Be Legit Online, Get More Customers
by Rachel Brenke, Lawyer

Good job! You're doing a great job.  But let us not forget one of the key stones that will keep your path smooth and not lead to any tripping or twisted ankles.  This is the stone of how being a legit business can get you more customers and, ultimately, more money.

It is a myth that clients perceive your professionalism and legitimacy only through how you speak and dress. 

Those physical presence options are essential elements to a professional front, but legitimacy is built on legal stones. Remember our path we mentioned above? They cannot be missing or else an issue will arise!)

Legitimacy comes not just from the business formation, the creation of a reputation and branding messages being sent out, but also from the actions that you implement into your business workflows.  These include the use of legal precision in the online space, and between other individuals connected to the business.  By use of these legal tools, you can increase buyer confidence, increase your confidence and avoid potential issues that will prevent success in your business.  But most importantly, the use of legal tools will increase the buyer confidence leading to higher customer retention, expanded word-of-mouth network and an increased conversion rate.

Subtle professional measures include the use of lawyer-drafted Terms Of Use (or Service) and Privacy Policies on your website.   

The Terms of Use/Service (TOU/TOS) govern the relationship between the site user and the site owner.   While a TOU may sometimes be legally required, the TOU does more than fulfill a legal requirement.   This informational document outlines the purpose of the site, the site owner, secured access and payment options on site, submissions on-site, potential DMCA information, governing law for users using the site, warranties and any dispute resolution that may arise from use of the site.

A Privacy Policy lets a user of a site know how the information is captured, where it stored, who has access and what will be done with the information.  This information includes transaction data, personal client information, and even payment information.

These legal tools are especially crucial for websites that gather and use client data such as through purchase transactions and user submission of contact information for opt-in forms.  As military spouses, our email list and online presence as crucial to success since often a brick-and-mortar space is a long- dream, or we are uprooting these spaces for a new location at the military's whims.

We must protect the email or customer list with the utmost attention because without it our business may be stuck in that path's pothole with no forward motion.

Further, the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy protection tools also help to increase the confidence in the buyers that are entertaining the thought of hiring your services or purchasing.  These simply footer-embedded hyper-linked legal documents give a nod to the professionalism and security your business has with the website users personal data.  This is especially important in an age where online identity theft and spam emails are swirling through cyberspace like the next Hurricane Katrina.

It is time to protect your business, your users and yourself.  Get yourself set up with lawyer-drafted Terms and Privacy Policies to protect your most personal assets - your online presence and email list.