Welcome to website privacy policy roundup of your dreams.
Oh, you've never had that dream? Okay, I'll add it to my “weird sh*t website girl dreams” list and move on. I get it – there’s 193267 (rough estimate) things to think about when you’re starting or running a business, and sometimes this just doesn’t make the top of the list. (But since getting sued is presumably *also* not on your list, here's where to get policies to cover your website)
Please note: I am not an attorney and this is not legal advice. This is just me sharing about a tool I recommend to clients to help cover their website’s legal bases now and in the future stress-free. Also: This post contains affiliate links.
Why Your Site Needs a Privacy Policy
If you have a contact form on your website (which I hope you do), you're collecting personal information! Websites with contact forms help website owners generate leads by collecting people’s names and email addresses. When a form gets submitted, you receive that person’s contact details via an email sent to your email inbox.
So, you’re not only collecting names and email addresses, but you’re sharing that data with your email service provider and any other third-party services you may be using to collect leads (like Dubsado, Healthie, etc). You may also use tools that collect information like user’s IP addresses for security and analytics purposes (Meta Pixel, cookies, Google Ads, the list goes on).
Websites collecting personal information should have a privacy policy
Personal information (names, emails, IP addresses, etc.) is regulated under multiple privacy laws. And because your website could be collecting this information from website visitors located anywhere, you may be required by multiple privacy laws to provide a website Privacy Policy that makes specific disclosures required under each law.
There’s nothing wrong about collecting personal information, rather it’s a great thing that helps a business grow. It’s just that these days, you need to make the respective disclosures in your Privacy Policy!
Which Privacy Policies You Need
There are four policies I recommend you have on your website (again, this isn't legal advice – consult a lawyer for personalized insight):
- Privacy Policy (REQUIRED)
- Terms of Service/Terms & Conditions
- Cookie Policy
- Disclaimer
Privacy Policy
Websites are required by law to have a privacy policy. A Privacy Policy is “a statement published on a website or application that explains how your website(s) collects, uses, and discloses personally identifiable information, as well as your privacy practices” (from Termageddon).
Common website features that need to be included in your policy (if you have them):
- A contact form that collects information
- Analytics software (I will help you set up Google Analytics as part of our project. To opt out, just let me know you don't want/need this step!)
- Mailing list signup
Terms of Service/Terms and Conditions
The T&C details the rules of using your website. From Termageddon: “A Terms and Conditions is often not required, rather its intentions are to help limit the liability of the website owner. If a website owner is taking eCommerce payments through the website, however, a Terms and Conditions is indeed required to explain the rules to transactions being made online and to comply with consumer protection laws.”
Cookie Policy & Cookie Pop-Up
Cookies are small pieces of data that are used to identify someone's computer when they use your website. In order to track your website's performance over time, I recommend connecting to Google Analytics which does use cookies, meaning you'll need a cookie policy & pop-up to allow people to opt-in.
Disclaimer
“A Disclaimer is a statement that limits the liabilities that a website owner may be responsible for due to the website.” (From Termageddon)
A disclaimer is highly recommended if you:
- Are a healthcare provider
- Use affiliate programs to generate income
Where to Get Website Policies
There are multiple ways to generate the appropriate policies for your website, including: consulting a lawyer, purchasing a template, or subscribing to an embedded policy creation service.
Option 1: Policy Generation Tool
Termageddon charges $119/year for a full set of policies to help website owners comply with laws and limit their liability (aka, help you avoid potential website related fines and lawsuits). This includes a Privacy Policy, Terms, Disclaimer and more!
The tool generates your policies based on a questionnaire that helps determine what laws apply, provides the exact disclosures you’re required to make and then notifies you and can even push updates automatically to your policy pages when the laws change!
Option #2: Contract Template Shops
Contract template shops are run by lawyers and provide an editable policy document for you to add your information. From there, you'll simply copy/paste the policy onto a page of your website for visitors to read.
My absolute FAVORITE contract template shop is from The Boutique Lawyer! Her Blog Protection Bundle has everything you need to secure your website/blog content (including disclaimers about affiliate links). Use code HELLOCOCREATIVE for 10% off your purchase – you're welcome!
