, this infringement can’t be addressed under U.S. Copyright laws, because U.S. copyright laws don’t operate outside of the United States. HOWEVER, all is not lost!! Even though the specific laws don’t extend beyond U.S. borders, there are international treaties and conventions that have been designed to address exactly this!

THE BERNE CONVENTION

One of these conventions is called The Berne Convention. This Convention represents an international “agreement” regarding copyright protection, and many countries – including the United States! – have become a party. This Convention basically means that all countries who have joined agree to a few specific rules regarding international copyrights, and how to treat those from other countries when they want to assert their copyright protections abroad. These rules boil down to the following: countries who are parties to this Convention have agreed to provide foreign authors the same protections as authors who are citizens of their country, without requiring them to abide by the “formalities” (aka rules) of that country regarding copyright protection. So for example, if someone from another country wanted to assert their copyright ownership in the U.S., they would NOT have to follow the rule that they first must register the work with the U.S. Copyright office in order to file a claim. This rule would also apply to you, if you wanted to assert your rights in another country – you would not need to follow or comply with their specific rules regarding copyright protection in order to receive the protection in that country.

SO HOW DOES THIS WORK IN THE REAL WORLD??

Okay, so we now know that those countries which are parties to the Berne Convention have agreed to essentially allow authors who are not citizens of their county to receive the same copyright protection as citizens, without requiring them to follow the same rules as their citizens. SO – the result is that you, a U.S. author, would automatically be entitled to the same protections as those in a member country, without having to comply with their specific rules surrounding copyright protection.

THE CATCH

So far, this is sounding pretty good right? You can assert your right in a copyright in these countries without having to worry about following their rules! Piece of cake! BUT…there’s a catch. Let’s say you find someone in another country IS copying your work, and you want to file a claim against them. You can, but you will need to bring the claim in THAT country, which will then be handled under the laws of THAT country…not the U.S. Copyright laws we are all comfortable with. So, you’d need to be familiar with the copyright laws of that country, and possible hire or work closely with a local attorney to be sure you knew what you were doing. Added difficulty points if you’ve landed in a country that does not speak English – now you need to know those laws AND the language well enough to submit the right documentation in their language.

THE RESULT

So, while you as a copyright owner do have protection of your work abroad, actually enforcing this requires bringing a lawsuit in that country, under those laws, using their language. This hurdle may make you realize it’s not worth it to make someone else take down an infringing blog post. However, if it’s a complete copy of a book you’ve written that is currently making you a great deal of money, or if the infringement is greatly hurting your sales – it could be worth the investment to look into filing a lawsuit.

STEPS TO TAKE NOW, TO PROTECT YOURSELF HERE

Place your notice of copyright on any original work you draft that you assert copyright over. This means placing the phrase “© Copyright [YOUR NAME] [YEAR PUBLISHED]. All Rights Reserved” on your work, putting everyone else who sees this post on notice that you claim a copyright in the work.

Like this post? Share it!

Ps: although I am an attorney, this does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship, and is just legal information.

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post Can I Protect my Copyright Internationally? appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.

If you’re reading this, chances are you are either thinking about – or have already started – an online business, and have some sort of website in the works. WOOHOO! Whether you’ve made the leap from your corporate job, or are working on your “side hustle” while still in your 9 to 5, jumping in to entrepreneurship as a new business owner is incredibly exciting!! Whether you invest in a web designer or take on the project of setting your website up yourself, BEFORE it goes live, there are a few legal documents you’ll need to have in place, to make sure your website is legally compliant!

One of the most important documents that NEEDS to be in place BEFORE your website goes live is a Privacy Policy. In the United States, we are dealing with the California Online Privacy Protection Act (CalOPPA) which protects those living in California who visit a commercial website or online service.

This regulation requires that the operator of the website (aka YOU) post a Privacy Policy outlining a number of things, including what information is being collected, how the information may be changed, how you will respond to “do not track” requests, whether third parties may have access to the information collected, and similar requirements. (Even if you don’t live in California…if your website can be SEEN by those who do = you’re on the hook for this.)

So…what happens if your website is viewable in California and you DON’T have a complete Privacy Policy?

You could be found in violation of the “unfair competition” provision (I’ll spare you the entire legal explanation), and could be liable for a penalty of up to $2,500 for EACH violation. EACH violation = each time someone visited your website without a sufficient privacy policy, which would add up VERY quickly. For example, if just 40 people visit your website before it had a Privacy Policy, you could be looking at up to $100,000 in fines. And what if thousands visited your Privacy Policy-less website???

Let’s not even go there, girl.

Not only do you need to be sure a Privacy Policy is in place, but it must be complete, and cover each element required by the law, depending upon what personal information you collect from your website, how it’s stored, etc. In the past, Google was fined six figures for having an incomplete or vague Privacy Policy. So not only do you need something in place, but it must be complete!

So why am I yelling at your over a bunch of boring legal laws?

Because I care about the success of your business, and don’t want to see you on the hook for a huge fine that was totally avoidable with a $100 Privacy Policy link onto your website!

Getting these legal documents squared away in the beginning of your business venture is SO crucial to your success later on!

The last thing you want is to realize down the road that a corner you cut in the beginning could affect your current success, or left your business exposed!

To sum all the legal jargon into one sentence: If your website can be seen by those in California and you do NOT have a privacy policy in place that meets the requirements of CalOPPA, you are leaving your bright, shiny new business exposed to possible catastrophic fines.

Get yourself a Privacy Policy ASAP, get it on your site, and never worry about it again, knowing you are protected and legally compliant.

If you need JUST a Privacy Policy, I am at your service HERE!

If you don’t currently have any legal documentation on your website (including Privacy Policy, Disclaimer, and Terms & Conditions) I would recommend saving a few bucks and going for the Website Template Bundle HERE!

Don’t forget, these packages come with step-by-step instructions for how to complete, and why each paragraph is important within each document, so you are covered, AND you understand why. Additionally, each purchase comes with unlimited email access to yours truly, so you can ask any questions or clarify anything you need!

xoxo

Christy

ps: Although I am an attorney, this is not legal advice – just information!

Grab my FREE Legal Checklist to see if Your Business is Legally Compliant!

The post My Website Doesn’t Have a Privacy Policy Yet…What’s the Big Deal? appeared first on Christy Westerfeld.