February 25th, 2010
by Lorrie Thomas
I feel like the “no fun lady” when I advise clients, students and workshop attendees that it is required for every business to have a privacy policy. “You need to update or add a privacy policy” is the last thing a small business owner wants to hear – they’d rather be talking sexier web marketing ideas like social media and web design! But when I gently educate the legal ramifications for NOT having a policy, the comprehension for having one and why is is a piece of the web marketing puzzle hits home. Whether you are selling products or not, an accurate privacy policy is a must for all organizations (small, large, for profit or not-for-profit).
While there are much cooler components of a successful web-solution, knowing how to construct a good privacy policy is essential to your online business presence. The name of the game is addressing how you use personally identifiable information (PII) in email use, email collection, use of cookies on your site (if you use Google Analytics you have cookies on your site), if you sell PII to third-parties, selling online ads on your site, etc.
Good news – You are not alone – there is privacy policy support out there for small organizations!
TRUSTe, provider of the leading online privacy seal and an Internet trust authority, *just* launched its newest Privacy Policy Generator (PPG), which provides a custom privacy policy for a wide-range of websites, from online retailers to online publishers, backed by the TRUSTe certification and seal. The new offering is part of TRUSTe’s Privacy Services for small and medium-sized businesses.
With the new PPG, small business owners of all kinds are able to quickly construct a TRUSTe-hosted privacy policy for their site using an intuitive widget interface. A customer indicates what kind of personal data they are collecting from consumers, how they use the information, and a number of other key elements, and the PPG provides an accurate and consumer-friendly policy, featuring graphical icons to enhance consumer understanding.
Having an accurate privacy policy is critical to website compliance. And we walk the PPG talk – Web Marketing Therapy uses the PPG service (see Web Marketing Therapy’s TRUSTe-hosted Privacy Policy: http://privacy-policy.truste.com/verified-policy/www.webmarketingtherapy.com) to create our policy and make sure it is compliant. I love that part of my service with Truste includes having their team support me to keep it current for years to come.
If you are in business for the long haul, you need to cover your web marketing bum and have a current, accurate policy on your site (usually housed in the footer of your website). You can write one yourself or use free online privacy policy generators, but TRUSTe’s version also scans your site to ensure it’s legitimacy and to verify the presence of certain security and privacy elements, such as cookies and other related tracking technologies (like Google Analytics), to ensure that the privacy policy is accurate and contains important consumer disclosures. Once the privacy policy is approved by TRUSTe’s privacy professionals, you can display the TRUSTe verified privacy policy and seal, increasing consumer confidence and driving improved business results.
From start to finish, the Truste privacy policy generator process can be completed within one business day, giving business owners a nimble and flexible privacy solution in what normally would take several weeks and several thousand dollars with an attorney. For larger companies or those with more complex web sites and privacy disclosures, TRUSTe continues to offer a range of services that include custom consultation with TRUSTe’s privacy professionals.
The new PPG, scanning technology, and TRUSTe Seal is part of TRUSTe’s Standard Privacy Services starting at just $499 per year. To learn more about TRUSTe’s Standard Privacy Services visit: http://www.truste.com/privacy_seals_and_services/small_medium_business_privacy/index.html.
About TRUSTe
Thousands of Web sites rely on TRUSTe’s leading privacy seals to enhance consumer trust, drive increased registrations and transactions, and comply with complex privacy practices. Consumers know that when they see a TRUSTe seal they can “Click with Confidence” because the certified Web site respects their personal information. TRUSTe certifies half of the top fifty Web sites including leading retailers such as Apple, eBay, Cabela’s, Best Buy, Audible, LeapFrog, Microsoft and Yahoo!. Learn more at www.truste.com.
Quick Links:
Web Marketing Therapy’s TRUSTe-hosted Privacy Policy: http://privacy-policy.truste.com/verified-policy/www.webmarketingtherapy.com
A TRUSTe Privacy Seal Success Story: http://www.truste.com/pdf/Debnroo_Case_Study.pdf
TRUSTe Blog: www.truste.com/blog
Web Marketing Therapy Related Links:
- How to Construct a Winning Privacy Policy Free Online Tutorial
- Innovative Online Marketing Ideas on a Shoestring Budget
- Freshen Up Your Web Marketing Educaton with Free Online Tutorials!
- Successful Businesses Engage in Good Matchmaking!
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