Why A "Material Connection" Puts Your Business On The Hook!

If your business actually compensates endorsers or product reviewers with cash, gift certificates, coupons, free products, etc. in exchange for their endorsements or positive reviews, this must be disclosed!
The FTC is the watchdog over businesses engaged in interstate commerce including online businesses. The revised FTC guidelines state that if a connection exists between the maker/provider of some good or service and another person that provides a positive review or endorsement about such good or service that would materially affect the endorser's credibility in the eyes of the reasonable consumer (i.e. a "material connection"), this connection must be disclosed. This applies if the endorser is either not known to the general public or is not held out to be an "expert". The bottom line is that where it isn't obvious or reasonably understood by the average consumer that an endorser has or will receive consideration for the endorsement or positive review, potential customers need to know about this. The FTC wants your potential customers aware of the fact the endorsements and/or positive reviews may be influenced by what they have or will receive in return, and potentially biased.
Essentially, a "sponsored endorser" is any employee, affiliate, sales rep, paid marketer, etc., that makes an endorsement or positive review about any of your business's products or services.
There are some situations when a material connection is not so obvious. For instance, providing a commercial link exchange in return for an endorsement or providing free products to any endorser, in certain situations, may be considered as establishing a material connection. What it really boils down to is whether a reasonable person would view whatever is provided in exchange for an endorsement or testimonial as something that could potentially bias the endorser's opinion. So, consumers who simply purchase a product and then praise it on your website without receiving anything in return does not establish a material connection.
When in doubt, your business should disclose the nature of what it has provided to an endorser if there is any perceived value or benefit to that endorser. This would include any customer endorsements where you have provided free merchandise or services, gift certificates, cash, coupons, rebates or discounts, link exchanges, etc. in exchange for the endorsement.
Direct Sellers-What to disclose & Where?
Nothing in the FTC guidelines requires the disclosure to state specific material connection details, just that "the connection be fully disclosed." The word "fully" should not be taken lightly, however. This does not mean simply using vague words such as "sponsored endorsement." However, using the words "the endorser has been compensated for this endorsement" is sufficient. There is no required disclosure language you must use. There is no one size fits all type of disclosure. So long as the reader understands when reading the endorsement that a material connection exists, the disclosure will be effective.
You could and should attempt to try a natural type approach. For instance, if an endorser says your product is great and you gave a free copy to him/her, you could say something like "here is what this customer had to say after we provided him with a free copy." This is a natural, smooth way to effectively inform the customer that the endorser received a free product.
The most effective placement of your disclosures is beneath or very near the actual endorsement. Audio endorsements should contain audio disclosures before or during the endorsement in the same cadence and volume as the endorsement. Video endorsements disclosures should be shown before or during the video. Using asterisks to indicate a disclosure, which is hidden, in very small font or nowhere near the endorsement is not likely going to notify the customer that a connection exists between the seller and endorser.
I also suggest using a general material connection disclosure if you regularly provide gifts or other consideration to any of your endorsers/product reviewers. Include it in your website terms of use and on a separate endorsement page. However, you should not use a general endorsement disclaimer as a replacement for specific material connection disclosures that should be placed near the actual endorsement.
You're business is liable for Deceptive Claims By Any Sponsored Endorsers!
If your Internet business relies on affiliates, marketers or third-party blogs or other Internet forums to review and endorse/promote your products or services, you can incur liability for their deceptive advertising practices. The practice of providing reviews has become almost standard, both with direct-sale retail product sites and indirect referral sites. The revised guidelines make it clear that both the sponsor (seller) and any sponsored endorser (including any affiliates, bloggers, distributors, paid posters, resellers, podcasters, video producers, etc.) will each be liable for any deceptive endorsements or general claims made promoting your product or service.
Your Internet business and any sponsored endorser will both be liable for: false, misleading, deceptive, or unsubstantiated statements made by the endorser, including failing to disclose the material connection between the endorser and your business.
What the FTC does make clear is that by using this kind of third-party marketing, "the advertiser has assumed the risk that an endorser may fail to disclose a material connection or misrepresent a product, and the potential liability that accompanies that risk." The fact you may have no control over the endorsement or third-party advertisement in irrelevant. So, basically you should train and inform your bloggers, affiliates and other endorsers about the FTC rules and should monitor all endorsement content too! The FTC wants to see that you have reasonable training and monitoring programs in order to not be held liable for rogue affiliates. At a minimum, you need to have a program in place to monitor what your affiliates are stating about your products and take action against anyone violating FTC laws.
Legal Guidelines for Sponsored Endorsements:
If any endorsement or positive review is considered to be "sponsored," then both the sponsored endorser(s) and direct sellers should comply with the following guidelines:

• Endorsers cannot make any untrue, inaccurate or misleading claims or representations about your product or its results of use. An endorsement cannot claim something that the seller cannot claim directly. If making any direct claim would be misleading, you cannot use an endorsement to accomplish conveying the same advertising message. This is just as misleading. This also means any claim an endorser makes that you use should be verified by you somehow (I would make them represent and warrant the claims made are true);


• All endorsements must reflect the honest beliefs, opinions and experiences of the endorser. This means you cannot induce people to write positive reviews (by offering discounts or free gifts, etc.) if they have never purchased your products or services. But, you can invite them to post reviews after they have actually used your products or services;


• You can only run an advertisement claiming an endorser uses your product during the time the endorser actually continues to use the product;


• The endorser must continue to have the same opinion made in the endorsement for the duration you publish the endorsement. This means you cannot use the endorsement any longer if the endorser has changed his mind since the endorsement or experienced different results. If your endorser experienced "explosive" growth in sales right away after using your system, but then actually experienced steady losses immediately after that, the endorsement is no longer representative of the endorsers opinion;


• Any claims or representations made by an endorser as "generally expected results" that will be achieved must be substantiated;


• You must conspicuously disclose what the generally expected results actually are if the results contained in any endorsement are not typical or average (discussed below in Section II);


• If any product endorsement is not by an actual customer, you must conspicuously disclose in the advertisement that the persons identified are not actual customers;


• Expert endorsements must actually be made by experts who are qualified in the relevant area or field in order to give the representation that he or she is an "expert." This honestly should be common sense. If you sell auto parts, your out-of-work cousin who used to work at a car assembly factory is not a qualified expert;


• If you use an endorsement by an organization, it must accurately reflect the collective judgment of the organization. If this endorsement is presented as an expert opinion directly or indirectly by the organization, it must be based on the opinions of an expert recognized by the organization giving the endorsement, or by standards used by the organization itself for evaluating products and services the subject of the endorsement;

Recommended Action Steps For Direct Sellers:
I suggest you implement the following policies if you plan on using employees, or any bloggers or affiliates to endorse any of your products:
-Provide Guidance & Training: The FTC has stated that it will "consider the advertiser's efforts to advise these endorsers of their responsibilities and to monitor their online behavior in determining what action, if any, would be warranted." This means that you should provide guidance and training to your employees, bloggers and your affiliates about making statements that are "truthful and substantiated." In other words, they need to know how to avoid deceptive claims and endorsements. They need to understand they are under an obligation not to make any misleading, false or unsubstantiated statements and they must disclose the material connection with your business. I would make each affiliate, marketer, employee, etc. signify that he/she has read the revised "FTC Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising" and pledge to comply with these requirements at all times.
-Take Immediate Action: You should also take immediate action to stop any deceptive or misleading endorsements by one of your product endorsers.
-Monitor Endorsements: Being proactive means you should monitor third-party endorsements. If you have a material connection, such as by providing a product in exchange for a review, you should monitor all statements about the product and promptly take corrective action if necessary. The FTC has stated that it will likely not bring an enforcement action against a business for the
actions of a rogue employee when the business has taken steps to advise their
employees of following FTC laws. There is no required frequency in which you are required to monitor your endorsements. Just be sure to do so frequently enough so that your monitoring efforts are viewed as reasonable by the FTC.
-Have a Written Endorsement Policy: Your Internet business should develop a written policy containing rules and procedures for your employees, bloggers, affiliates, etc. You should have your bloggers and all other third-party endorsers enter into a written agreement reiterating these policies consistent with the revised FTC guidelines. (i.e. stick it in the affiliate/promotion agreement). I would also ensure you place a right to remove or demand removal of any endorsements should they violate these policies. Again, the FTC strongly considers the fact your business has such a policy in place and that you proactively follow it.

This article was written by Philip A. Nicolosi, J.D. Mr. Nicolosi provides legal services through his law firm, Phil Nicolosi Law, P.C., focusing on startup and small business law, Internet & technology law and commercial transactions.
Mr. Nicolosi serves as a trusted advisor to numerous startups and small to medium sized businesses. This includes representation for a wide range of business law matters including business organization, corporate/LLC governance, regulatory law, contracts and transactions and most other matters outside of litigation. Mr. Nicolosi provides guidance with e-commerce, Internet marketing and technology-related legal matters. He also assists startup technology companies with seed financing, venture capital and exit transactions.

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How to Charge Clients for Online Work

Online jobs can be tricky when it comes to payment. There are many people out there that will fool you by asking you to do a project, but then disappear. Getting payment from those people can be nearly impossible, and then you end up wasting your time. Don't become discouraged though. You can tackle the payment problem with online work by doing one of the following.
Ask for a Deposit
You can ensure you're paid at least some money for a project if you ask for a deposit. This deposit can be 25%, 50% or any amount you feel is fair. The terms should be that you will start the project when you get the deposit. You can then send part of the project to the client for approval. If it's approved, you can then complete it.
Require Upfront Payment
There are many online jobs without investment. Usually, these come with an upfront payment. This should cover any costs that you may need to make. For some projects, you don't need to invest any money, but you may still want the upfront payment to ensure you get paid. This is a good idea if you're working with a client who has been slow to pay or hasn't paid you in the past.
Use an Escrow Account
Freelance websites that cater to online jobs for college students and others have escrow features. Clients can submit payment, but the worker does not receive it until the project is approved. This shows the worker that payment has been made, and it protects the client from having a writer receive payment for not doing the work satisfactorily.
Put It in Writing
Without a contract, you will have a difficult time taking a client to court if he doesn't pay you. If you have something that says that if you complete the work requested, you will be paid a certain amount of money, you can use it in court. Make sure to be as detailed as possible, and have the client sign it before you start working.
Always Follow Your Gut Instinct
As you begin working more in the online world, you'll start to get a gut feeling if someone is not going to pay you. Pay attention to what your instincts are telling you, and then use one of these ways to protect yourself or move on to another client. The point of working online is to make money, not to work for free.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8573267

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Does Your Business Understand COPPA Compliance Laws?

If your business operates a website that intends to or does target children as an audience, it must understand COPPA compliance! Any website that is directed toward children under the age of 13 or knowingly collects any information from children under 13 will need to comply with The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The Act requires that all such websites obtain verifiable parental consent before collecting, using, or disclosing personal information from children.
COPPA Compliance Is Required If Your Website:

• Contains content directed towards children (or partially directed to children). Even if your business's website is not directed towards children, if the content contains items that normally would appeal to children, such as cartoons or animations, you should maintain COPPA compliance to be safe;
• Contains ads directed towards children;
• Collects any type of information from children.

If any of the above circumstances apply, the required COPPA disclosures must appear on your website as well. (A checklist of these requirements can be found at coppa.org and you need to make sure you incorporate each required disclosure.)
Any webpage that has content targeted towards or that attracts children should contain a link to your business's website information collection and privacy policy. All links must be "clear and conspicuous" as such term is used under the FTC guidelines. Your business should be sure to follow those guidelines in your placement of all links and disclaimers on the website at all times. (As a helpful suggestion, use a larger size font or different color type on a contrasting background to display the link).
In order to determine whether a website is directed towards children, the FTC considers several factors, including the subject matter; visual or audio content; the age of models on the site; language; whether advertising on the website is directed to children; information regarding the age of the actual or intended audience; and whether a website uses animated characters or other child-oriented features.
If your business's website must be in COPPA compliance, the privacy policy must contain the following items:

• the name and address of all the operators of the site;
• the kinds of information being collected and how it is being collected;
• how the operator intends to use the information;
• whether the operator provides this information to third parties and information about those third parties and how they intend to use the information;
• a notice to parents that they have the right to allow the collection of the information by the operator but not by third parties; and a statement that the parent can review the child's information and ask to have it deleted.

There are other provisions that must be included in the notice as well, including providing a written procedure for a notice sent directly to the parents and for the parents to actively consent, in writing, to the collection of this information prior to the information being collected. The site operator must notify a parent in the form of an email, postal mail, fax and in other similar ways set forth in the regulations and the operator must then obtain "verifiable parental consent" to the entire process.
During an interim period, there are specific regulations about how this consent is to be obtained based upon how the information is going to be used by your website. If the information will be made widely available to the public or third-party providers, the more restrictive the requirements are under COPPA. In the event the site changes how the information is collected, used or disclosed, a new, verifiable parental consent must be obtained and, of course, the written policy must be changed on your site. If you disseminate collected information to third parties, you must have a procedure for such third parties to delete any information requested to be deleted by a parent or legal guardian.
Note: Your business will have to employ a methodology of determining the age of a child under 13 prior to completion of the registration process. It is highly recommended that the methodology does not invite falsification. For example, the question "Are you 13 years of age or older?" may invite falsification, but the statement "Please enter your date of birth" would not invite falsification. If the procedure determines that a user is under 13, it should prohibit completion of the registration process and the collection of any information from the child, and it should direct the user to the privacy policy and its parental consent form.
TIP! If none of the COPPA laws apply and if your business does not market to children or collect information from children under the age of 13, you should restrict use of the website to persons at least 13 years of age or older. Depending upon your business's customer base, you really should consider restricting use or access to anyone under the age of 18. Any restriction should be placed in the website user agreement (terms of use) and restated in the privacy policy. Also, make sure each of your affiliates and marketers agrees to comply with COPPA laws at all times during the promotion of any of your products. This should be clearly stated in any affiliate or marketing agreement you enter into.
Interactive Service Providers Note
In terms of your business's website, if your business is an interactive computer service provider under the Communications Decency Act (47 U.S.C. Section 230 (d)), it must, "at the time of entering an agreement with a customer for the provision of interactive computer service and in a manner deemed appropriate by the provider, notify such customer that parental control protections (such as computer hardware, software, or filtering services) are commercially available that may assist the customer in limiting access to material that is harmful to minors."
The term "interactive computer service" means any information service, system, or access software provider that provides or enables computer access by multiple users to a computer server, including specifically a service or system that provides access to the Internet and such systems operated or services offered by libraries or educational institutions. Most courts have held that through these provisions, Congress granted interactive services of all types, including blogs, forums, and listservs, immunity from tort liability so long as the information is provided by a third-party.
There have been some recent changes made to COPPA laws last year. Your business will want to review those changes to determine if COPPA laws apply to your business's information collection practices.

This article was written by Philip A. Nicolosi, J.D. Mr. Nicolosi provides legal services through his law firm, Phil Nicolosi Law, P.C., focusing on startup and small business law, Internet & technology law and commercial transactions.
Mr. Nicolosi serves as a trusted advisor to numerous startups and small to medium sized businesses. This includes representation for a wide range of business law matters including business organization, corporate/LLC governance, regulatory law, contracts and transactions and most other matters outside of litigation. Mr. Nicolosi provides guidance with e-commerce, Internet marketing and technology-related legal matters. He also assists startup technology companies with seed financing, venture capital and exit transactions.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8573282

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How To Overcome The Challenges Facing Online Businesses

Aspiring online business owners quickly get frustrated at the lack of results that they get from their efforts. But it's not impossible to succeed if you know what to do. Read on to learn more.
Here are the 3 major challenges:

• Technology
• Traffic
• Engaging Content

I sure there are people that can think of others. But in my experience, these are the ones that matter the most.
Technology
Suppose you wanted to create a website, but you don't have the money to hire expensive web designers and coders. You will likely come to the conclusion that you need to do it yourself. Before there was a concept known as Content Management Systems came about, you would need to learn the main language of the web called Hypertext Markup Language or HTML.
In and of itself, HTML is not difficult to learn. But the bigger challenge came from trying to get the HTML coded in such a way as to look great. Most budding web designers had a terrible go of it. The realization often set in that web designers were needed after all.
But then the concept of a Content Management System (CMS) entered the arena and was a complete game changer. This concept allowed business owners to focus on creating content while allowing the CMS to handle all of the design and functional aspects of the website.
There are many software packages (most of them free) that can address this CMS concept, but the biggest one by a long shot, is WordPress. Essentially what WordPress provides "plug and play" components that allow just about anyone to create a website in a very short period of time.
There is a small learning curve associated with WordPress but you can rest assured that it is very small. With the proper training, you can be ready to go in about one day. This truly solves the technology issues that are associated with online business.
Traffic
Getting people to your website can be a very daunting task, especially the ever growing competition associated with running an online business. But this issue is not impossible to manage. It just takes a bit more finesse these days.
The best advice I can offer with respect to this is to stay away from all the pitches that promise instant traffic or other such nonsense. These only serve to get you in trouble with search engines (and sometimes even the law). These kinds of products and tactics used to work pretty well. But the search engines (especially Google) have gotten wise to these techniques. If you choose to employ these methods be aware that you will probably get your website banned.
The tricky part of all this is that the techniques may actually work for a little while. And that is why they still exist on the market. If you try some of the techniques you may find your website's traffic increasing. But it really only is a matter of time before the Google bots discover what you are up to and then it's game over.
Engaging Content
What do you like to read when you browse the web? And what happens when you come across a blog that just doesn't cut it? If you can imagine both scenarios then you have what you need to provide engaging content. Every blog post or web page that you create should be done with your ideal reader in mind. If it doesn't pass your own criteria for quality, it shouldn't be posted.
Never post something just for the sake of having more content. Post something great, each and every time. Ask yourself what is different about your post or is it just something that was rehashed from some other blog? It's okay to expand upon someone else's post. But make sure you add your unique spin.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8574845

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The Problem With Internet Reviews

We are living in the era of opinions. Thanks to the internet, everyone's voice can be heard - at least for a few seconds between two hyped out infotainment stories and tired top ten lists littered with annoying pictures. Not to mention the constant cacophony of social media: but that's democracy, right? Unfortunately (or maybe luckily), nobody thinks "It's on the internet so it must be true!" any more.
Perhaps nothing has made us more cynical than the persistent barrage of fake internet reviews, be it in the form of forum posts, blog comments, or obviously slanted review sites. Even social media "influencers" are now being looked up with suspicion, after learning about a tremendous amount of money celebrities are paid by the companies just for casually mentioning their products.
You may think that the problem with internet reviews is that you have no idea about the qualifications of the reviewer, or his knowledge about the product he is reviewing, and you would be right. After all, there are some people who just cannot be pleased, no matter what you do! And the person leaving an anonymous review may, or may not be the expert in the subject he is reviewing.
You may think that the problem with internet reviews is that only negative reviews are ever written, because a customer who is content with a service or product he has purchased is less likely to express his satisfaction publicly - and you would be right. Internet reviews are statistically slanted to present more negative than positive opinions.
Then again, can you ever trust a positive review on the internet? The person leaving a positive review may indeed be a happy customer... or someone paid for singing his praises!
It's no secret that businesses are paying for reviews: either positive reviews for their business, or negative reviews for their competitors. There are sites where, for just a few bucks, one can buy fake reviews. Fake reviews are - quite literally - everywhere on the internet! At the moment, the algorithms are helpless in ferreting out fake reviews. Can you spot them?
The telltale sign of a fake review is using superlatives in excess, while at the same time not being too descriptive of the service, product or place it is attempting to review - simply because the reviewer does not have an authentic experience he can write about. He will use a lot of generalities, going off on a tangent, doing all he can to appear more credible than he really is. When it comes to trusting online reviews, the old adage of being too good to be true applies.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8579423

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What Should Your Website Privacy Policy Say?

Think of your privacy policy as a disclosure statement for your website visitors. In order not to be misleading or deceptive, you need to disclose each specific practice or policy regarding the collection, use and dissemination or disclosure of all personal information. So, you need to know how and what information your website will collect.
In the most basic sense, you need to understand exactly how your business collects data, how it uses that information and how it shares or distributes it so your privacy policy can be accurate and not misleading. If you don't understand how your business discloses or uses information, you obviously won't inform your website visitors. This, in turn, could be considered deceptive. Unfortunately, most websites copy privacy policies they find on other sites. Copying another privacy policy may describe the practices of some other website, but may not describe your policies. This may be deceptive in of itself since it misleads your visitors.
Website operators should always post a privacy and/or communications policy on their website if the website gathers any type of personal contact or identifying information from website visitors and/or customers. This applies to websites that collect only email addresses. Personal information generally includes contact information such as a visitor's physical address, phone number or email address and identifying information such as first and last names, social security number, etc. If your website conducts sales of goods, you will almost undoubtedly be collecting this type of information.
Additionally, registration with your website and/or the information your website collects to process a transaction or interact with some feature will result in collecting personal information. Collecting passive use information about how website visitors use and interact with a website should also be disclosed, especially if this information is then bundled with personally identifying information.
Simply because you do not plan on disseminating this information to third parties does NOT mean you should ignore having a privacy policy on your website.
Many websites use California's Online Privacy Protection Act ("OPPA") requirements as guidelines in drafting their privacy policies. You should use these basic requirements as the framework for your website's privacy policy since they are well defined. Disclosing exactly how and when you collect personal information and when you distribute or disclose it will determine how to fill in the remainder of the policy avoid liability under the FTC Act and any other applicable state law.
When drafting your privacy policy, you should always disclose the following:

• When your website collects information. Your website may collect information upon registration with your website, or when any of your visitors order a product. But, how else will it collect information? Other collection of data may occur through collection of website traffic and aggregate usage data. For instance, the date and time a user visits your site, the (IP) address from which your website was accessed, the webpages visited, duration on each page, the type of browser and operating system used to access your site, etc. Information may also be collected through correspondences such as through emails, faxes or phone calls with your business. Collection of information also occurs through credit card processing or other third party applications accessed through your website;


• The information your website actually collects. What personal information will your website collect? You should use OPPA as your guide in defining and determining this information;


• How your business will use the personal information. You need to disclose exactly how your business intends to use any data or information it collects. Don't leave anything out. If you don't distribute any information, but will store it in some customer contact database, disclose this. Similarly, facilitation of product purchases or collection for future promotions should be disclosed in your policy;


• The information that is disclosed or provided to third parties. You must determine all the possible ways you will disclose your visitors personal information you collect. These will include information provided during the shipping process, to credit card merchants and banks, your host or ISP through operation of the website, etc. You should disclose all of this even if you don't intend on distributing information to third parties;


• Will you use cookies or any type of tracking device? This should be clearly disclosed to website visitors and agreed to beforehand. Also, if you use "third-party cookies" (i.e. using a third party such as Google Analytics that passes cookies directly to your website visitors' browsers) this should now also be disclosed.

FTC Rulings Establish Guidelines
You should use the lessons learned from previous FTC enforcement actions to complete the rest of your privacy policy. Here is a quick summary of those lessons:
-Always Follow Your Privacy Policy. If you make statements that you won't distribute your visitors personal information or that "all information you provide will remain anonymous" you better follow those statements. If you don't do what you say, your business will be in violation of the FTC Act. Pretty simple concept-if you lie, you are in violation of the FTC Act and potentially OPPA and maybe other state laws;
-Disclose Exactly How Your Website Treats Personal Information. I touched upon this earlier. You must disclose all the ways you intend or will disclose personal information you collect. This is really a key lesson to be taken away from the FTC's existing enforcement actions. If your object is only to provide information to one party, but you disclose it to third party marketers also, you must absolutely disclose this. If you collect information by accessing the personal information of third party sites through some service arrangement or software application you provide, this is also deceptive;
-Have Security Measures in Place. In a nutshell, you need to protect your customers and visitors personal information. The FTC has also stated that misleading express or implied statements about website security is prohibited. According to the FTC in one of their administrative decisions, your website must implement and document procedures that are reasonable and appropriate to: (1) prevent possible unauthorized access to your system (2) detect possible unauthorized access to the system; (3) monitor the system for potential vulnerabilities; and (4) record and retain system information sufficient to perform security audits and investigations.
In subsequent cases, the FTC added to its definition of what constitutes "reasonable and appropriate security" measures. The FTC added requirements that (i) companies should not store sensitive information for unnecessarily long periods of time or in a vulnerable (i.e., non-encrypted) format, (ii) must use strong passwords to prevent a hacker from gaining control over computers and access to personal information stored on a network, (iii) must use readily available security measures to limit access between computers on its network and with the internet; and (iv) must employ sufficient measures to detect unauthorized access to personal information or to conduct security investigations."
-Proper Training and Oversight is Required. Inadequate training and oversight of the personnel who will implement your privacy policy is a reasonable step your business must take, according to the FTC.
-Don't Change Your Policy After the Fact. You cannot retroactively change your privacy policies to the detriment of consumers. If you began to disclose or sell personal information provided by your visitors without seeking or receiving their consent, your business will be violating the law. Your business must take additional steps to alert customers that it has changed its policy to permit third-party sharing of personal information without explicit consent. The FTC has complained that the retroactive application of privacy policy changes "caused or is likely to cause substantial injury to consumers." The FTC says you should provide additional notice when your privacy policy has materially changed and what aspects of the policy have changed. Any time you do, you must obtain the consent of your customers who have previously provided personal information.
-Notify Visitors about Privacy Policy Changes. As stated, each time you change your privacy policy, the best practices include notifying visitors of the changes and requiring them to accept the changes after clicking through the amended policy. Any personal information you obtain from previous website visitors should not be used in a manner different than the original privacy policy unless you obtain their consent somehow.
If the FTC ever does file a complaint against your business, it could lead to very stiff civil penalties and consumer redress damages. Better to play it safe then risk shelling out thousands of dollars to the FTC. In conclusion, the best route to take is to draft a privacy/communications policy based upon OPPA and the guidelines set forth by the FTC.
Posting Your Privacy Policy
The basic principles set forth by state and federal laws provide that you should post your privacy policy in a conspicuous manner. A privacy policy is really just a disclosure to prevent your information collection practices from being deceptive.
You should follow the guidelines below on how and where to place your privacy policies, which are meant to comply with FTC laws and the requirements set forth under OPPA.

• Post the privacy policy directly on the homepage of your website or first significant page after entering your website; or


• Place a link that contains the word(s) "privacy" or "privacy policy" on the homepage of your website, or on the first significant page after entering the site. The link should lead to a separate page containing the privacy policy. The text link should be written in capital letters equal to or greater in size than the surrounding text or in contrasting type, font, or color to the surrounding text, or set off from the surrounding text somehow with symbols or other marks that call attention to the language" (i.e. "PRIVACY POLICY"); and


• Any privacy policy page links should not be hidden or innocuous where your visitors have to scroll down to the bottom of the page to find it. In other words, the link should be placed on the immediately visible portion of the page.

Federal laws
There is no specific federal law regulating or requiring a website to have or post privacy policies. However, Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") Act prohibits unfair or deceptive marketing practices. While the FTC does not regulate privacy issues, any deceptive act or practice in commerce will lead to liability under the FTC Act. If your business gathers and unlawfully disseminates or discloses information from your visitors, this will generally be categorized as a deceptive or fraudulent business practice under the FTC Act.
The bottom line is that use and/or dissemination of information collected from website visitors is deceptive when the visitor is not properly made aware of the potential for this use and sharing before he or she provides any information to the website. The FTC basically requires that website operators/owners clearly inform visitors about all the ways the website collects any of their personal information ("personally identifiable information") and then how this information will or may potentially be used or shared with third-parties. There is no specific obligation imposed upon website operators to actually post a privacy policy on their website under the FTC Act. However, if you don't post a privacy policy on your website informing your visitors about all the ways your website collects and then discloses their personally identifying information, this is a deceptive practice.
If you post a privacy policy on your website and you or your business does not follow the stated policy, this will also be considered as a deceptive practice. For example, if you state on your website that the operators/owners do not sell or provide any collected email addresses to third-party marketers, but then you do anyways, this is obviously a deceptive practice. In other words, the website privacy policy cannot mislead your website visitors. According to the FTC, a violation of a former written agreement such as a privacy policy is clearly a deceptive act or practice.
Other then the FTC Act, some federal laws govern privacy policies in specific circumstances. This includes the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which governs "Financial Institutions" and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
State Website Privacy & Security Laws
A handful of states have separate online privacy protection statutes or have some express law dealing with gathering information from a website. A few states have laws placing security requirements on websites that collect personal information.
The following states have implemented more specific laws governing website privacy policies and security requirements:
-California has adopted the California Online Privacy Protection Act of 2003 (California Business and Professions Code Sections 22575-22579). The law requires "any commercial web sites or online services that collect personal information on California residents through a web site to conspicuously post a privacy policy on the site". It also requires the policy to identify the category of personal information that the website collects and the third parties whom the information may be shared with by the website. This statute applies to any website that collects personal information from a California resident.
-Connecticut requires any person who collects Social Security numbers in the course of conducting business to create a privacy policy. The policy must be "publicly displayed" by posting it on a web page and the policy must: (1) protect the confidentiality of Social Security numbers; (2) prohibit unlawful disclosure of Social Security numbers; and (3) limit access to Social Security numbers. Connecticut laws now also require that businesses must "safeguard the data, computer files and documents containing the [personal] information from misuse by third parties" and "destroy, erase or make unreadable such data, computer files and documents prior to disposal." Conn. Pub. Act 08-16, § 1.
-Nebraska prohibits knowingly making a false or misleading statement in a privacy policy, published on the Internet or otherwise distributed or published, regarding the use of personal information submitted by members of the public.
-Pennsylvania includes false and misleading statements in privacy policies published on websites or otherwise distributed in its deceptive and fraudulent business practices statute.
-Nevada requires that "[a] business in this State shall not transfer any personal information of a customer through an electronic transmission other than a facsimile to a person outside of the secure system of the business unless the business uses encryption to ensure the security of electronic transmission." This includes all e-mail, and websites, and other forms of Internet-based communications containing personal information. It is also important to note that the Nevada Law applies only to businesses "in this State." However, for many businesses which are not located in Nevada, but that do business with customers in the state, they could be "doing business" in Nevada If you plan on doing a significant amount of business in Nevada, it is safe to assume that the law will apply.
-Massachusetts, like the Nevada laws, requires businesses to encrypt all personal information that is transmitted across public networks or by wireless transmission. It applies to all persons that own, license, store or maintain personal information about a resident of Massachusetts. This law also requires businesses to encrypt all personal information that is stored on laptops and other portable devices. Similar to the Nevada law, "personal information" is defined as a combination of a person's name plus one of the following sensitive data elements related to that person: Social Security number, driver's license or state-issued identification card number, or financial, credit or debit card account numbers.

This article was written by Philip A. Nicolosi, J.D. Mr. Nicolosi provides legal services through his law firm, Phil Nicolosi Law, P.C., focusing on startup and small business law, Internet & technology law and commercial transactions.
Mr. Nicolosi serves as a trusted advisor to numerous startups and small to medium sized businesses. This includes representation for a wide range of business law matters including business organization, corporate/LLC governance, regulatory law, contracts and transactions and most other matters outside of litigation. Mr. Nicolosi provides guidance with e-commerce, Internet marketing and technology-related legal matters. He also assists startup technology companies with seed financing, venture capital and exit transactions.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8577413

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Generating Passive Income Online Can Be Easy If You Have These Skills!

Many wannabe-entrepreneurs think that without technical skills and knowledge, one can't be successful with a business venture online. However the fact is a lot different from this common belief; having technical skills definitely has its advantages, but at the same time it's not something essential to have for an entrepreneur online. To become a successful web-entrepreneur, you should have some specific skills; these skills are essential for someone who wants to run a business, who wants to make money online. These skills will help you to stay focused and get the best out of your resources. Keep reading and you will explore some important facts about generating passive income online and becoming a successful online entrepreneur. Exploring these facts will simply help you improve yourself and make your steps towards building a business better.
What skills you should have for generating passive income online like a pro?
As you already know that you don't need to be a technical guy, or a web developer to become an entrepreneur online. Just like any other business, you need enthusiasm and focus towards making your steps like a business person. You need to be a great manager, smart action plan and have the skill to predict the changes beforehand. But here you will explore more about the core strength of a successful business entrepreneur online:
#1 time management
First of all, you need to manage time like a pro. You can simply think about keeping things updated all the way or you can also schedule everything on time and follow them as required. You have to be smart enough to find the right time to do something for your business. If you cannot manage time for your business operation, it's going to be very difficult for you. However, if you're weak in managing time, take some time, follow your weaknesses and strengths and keep up with the time. Practice time management in your life to become successful with businesses.
#2 risk evaluation and management
Without taking risk, you will never be able to run a business. You have to evaluate the risks associated with every step you take to run your business. If you can evaluate the risks, prepare yourself and take enough precautions, it'll be a lot easier to succeed with any business venture. If you are not sure about how to evaluate associated risks, you should consider taking help from an expert. You can also focus on learning in the course of developing your business. Your continuous effort and enthusiasm can only help you learn evaluating risks like a pro!
#3 predictions and smarter efforts
Finally - it's all about making predictions in the right time. If you're smart and you can read and evaluate the movements in an industry - it will be a lot easier for you. in case you are not being able to make accurate predictions, you have to talk to the experts, follow the trends and keep up to explore more things with detailed attention!

Would you like to learn more about generating passive income online like a pro? Join our amazing community and explore how the great entrepreneurs had taken their first step!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8580089

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Here Are 2 Ways a Conversion Rate Expert Makes Your Site More Money

A conversion rate expert is unlike any other Internet Marketing pro you can hire because their sole mission, the only reason they exist: Is to increase online conversions and thus make their clients more money. Also known as website optimization experts, don't confuse them with an SEO or social media marketer. Because despite what you may think, SEO/SMM/PPC experts are only there to drive more traffic. And more times than not, these SEO and SMM experts will purposely target non-converting low-competition keywords because it is easier to rank and generate traffic without the slightest care that the terms don't generate online sales or leads. But a conversion rate expert, on the other hand, specifically boosts online sales and leads in 2 ways:

1. Optimize Primary Traffic Sources

One of the first things a conversion rate expert will do is eliminate non-converting keywords from your paid traffic sources. Using website traffic analysis, the web optimization expert will isolate the non-converting keywords and either delete or pause them in their respective campaigns. In the majority of websites, up to 40% or more of all paid traffic is completely worthless and just wasting good money with no hope of generating any return on investment. Next, they will review your SEO/ SMM campaigns and on-site implementation to isolate weak keywords and marketing channels.
When finished, a conversion rate expert can reduce marketing costs and overall traffic levels without sacrificing sales. The net effect is a significant increase in both conversion rate and overall profits which can ultimately free up more marketing dollars to use to then increase sales volume.

2. Optimize On-Site Factors

Web optimization experts also boost online sales by conducting thorough web traffic analysis to isolate on-site conversion problems that are suppressing sales, such as:

• Weak Direct Response Copywriting
• Web Design/Layout Problems
• Weak Calls-to-Action and User Interface Features
• Poor Navigation & Bad Sales Funnels
• Web Programming Issues
• Unrefined Business Model or Under Utilization of Site Strengths

In most cases, a website will be suffering from more than one of these issues which is why most conversion rate professionals will create an optimization blueprint. This is essentially just a plan that prioritizes biggest problems first so they can be addressed immediately. Depending on the business model and niche, most websites can see an immediate 25-50% boost just from optimizing their direct response sales tools (like landing pages, sales pages, product descriptions, etc.).
Concluding Thoughts
Make no mistake: It may take a website optimization expert 4-8 weeks to fully optimize your website, or even more if you have a large ecommerce site. But, when complete, most websites can increase online conversions by 50-100% or more and in many cases reduce their marketing costs by 40% or more. And unlike website developers who just want to sell you a new site or SEO or SMM experts who only want to sell you more traffic that may or may not convert, a conversion rate optimisation expert is only there to increase your sales or qualified leads.
But add it up: What would a 50-100% increase in overall website sales do for your online business along with a possible reduction in marketing costs by up to 40%? Website optimization is a true game changer and that's precisely why you are seeing companies like Moz, Apple, and yes, even Google itself hire conversion rate experts to optimize their websites for improved conversions.

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Learning to Earn

Everyone wants to make money online. They dream of sitting at home and raking in the millions. While it's not quite that easy because it does take a lot of work, you actually can sit at home and create a truly profitable business. The key is to find the right educational resources that will point you towards your dreams.The biggest obstacle with this, however, is the sheer amount of information on the web. The internet was created to share information, so it should come as no surprise that there are mountains of text to sift through. Some information is simply better than others while a small percentage is absolute garbage.
Knowing who to listen to and who to ignore is the key:
Good: Books
Books are always a great place to start learning something new. Sometimes you may have no idea where to start. You know you want to make money online but you just don't know what to start learning about first. Books are great because you can flip through a few of them and get a better understanding of the subject without having to scavenge for information piecemeal.
After a bit of research, you'll know exactly what books to track down and what subjects to focus on. Once you pay for a book, it's yours forever so they can also be great investments. With the rise of e-readers, books are now cheaper and more portable than ever.
Better: Videos
Books are good, but some people are visual learners. They need videos and demonstrations to really be able to wrap their minds around something. Fortunately, there are tons of videos on the web that cover nearly every subject imaginable. Some videos are made by professionals while others are created by amateurs.
There is a big difference in quality between these two different types of videos. Professionals will be able to describe the intricacies of a subject while amateurs can only give a basic overview. Keep in mind, as well, that many videos only show one person's way of doing things. They might not teach you a different method.
Best: Mentors
Mentors are, without a doubt, the absolute best way to learn something. When you have a mentor you actually have a dedicated, professional teacher who can take you through every step of a process at a speed that works for you. Since most mentors have years of experience in a certain subject, they are a treasure trove of information.
The biggest problem people run into, however, is that effective mentoring can often be rather expensive. These are experienced professionals who can make plenty of money without needing to teach anything. They become mentors because they want to help others, not because they need to.
A good mentor can help you get an online business up and running faster and more successfully than any other option.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8567579

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7 Ways to Earn Extra Money Online

Times are getting better but there are times when you still need a little extra income. The following suggestions are far from get rich schemes but they are usable when it comes time to make some extra cash online.
The first suggestion is to sell your arts and crafts over the internet. If you sew, knit, crochet and/or make jewelry you could make extra money by selling the things you make over the internet. Etsy is one online marketing company that makes it possible for you to sell your creations online. They only charges $.20 (twenty cents) to list your item and 3.5% of the transaction fee when your item sells. You can charge whatever you want per item and there is no limit to how many items that you list. As long as you can pay the 20 cents per listing then list to your heart's contentment!
The second suggestion that I have only applies to you if you are a registered nurse. Don't worry, if you are not a nurse there are more suggestions listed below. Well, back to this suggestion. If you are a registered nurse you could register with a company called Phonemed. This company contracts with doctor's offices to provide answers to medical questions after office hours. They require that you are a licensed registered nurse and that you have three years recent clinical experience. The average pay is $27 per hour and they do offer benefits and paid leave. Phonemed provides medical information to clients based in the U.S. and Canada.
The third suggestion is for people who love Amazon. Amazon offers an associates program. They supply you with a search tool that your site visitors can use to find the products that they are looking for. They also supply you with a variety ad types to display. You get paid commissions each time someone clicks through one of your associate links and makes a purchase. You don't have to have a lot of traffic to start seeing rewards from Amazon's program. There has been testimony that sites with as little as 1,000 hits per month has reaped monetary rewards from Amazon.
The fourth suggestion also refers to Amazon. They offer piecework. They will pay you to search the web, answer questions, or give an opinion. These tasked are timed and can take anywhere from minutes to an hour to complete. The pay rates vary from a few cents to a couple of dollars per task. This money could add up to some serious extra cash if you do enough tasks.
The fifth suggestion that I have is that you search the internet using a search engine called Swag Bucks. If you use this as your search engine you will earn what is known as SB points. You can redeem these points for target gift cards and beauty products. If you don't want prizes you could opt to have the points paid out in money to a PayPal account.
The sixth suggestion that I have is take some surveys. Now, I know that surveys have gotten themselves a bit of a bad name because of all of the scam survey sites that you can find online. However, I have a couple of survey sites that come well recommended. Don't worry, I am not an affiliate of these sites, I am just passing on the good word. Sites that you should try are Surveyhead.com and Myvaluedopinion.com.
The seventh suggestion is for those who want an alternative to Amazon and Google AdSense. Try Rakuten Linkshare. They also set you up to earn money through advertising on your website or blog. They give you customized banner ads, ad links and email links. You would be advertising for Starbucks, Walmart and/or other well-known companies.
Hopefully I have listed a way to make a little extra cash online that interests you. Good luck with your search to make extra money online.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8586171

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How to Make Money Online Without Spending Your Money

Many would like to realize the dream of working for themselves by making money online. However, unfortunately, many don't follow that dream because they don't know how to build their own website or they don't know much about marketing. If this is you then don't worry. There are online opportunities that don't require you to be an experienced webmaster or a marketing genius. This article will suggest some ways that you can earn an income online without making a financial investment. Now, keep in mind, even though the opportunities that are listed don't require you to put up a website or write the winning ad they do require some creativity.
The companies that are referred to in this article are not affiliate links of mine. However, they are legitimate companies that are willing to pay you for your services.
One way to make money online without spending any money is to begin a referral business. There are plenty of businesses online that need customers. You don't have to have a website or do any of the selling you just have to find customers with a need that fits the vendors supply. One company that you might want to try that is equipped to track your referrals and pay you commissions is Salespread.
A second way to earn an income on the internet without spending any money is to become a head hunter. Employment agencies are constantly looking for new talent that will fit their client's needs. Also, there are thousands of people looking for work. Why shouldn't you be one of the ones that cash in on the millions of dollars that is made in the employment industry? There are plenty of free classified sites where you can post an employment ad. Employment companies that pay for referrals are Referearns, Zyoin and Wisestep.
A third way to make money online without making a financial investment is to start your own blog. It might seem that the internet is flooded with blogs however, the internet will not become over saturated with blogs as long as the blogs are adding value. People are always researching and looking for good content. You don't have to spend any money or be an experienced webmaster to start a blog. Blogger makes it so easy that you can have your blog up and running in five minutes or less. Once you are up and running you can add advertisements through AdWords. You can also become part of affiliate programs that don't charge you any fees to sign up. Advertise your own affiliate links and banners on your blog. It works.
A fourth way to generate earnings using the web without going into your own pockets is to sell photographs. You don't have to be a professional photographer to sell your photos. People are always in the market for stock photos. Companies that will allow you to sell your photographs are Shutterstock, Dreamstime and iStock Photos.
This article does not list all of the ways that you can make money online with no financial investment. It does, however, give food for thought. Hopefully this article has been helpful. Good luck!

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Where Do People Get Their Money From?

When I attended a motorsport event recently and I am always amazed at the amount of money some people have. There are sometimes sports cars on sale at around £250,000 each!
At this particular event there were people racing older cars which were worth a fortune. We are talking formula one cars from the 1950's to the 1980's and some seriously old cars from the 1930's!
I wouldn't like to think how much these cars are worth! And the people that own them were racing around the race track like there was no tomorrow, they weren't holding back, you would think that they would be a little worried about smashing them up!
And not only smashing their precious car up but these things had nothing in the way of safety either so they could easily kill themselves in the process too!
The formula one cars from the 50's were literally a tube with a V8 bolted to the back.
Anyway, I could talk about this all day but the main point I want to make here is that you realise there really is no shortage of money when you go to an events like these. You start to realise just how much money some people have got.
Now do you think that these people make their money by working for somebody else?
I'm sure that there are many people out there that are earning a really good living with their jobs but most people have an average income. So what about the people who are very, very rich?
Do they work a 9 to 5 job for somebody else?
No, of course they don't, the majority of very rich people had started their own business and built it up into their own little empire over time. It is the only way to become seriously wealthy.
Even if your intention is not to become seriously wealthy but to just be better off, then starting your own business is by far the best option. When you start a business you are building something for yourself and not helping to build somebody else's business.
If you work hard enough then the potential is always there to become seriously wealthy.
Let me ask you... When did you last get a pay rise? If you had a pay rise recently, was it any good?
What if you could raise your income yourself in your spare time? What if you could earn yourself an extra £200 a month? Would that help you with the bills and give you a few extra luxuries in life?
If £200 extra per month is all that you want then that's fine but once you get to your £200 per month goal then you may want to try for more and there's nothing stopping you from trying to achieve more.
Unlike your employment when you are paid by the hour and the only way to earn more is to do more hours and/or beg your boss for a pay rise. At the end of the day it is your boss that decides how much money you'll have at the end of each month.
You need to be the boss - take control of your own destiny and take control of your own finances.
That is the only way to make yourself much better off than you are now. I can appreciate that it's hard to get yourself motivated and get started. There are many things in your mind telling you why you shouldn't do it, I've been there myself.
It's the fear of failure, low self belief, too much information to take in, where do you start, who can give you accurate advice, afraid to take a risk, don't have any technical knowledge etc.
These are all obstacles that your are planting in your own head. I've been there before, you need to smash these thoughts and just do it. If you don't then one day you may look back and wish that you did give it a try.
An online business is a fantastic business to start because there are no massive risks involved.
There's no need to quit your job to get started, there's no massive start up costs or running costs and you can run it in your spare time. That is just a few of many benefits of an online business.
If you want to start an online business and £200 per month sounds good to you and a potential to make much, much more then I recommend you get yourself a system in place that has reoccurring billing. A system where people pay you each and every month.
This is great because you then know how much money to expect in your bank account each month as opposed selling products that might fluctuate. A great way to do this is to set up a membership site.
Now I'm not talking about a traditional membership site as these can be a headache especially when starting out. I'm talking about a 'Fixed Term Membership' (FTM) site. This is a site where people sign up and pay you each month for information to be sent to them.
The information that you send lasts a set amount of time. You might send out information once a week for a year or once a month for a year or fortnightly for 6 months it's up to you.
This is not difficult to do; it just requires you to get rid of all those thoughts that are holding you back and a small investment. Every business has to invest a bit of money and time to get going. Fortunately the internet is cheap!
Of course, if this is not the route for you there are many other ways to boost your income online. You could become an affiliate and sell other peoples products for them and receive a commission for each sale.
You can find affiliate products out there with reoccurring billing and you get paid a commission for each payment for as long as your referral stays a paying customer. At least this way you don't have to worry about creating your own products
There are so many different ways to make money online, just find one that suits you best and find some good reliable information or purchase a course. Then very importantly, take action and put into practice what you have learned!
It's time to take control of your life now and get started with an online business. Get rid of all those negative thoughts and just do it!
You CAN become successful! It's up to you just how successful you want to be.

Kevin Wise has had the privilege to work with one of the UK's top internet marketers and has now set up his own online business to help others succeed online. Keeping in regular contact with experts in the field he can help you with products and services that you may require in order to set up your own online business in a niche that suits you.
You can download Kevin's free report which explains how you can get started with your own online business at

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8588079

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How to Start an Online Business?

Starting an online business to get extra cash or to replace a full-time job is easy. However, there are specific things that you would need in order to get started. Those things are revealed in this article.
The first thing that you need to do to start a business online is to find a market that you can serve, find out what their needs are and prepare to offer a solution. Spend some time online researching how others are filling the needs in your targeted market. Do keyword research and find out what your prospects are looking for that other companies are not competing for.
The second thing that you will need to do is to build a website. You can get website hosting for as low as $3.96 a month and perhaps even lower. Don't make your website look like it's been put together by an amateur because you are using many different fonts and colors. Use a white background and maybe only two simple fonts. Don't forget to include an opt-in offer so that prospects can become a part of your email list. Make this offer something that your prospect will stay up nights over if they don't opt in and get it. Make your website easy to navigate. Do your keyword research and make sure that you use the best phrases possible on your website. Do this and the traffic will come to you organically. Make sure that your website is compelling. It has been shown that if you don't get your reader's attention in five seconds you have lost them.
The third thing that you need to do is to write a sales letter that will sell. This letter will need to have the following things.
1. It needs to have a winning headline that urges the reader to want to read more.
2. It needs to state how it can solve a problem of the targeted market.
3. It needs to establish you as someone who is qualified enough to solve the problem.
4. It needs to include proof. Proof would include testimonials from people who have used your product.
5. It needs to include bullet points of how the product will benefit the user.
6. It needs to include an offer. The offer is not the product it is the benefits of using the product. For example, if you are selling turkey dinners, the offer would not be the turkey. The offer would be "A great home cooked meal at a low price."
7. It needs to offer a guarantee. Remember that people feel vulnerable when they are making a purchase. Especially if they are purchasing something online. So you want to give them a guarantee that will make them feel more comfortable about using their credit card.
8. It needs to create urgency and/or fear. To make your prospect feel more urgent you would give a limit on how many units of the product you are willing to sell or you would give a date that the product will increase in price. To create fear you would state something like the following: "Can you really afford not to buy this today?"
9. The final thing that the letter will need is the call to action. This is where you ask for the sale.
The fourth thing that you will need to do is to add a blog to your website. Here is where you will take the opportunity to establish yourself as an expert in the industry. Write blog posts that will be helpful to your target market and that will cause them to trust you. Once you have gotten them to know you, like you, and trust you through your blog you will have an easier task getting them to buy from you.
After you have established your online presence and have begun getting customers, show your customers a little appreciation by sending electronic coupons to your email list. Customers like to feel appreciated. If you show them that you appreciate them they will reward you with their business.
Hopefully this article has been helpful to those of you who are contemplating on opening an online business. If you already have an established business online then go through the points in this article to make sure that you have not missed anything.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8588397

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Part-Time Internet Wealth, Part II

In Part I of this article, I introduced you to the concept of part-time Internet wealth -- whatever "wealth" means to you. The concept applies whether you want to make hundreds of thousands of dollars or millions. In Part I, I outlined the basics of the concept, and discussed a situation in which my own company profited for years by working short-term and part time on a particular project.
I also introduced the first five of a series of 12 tips to put you on the course to part-time wealth: Step #1: You need a complete line of products and services at different price points; Step #2: You've got to offer something with the "Wow" factor; Step #3: You've got to have tripwire products to attract prospects; Step #4: Create top-notch sales copy for your complete line; and Step #5: Use tools like WordPress to create inexpensive but high-quality websites.
Let's pick up right where we left off.
Step #6: If you're going to make money on the Internet, you've got to have an affiliate program. My suggestion here is adapt one of the modern affiliate programs that pay 75%-00% commissions. So now you're probably thinking, "How in the world can I make money giving away 100% commissions?" It's actually very easy. All your initial products, your tripwire, low-cost products -- you let your affiliate have all that money. They're the ones marketing it, they're the ones assuming the risk, they're the ones doing the work -- even if they have loyal customers who love them and they don't have to do much work except send it out.
You see, those loyal customers took considerable time and effort for them to acquire, so do whatever you can to make it as advantageous as possible for your affiliates. Give them a great deal. Roll out the red carpet for them; treat them like rock stars. The companies who make the most money with the affiliate programs are the ones who do the best job of treating their top affiliates well. They show them lots of love and lots of appreciation. These people get out there and make a lot of money for themselves -- and can do it for you when they entice people to purchase your high-dollar items.
Step #7: Create a sales funnel that acts as an automatic money machine. Apply it to your complete line of products and services, from low-cost tripwire items all the way up to the very expensive premiere items -- because you've got to have some of those in your mix, too.
The perfect time to re-sell to somebody is right after they buy something from you. They've already got the credit card out, they're already in that buying mood, so now is the time to sell them more stuff. A sales funnel does this automatically, especially on the Internet. Every time they click a button and buy, it thanks them for the purchase -- and then it makes them an additional offer for another product or service at a great price.
Step #8 is to maintain a consistently changing product line. You can't keep selling only the same few things. People are addicted to new stuff. But here's the thing: it's a little complicated, but I want you to think about this. In actual fact, it's only the veneer of newness most people are really looking for.
You see, even though people are addicted to the new, they also take great comfort in buying familiar types of products or services. So there must be familiar elements within anything new -- elements similar to what they already bought before. This is very confusing to some people. What I'm saying is that it's got to be the same as they bought before... but a little different.
My best example of this is rock bands. Each band's songs are basically the same. They use the same chords, rhythms, and themes; they all have a specific style or sound. Once you get a taste for that sound, you don't want to see a lot of variation. You want the songs to all sound similar, because that's what you're used to. And so while every song is different, they're all familiar underneath.
So in reality, while people do want new stuff, it's got to fall within a certain range of familiarity and comfort to sell effectively.
Step #9 and Step #12 on my list are related. Step #9 is your front-end marketing; you've got to have the right front-end marketing strategy to truly succeed. Marketing on the front end is all about the things you do to acquire new customers and bring them into the fold, getting them to do business with you the first time. The last thing on my list is your back-end strategy, and I think it's important to talk about them as if they're one, because marketing is everything you do to attract and retain customers. Retaining is the job of your back-end marketing system.
It's your responsibility to systematize all this as much as you can, and to do it consistently. Make sure you're always doing something to bring in new customers on a continual basis. I told you in the beginning that a lot of what I would share today is common sense -- but a lot of business owners violate this one, because they don't consistently draw in new customers automatically.
Your tripwire products and specialized new customer promotions must bring in new customers on a steady, continual basis; that's the basis of your front-end marketing system. The back end, again, involves the steady, consistent working of a sales funnel that's doing some of the upselling for you. But you're not just depending on your sales funnel and its automatic features, you're aggressively making additional offers to your existing customers, getting them to come back again and again. You're always looking for new products or services to offer them.
When running a business, there's nothing more important than consistency. So however you decide to do it, systematize your new customer acquisition so that it works automatically. You may tweak it a bit, but you shouldn't have to constantly monitor it. Keep it running, but have other people run it for you.
Step #10 is your merchant account. It can be a challenge finding a decent one. The credit card companies are all about the consumer, not about the merchant. That used to upset me, but then I started thinking about it from their perspective. Of course they're all about the consumer; that's how they make their money. Now, it's a supply/demand issue, and they do try to take good care of the merchants. But, you'll occasionally have problems with them. So, take good care of that merchant account, and have two or three of them if you can. If you have problems with one, you can just use another. Consider PayPal also, and if you're selling digital products, you can use ClickBank. They'll process all your credit cards for you, and are essentially a type of merchant account.
Step 11: Build a good staff. The smartest thing you can do is work through a competent group of employees. Don't just try to do everything yourself. A good staff will free you up to do the things you enjoy doing, as well as the things that can bring your company more money. As a rule of thumb, if you can find talented people to do something cheaper and better than you can, hire them. Don't look at them as an expense; they're an asset, something that makes you money instead of costing you money. Remember, my concept here is "part-time wealth." The richest people all have staffs they depend on. They're valuable in so many ways, and it can be a lot of fun working with the right people.
Step #12 is re-selling to customers repeatedly. That's your back-end marketing -- and that's where all the profits are made. I've already talked about this a little. Your generate your profits by getting people to come back repeatedly and do more business with you. Many markets are insatiable. The members will continue to re-buy from you if you provide the right products and services.
Remember: in most markets, people want more of what they bought from you the first time. They want all the biggest benefits -- and if you're not offering them additional products and services, they'll go somewhere else for them. So they might as well give you their money. That's how you've got to think to succeed here.
One thing to consider is that in your product/service mix, you should include items that pay you residually. These are items that are sold on a "'til forbid" basis. Somebody buys them and says, "Yes, I'll pay $30 a month (or whatever) for these additional services." So you keep charging their credit card until they tell you to stop. This income comes in automatically until they cancel, which they can do any time.
Those are my 12 Steps to Part-Time Wealth. Now, you may say, "But T.J. -- there's nothing here that sounds part-time!" Well, I'll admit that it does take time and effort to set all this up -- but once it's in place, it definitely becomes part-time. Having a staff to do the heavy lifting for you will free you up for other things. Having front-end and back-end marketing systems that are systematized and work automatically will free more time up. So will finding good joint venture partners who can do a lot of the work for you.
In these few pages, I've tried to explain some factors that took me many years to learn -- and that I'm still learning. Don't let anybody try to convince you that they've got it all figured out. They're lying to you. They're constantly learning, too, and they don't have all the answers, no matter how much they try to pretend they do.
I'm not saying that they're all scamming you. Some people are actually deluded enough to think that they have it all figured out. But their day is coming when they'll find they don't. They might just be on a winning streak that's about to end. Your best bet is to find other people who are making millions of dollars and study them -- or have them teach you. All you've got to do is figure out exactly what they're doing and do it too, and you can make millions of your own.

The content of this article was edited and re-written from one of T.J. Rohleder's daily podcasts. If you liked this article and are serious about making more money, please consider letting T.J. Rohleder, America's Blue Jeans Millionaire, personally help you. Please check out his podcasts

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8590968

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Passive Income Businesses That Have Survived From The Beginning Of World Wide Web!

As a business owner online, you may have seen many methods dying over time. Some popular money making methods suddenly stopped working - is another common scenario for the online entrepreneurs. That's why the professional marketers and entrepreneurs are interested in something more potent and reliable. If you know how to make things work and can stay focused, you can still fight with the extremes of competition in the world of internet marketing and make money from the core business concepts that have survived through time from the beginning of internet businesses. Here, you will explore more about some methods and passive income businesses that have survived in these years and have made a lot of money for the internet entrepreneurs in these years. Keep reading and you may find a way out to your own potential passive income venture online:
The survivors' story: passive income businesses that have been making money since the beginning!
Most internet marketers think that the core business concepts online are too challenging for a new marketer and they will lose hope and become frustrated after facing extremes of challenges and extremely competitive business condition. However, there are many new marketers who have proved this wrong and they have made money from these old-school methods like the professional marketers. Let's explore more about these amazing old-school passive income generators online:
#1 affiliate marketing
First of all, affiliate marketing is considered as the king of money making methods online. This has literally existed from the very beginning of internet businesses. Now there are hundreds of thousands venders and millions of affiliates around the world. And the best thing is - everyone is getting a share of this huge cake of affiliate marketing. This is one of the most popular old-school methods of making money online and it will continue to be one of the most popular choices for the internet marketers around the world.
#2 blogging
Blogging is something that everyone can afford to do - both financially and technically. You don't even have to spend a penny to start. You can start blogging anytime you want with the free blogging platforms like blogger.com and wordpress.com. And blogging can literally help you make a decent passive income very quickly. If you want to blog like a pro and make six figures, you have to wait for a while, but you can start making some cash real quick with niche blogging and this has been happening from the beginning of internet businesses!
#3 ecommerce
The concept of ecommerce is among the oldest in the world of internet marketing. However, this wasn't something suitable for everyone. Only the business companies seemed to have these ecommerce websites. But today, things have changed a lot and anyone can start his own ecommerce store from anywhere around the world. He just needs a website, some payment processing support and a supplier to get the products delivered to him or the clients. This concept has been surviving since the beginning of internet businesses and will continue to become stronger in the future as well!

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Why "Data Pass" Sales Land Your Business In Hot Water!

Selling someone a front-end product as the initial merchant and then channeling their billing information to another merchant to be used in conjunction with an up-sale or cross-sale of some other product or service ("back-end sales") is illegal. Under the Restore Online Shopper's Confidence Act (ROSCA), any initial merchant that directly obtains customer billing information cannot disclose this to a third-party "post-transaction seller" where it is to be used in the sale of any goods or services by that seller. This practice by the initial merchant is also known as a "data pass." It typically occurs when the post-transaction seller offers a negative option type plan (i.e. membership clubs) to consumers as they are in the process of completing their transaction with the initial merchant. These offers are designed to make consumers think they are part of the initial purchase and not a new transaction with a third-party seller.
The Act also places restrictions directly on deceptive negative option sales and marketing tactics, sets forth transparency and informed consent requirements and gives the consumer the ability to stop recurring charges. The FTC can enforce this law and the Act authorizes every state attorney general (and other authorized state officers) to sue in federal court to stop Internet marketers who are violating this law.
Post-Transaction Third Party Seller Liability!
The customer must be provided with notice of the relevant facts and then can decide whether to purchase from the third-party or provide credit card information to the third-party. ROSCA makes it unlawful for any post-transaction seller to charge or attempt to charge a consumer's credit card, debit card, bank account or other financial account for any good or service through a negative option feature unless the seller has clearly and conspicuously disclosed to the consumer all material terms of the transaction, including: (1) a description of the goods or services being offered; (2) the fact that the post-transaction seller is not affiliated with the initial merchant; and (3) the cost of the goods or services.
The post transaction seller must also have received the express informed consent for the charges by the consumer by obtaining from the consumer the full account number to be charged and the consumer's name, address and contact information.
Post-transaction sellers must also require that the consumer perform some additional affirmative action, like clicking on "I accept" button or checking a box to indicate his or her informed consent. Finally, post-transaction sellers must also provide "simple mechanisms" for a consumer to stop recurring charges.
Some states, such as California, have enacted its own version of ROSCA. California state law enacted in 2010 imposes requirements on businesses that make automatic renewal or continuous service offers to California residents. Offers of continuous services or automatic renewals: (1) must present the offer terms in a "clear and conspicuous" manner; (2) must not charge the consumer's credit card without the affirmative consent of the consumer; and (3) may not change a material term of the offer without "clear and conspicuous" notice of the change.
Data Pass Transactions Guidelines:

• If you are an initial seller or marketer DO NOT pass any customer billing information to any third-party end-sellers. As you learned, this is prohibited by ROSCA outright;

• If you are an end-seller receiving customers through an initial third-party seller/marketer, DO NOT accept billing information from the initial seller/marketer;

• Before obtaining the billing information in the registration process, provide a ROSCA Informed Consent Notice that makes the required disclosures and requires consent as indicated by clicking on an I ACCEPT button or by checking a box. This notice should be provided ideally during the registration process. You must notify your customers clearly and conspicuously that completing the registration process and/or proceeding with the purchase through your website will indicate their acceptance to the terms disclosed in the ROSCA Informed Consent; and

• Always use a click-wrap agreement and provide notice before charging the customer and require the customer to indicate agreement by clicking on an I ACCEPT button or by checking a box.

This article was written by Philip A. Nicolosi, J.D. Mr. Nicolosi provides legal services through his law firm, Phil Nicolosi Law, P.C., focusing on startup and small business law, Internet & technology law and commercial transactions.
Mr. Nicolosi serves as a trusted advisor to numerous startups and small to medium sized businesses. This includes representation for a wide range of business law matters including business organization, corporate/LLC governance, regulatory law, contracts and transactions and most other matters outside of litigation. Mr. Nicolosi provides guidance with e-commerce, Internet marketing and technology-related legal matters. He also assists startup technology companies with seed financing, venture capital and exit transactions.

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Negative Option Practices That Will Sink Your Business!

When it comes to your online billing practices, you need also need to avoid deceptive practices. Liability can be triggered for deception under both FTC and state consumer protection statutes. Some states have specific statues dealing with deceptive online billing practices, as will be discussed. Of course, you need to figure out what activities are considered deceptive if the first place to avoid liability.
Most deceptive billing practices consist of negative option marketing plans, back-end sales without disclosure ("data pass" transactions) and deception with free trial offers.
Is Your Business Engaging In Negative Option Marketing Plans?
If you plan on engaging in negative option marketing practices you will need to comply with the FTC's Negative Option Rule and comply with state laws governing these practices. The term "negative option feature" is defined by the FTC broadly and refers to a category of transactions in which a customer's failure to take an affirmative action, either to reject an offer or cancel an agreement, is considered by the seller as assent to be charged for some goods or services. If you engage in these practices, FTC laws require that ads for subscriptions clearly and conspicuously disclose material information about the terms of the offer. (Failing to disclose important information is always considered a deceptive practice under the FTC Act and/or state consumer protection statutes).
The FTC considers the following to be negative option plans: (1) prenotification negative option plans, (2) continuity plans, (3) automatic renewals, and (4) free-to-pay or nominal-fee-to-pay conversion offers.
A "prenotification negative option plan" (e.g., book or music clubs) is where sellers send periodic notices offering goods to consumers. If a consumer takes no action, the seller sends the goods and charges the consumer. In "continuity plans", consumers agree in advance to receive periodic shipments of goods or provisions of services, which they continue to receive until they cancel the agreement.
In "automatic renewal plans", the seller (e.g., a magazine, newsletter, etc.) automatically renews a consumer's subscription/membership when it expires and charges for it, unless the consumer cancels the subscription/membership.
Finally, there are "free-to-pay or nominal-fee-to-pay offers" where consumers receive goods or services for free or for a nominal fee, for a trial period. After the trial period ends, sellers automatically begin charging a fee (or higher fee) unless consumers cancel or return the goods.
In addition, some negative option offers include "up-selling" or "bundled offers." An up-sell occurs when a consumer completes a primary transaction and then receives a solicitation for an additional product or service. A bundled offer occurs when a seller packages two products or services together so that they cannot be purchased separately.
Here are the FTC's 5 Principles to complying with the Negative Option Rule:

1. Disclose the material terms of the offer in an understandable manner. The existence of the offer, the offer's total cost, the transfer of a consumer's billing information to a third-party (if applicable) and how to cancel the offer;


2. Disclosures should be clear and conspicuous (follow the guidelines in this book);


3. Disclosure must occur before payment;


4. Obtain the customer's affirmative consent to the offer (you cannot rely on a pre-checked box to signify acceptance);


5. Do not impede cancellation of an offer or make cancellation burdensome.

In order to avoid liability under the FTC Act and state deceptive practices laws, clearly and conspicuously disclose as many details about the offer or plan as you can. The key to avoiding liability for negative option type practices is disclosure of all the facts relating to billing and cancellation. The more you disclose the better your chances of avoiding liability.
You may use email to communicate with consumers. But, if consumers don't understand that notices are sent by email, they may not respond and may incur charges they don't want. Thus, you should clearly inform your customers about how any notices will be sent before they enroll in any negative option type plan.
Offering Hidden Continuity Plans & Free Trial Offers
Caution! You cannot sell continuity type plans (i.e. recurring memberships or subscriptions) in conjunction with using a free trial offer to deceptively misinform your customers. Hiding free trial language or using a pre-checked box indicating acceptance of a free trial that leads to a continuity plan is illegal. For example, hiding free trial language in the terms and conditions or on the order page below the credit card information and where a customer has to scroll down and uncheck a box. Failure to do so leads to "acceptance" of a trial offer for some continuity plan for which the customer will be billed unless he or she cancels. Of course, by the time the customer figures out what is going on, they could have been charged with a few recurring monthly fees before cancellation.
Worse, some businesses make it impossible to cancel during the trial period because of faulty contact information (nonexistent phone numbers, e-mails that bounce, etc.). The FTC has really cracked down on these types of practices and considers them to be deceptive. Avoid them at all costs.
Negative Option Billing Plans Guidelines:

• Provide the required disclosures in your website agreement and require your customers to accept the agreement by clicking on an I ACCEPT button or by checking a box before charging the customer's account;


• Send your customers an email notice prior to charging his/her account that also provides a simple mechanism for canceling the plan and all future charges under the plan.

This article was written by Philip A. Nicolosi, J.D. Mr. Nicolosi provides legal services through his law firm, Phil Nicolosi Law, P.C., focusing on startup and small business law, Internet & technology law and commercial transactions.
Mr. Nicolosi serves as a trusted advisor to numerous startups and small to medium sized businesses. This includes representation for a wide range of business law matters including business organization, corporate/LLC governance, regulatory law, contracts and transactions and most other matters outside of litigation. Mr. Nicolosi provides guidance with e-commerce, Internet marketing and technology-related legal matters. He also assists startup technology companies with seed financing, venture capital and exit transactions.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8592024

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