The Legal Pitfalls of Becoming an Online Business

Over the years, more and more people have started spending time online. In response, most businesses began to explore their digital options to expand their operations and consumer base. The advent of Covid-19 has fast-tracked this shift. Data from the US Commerce Department estimated that last year’s e-commerce sales in America reached $209.5 billion for the third quarter, marking a 37.1% year-on-year increase. As such, even brick-and-mortar businesses in America, especially those struggling due to the coronavirus, must focus on their digital platforms to survive.

The good news is that numerous online resources discuss website building. But before you do that, there are some steps you need to take to ensure you’re operating legally:

 

Create your website’s legal statements.

Anyone who has ever browsed the internet will recognize these legal pop-ups. Nobody reads them, but everyone ticks the “I Agree” checkbox anyway. But these legal statements, though often ignored, are critical in protecting website owners from being sued. Here’s why:

 

Privacy policy

Due to the nature of technology, nearly every online footprint we make is recorded. Any website that uses cookies or data analytics tracks private information, whether the owner knows it. The same applies to online businesses requiring customers to input sensitive data, such as credit card numbers when purchasing online.

Consequently, websites must explicitly post and adhere to a privacy policy by the laws of America's Federal Trade Commission. This outlines what information is recorded from a user and how that material is transmitted and used when visiting your page. If you don’t do this, legal action can quickly be taken against you.

 

Terms of Service

A website’s Terms of Service (ToS) statement lays down the general rules and regulations of your website and the relationship between the website owner and visitor. Once a user lands on your page, they automatically agree to these terms. In the case of online businesses, however, it’s highly recommended to force visitors to manually agree to the terms and conditions (see above) – usually via a pop-up message – to ensure you’ve got yourself legally covered.

Various Terms of Service templates can be found online, depending on the type of business you have. Still, hiring a legal professional to tailor your ToS agreement to your preferences is ideally best.

 

Disclaimer

A disclaimer’s purpose is to erase any accountability and liability attached to you in case someone suffers general harm following a piece of information you published. This also applies to online shops selling products like health supplements making unsupported claims. As with the ToS, drafting a disclaimer depends entirely on your niche, so consult a lawyer to account for potential legal risks.

 

Register as a business.

One of the best ways to keep your website legally compliant is to register it as a business with the local government. This assures customers that you’ve exercised due diligence to control everything – from permits and licensing requirements down to your business name – above board.

Luckily, this process is easy! Most states have recognized the growth of online businesses and made the process as simple as possible. Registering a company here in California can be done mostly online, and the Secretary of State's website has plenty of information available.

Similarly, to file for an LLC in Montana, which has the highest number of startups per capita, you need to consult state resources, allowing you to file your Articles of Organization online. The state government has even prepared e-commerce resources to help anyone who wants to start an online business in Montana. Although each state is different, most don’t require much effort to register.

 

Beware of libel and copyright infringement and libel

Blogging is a common strategy through which you can market your products. When creating content for your site, the sky’s the limit as long as you can connect the article’s subject to your services. But the more your audience grows, the more you must be careful about what you say. Defamation cases are rare but still a possibility.

Another thing to watch out for is copyright infringement. If you need to use an image for your website but aren’t sure where it came from, err on the side of caution instead. Please don’t use it to avoid potentially getting flagged and fined.

Setting up an online business is exciting; you can let loose your creativity and play around with the features offered by a digital marketplace. But before you do so, ensure you’ve covered all your legal bases.


Four Reasons Why You Should Use WordPress to Build Your Website

If you find yourself wondering, “Why should I use WordPress?” “Why can’t I just use the drag-and-drop builder platforms?” “Isn’t WordPress a blogging platform?”. In this article, we discuss the four primary reasons why it is the number one website-building interface and how using this platform to build your website will cost you much lesser should you choose to do so.

WordPress is the most popular open source Content Management System (CMS). Used by more than 53% of the websites, which are approximately 28 million live websites. An outstanding number if you think about it. There’s a reason why all those sites chose WordPress.

The Simplicity of the WordPress Dashboard

The main reason why WordPress is so popular is that it meets the demands of many users in terms of flexibility. It has a user-friendly interface that is designed for non-tech-savvy users. Once installed, you can get started right away by adding pages and posts on your site.

WordPress has a massive support ecosystem for anything and everything related to WordPress, like tutorials and even a dedicated support forum. This means that not only do you maintain complete control over your site, but you also receive great support.

However, don’t get confused when you find 2 types of WordPress websites. WordPress.com is a blog hosting solution. You’ll use this if you don’t have a domain and just want a blog. The downside is the features are limited. WordPress.org, however, is a self-hosted platform. This is what you will need if you want your own domain and hosting. This is where you can build your website on.

WordPress is Versatile

It can be used in many different ways, here’s a list of the limitless types of websites you can build with it:

  • Blog or personal websites
  • Business websites
  • E-commerce sites
  • Membership sites
  • Business directory
  • News portal
  • Social network
  • Job board
  • Portfolio
  • Forum/Community
  • Auction & coupon sites
  • Wiki/Knowledgebase sites
  • Affiliate sites
  • e-Learning sites

And the list goes on. All of which are easily achieved with plugins and themes. So, for instance, if you want to make an e-commerce platform for your business, you simply install an e-commerce plugin, like WooCommerce, and install a theme to make it look nice.

You are also able to customize the look and feel of your website should you want to further work on the theme you like, which is not possible for other web platforms. Other drag-and-drop websites may promise a customizable website, but it is still limited to the available theme found on their website. Moreover, it comes with a hefty subscription bill which will cost you more in the long run.

Plugins

wordpress icon

When it comes to adding features and functionality to your site, you’ll most likely be going to need a plugin for it. There are more than 55,000 plugins out there. This massive ecosystem of plugins beats out all of the other content management systems. Those are just the official extensions from its directory. There are still more than that offered by third parties.

It’s Free and Open-Source

WordPress is an open-source software that has been around since 2003. It’s free for everyone to download.

First, you’ll need to purchase a domain name and web hosting.

All you have to do is easily download it from the WordPress.org website. Once done, you can then upload on to your hosting and use it to create your very own website. Or you can simply install it from your hosting, most reputable hosts have one-click installation buttons for getting WordPress running within minutes.

Compare that to the cheapest ad-free plan of Wix, which is $12.50/mo.

A domain name is the address of your website on the internet, something like brightsanddesigns.com. This is what your will users type in their browser’s address bar to view your website.

You cannot run a website without web hosting. It is the space allotted where you can store all your website files.

Think of it as the domain name is your address, and your web hosting is your house.

We recommend using FastComet. They have great support and competitive pricing. We’ve used them for years now, their chat support and freebies are what sold us to use them. No regrets there!

We hope this article answers your question. These are just 4 of the many reasons why it is the solution for anyone wishing to build a website. If someone asks you the same question, just send them our way.

Give it a try, and let us know what you think.

If you liked this article, then please like us on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram & LinkedIn.


Unlocking the Power of WordPress: Four Compelling Reasons to Build Your Website with This Versatile Platform

COVID-19 is testing us all. With the understanding that we might not be out of the woods for a few months or more, businesses of all sizes are struggling to find their place and footing in this challenging climate. In this article, we will discuss the four primary reasons why WordPress is the number one website-building interface and how using this platform to build your website can save you a significant amount of money.

The Simplicity of the WordPress Dashboard

The main reason behind WordPress's popularity is its ability to meet the demands of many users with its flexibility. It boasts a user-friendly interface designed for non-tech-savvy users, allowing them to get started immediately by adding pages and posts to their site.
WordPress has a massive support ecosystem covering everything related to WordPress, including tutorials and a dedicated support forum. This means you not only maintain complete control over your site but also receive excellent support.

However, it's essential to distinguish between two types of WordPress websites. WordPress.com is a blog hosting solution, suitable if you don't have a domain and only want a blog. However, it has limited features. On the other hand, WordPress.org is a self-hosted platform, and this is what you'll need if you want your domain and hosting to build your website.

WordPress is Versatile

WordPress can be used in many different ways. Here's a list of limitless types of websites you can build with it:

  • Blog or personal websites
  • Business websites
  • E-commerce sites
  • Membership sites
  • Business directory
  • News portal
  • Social network
  • Job board
  • Portfolio
  • Forum/Community
  • Auction & coupon sites
  • Wiki/Knowledgebase sites
  • Affiliate sites
  • e-Learning sites

The list goes on, and all of these can be easily achieved with plugins and themes. For instance, if you want to create an e-commerce platform for your business, you simply install an e-commerce plugin like WooCommerce and apply a theme to make it look appealing.
With WordPress, you can also customize the look and feel of your website, something not easily achievable on other web platforms. Other drag-and-drop website builders may promise customization, but they are still limited to the available themes found on their platform and often come with a hefty subscription bill, costing you more in the long run.

Plugins

When it comes to adding features and functionality to your site, you'll most likely need a plugin for it. There are more than 55,000 plugins available, making up a massive ecosystem that outperforms all other content management systems. These include official extensions from its directory and many more offered by third parties.

It's Free and Open-Source

WordPress is open-source software that has been around since 2003, and it's free for everyone to download.
To get started, you'll need to purchase a domain name and web hosting.

Simply download WordPress from the WordPress.org website and upload it to your hosting to create your website. Many reputable hosts offer one-click installation buttons to get WordPress running within minutes.

Compare that to the cheapest ad-free plan of Wix, which costs $12.50/mo.

A domain name is the address of your website on the internet, such as brightsanddesigns.com. This is what users will type in their browser's address bar to view your website.

You cannot run a website without web hosting. It is the space allotted where you can store all your website files.

Think of it as the domain name being your address and your web hosting being your house.

We recommend using FastComet for great support and competitive pricing. We've used them for years, and their chat support and freebies are what sold us on using them. No regrets there!

We hope this article answered your questions. These are just four of the many reasons why WordPress is the ideal solution for anyone wishing to build a website. If someone asks you the same question, just send them our way.

Give it a try, and let us know what you think.