| |
| |
|
Advertising Information - YourOnlineClassifieds.com - Home |
|
|
|
Hiring an Amateur Could Mean a Potential Lawsuit for Your Business
These days, everyone's looking to save a buck. But if you plan to cut corners by using a fledgling copywriter or marketer, expect to put the money you just saved towards a really good lawyer. Because you may just find yourself in court. Lawsuits abound in today's world. Lots of people are more than willing to sue at the drop of a hat. No one wants to think that they "know" anyone like this, but the truth is, this planet is crawling with lawsuit-happy consumers who can make your life a living hell. You may think, "Oh, I'm just a small start-up; no one would bother trying to get money out of me!" But do you know this for a fact? Even if you're miniscule now, you want to grow your business. With any luck, one day you'll be earning more than just a comfortable living. The best way to ensure your legal protection in the future is to start practicing caution today. How does this relate to your advertising, and who you hire to work for you? Every bit of written material put out by your company is a statement issued by you. If you hire someone who has little to no experience in the real world, you'd better be on top of them at all times. You'd better make sure that what they're creating for your company doesn't contain any legal "loopholes" or claims you can't fulfill. Because as soon as your advertising makes a statement about anything, someone will try and hold you responsible. They might even seek legal counsel on the matter. Yes, what you say can and will be held against you in a court of law. I worked for the "R"Us family of stores for seven years, writing and editing everything from catalog copy to sales promotions to coupons to informative marketing mailers. Nearly everything said in our ads was supported by a legal disclaimer that prevented the company from being held responsible for any "unforseen events" that might occur as an indirect result of our statements. At the time, these legalities posed a great annoyance to our department, slowing down progress and hampering creativity. But today, I'm incredibly grateful for the "extensive legal training" I received while working there. What are some examples of loose-lipped writing that can land you in legal hot water? What situations might you get yourself into in today's fast-paced, maximum-output world of marketers? E-books are hot right now. Everyone wants one, and they want it yesterday. But beware the trouble of an untrained eye taking control of your e-book content! Last year, I worked for a small start-up company. They wanted an e-book written fast, so they hired an unpaid intern. Although the e-book served its purpose well, it was riddled with statements that could get us in trouble! Why? Our e-book was for children. In it, we had included a long list of ways kids could spread holiday cheer. One entry was something to the effect of, "Offer to help your neighbor carry in the groceries." Innocuous as it may seem, the end result of this remark could be some parent taking us to court because their child went out and tried to assist some unsavory character, and was abducted in the process! Heaven forbid, but nothing's impossible. In our e-book, we took care to state "Never do anything without first asking permission from your parents" - many times, and in many ways. Article content: seems like everyone wants it in mass quantities. But how smart is it to hire a wet-behind-the-ears intern to write pages and pages of information and then publish it under your company name? One little slip-up, and guess who's getting a subpoena in the mail. Not the intern! I recently wrote an article on credit card debt elimination. As I was crafting my copy, I kept stumbling over "red flag" statements that could prove troublesome. "Some debt consolidation companies may even be able to erase the interest fees you've accrued." Was that true?? If it wasn't, somebody might be getting an earful down the road. It's difficult to know what information found on the internet is accurate, or just somebody's assertion. If you're not sure - disclaim! Or, simply avoid commenting. Coupons and limited time offers that aren't properly disclaimed can cost you money. Say you run a sale on your website, but you forget to include start and end dates. If the sale prices are valid in January but you don't tell your customers, someone could very well come along and demand a discount in May! Or what if you post an ad for your business offering 50% off all design jobs but you forget to exclude the really high-end projects? You could find yourself working on an extensive web-design job that's only bringing in five hundred dollars when it could have made you a thousand! What about your return policy? You want to be known as a company with its customers' best interest in mind - but what if your return policy is so open-ended, it leaves you vulnerable to excessive returns, when in fact there is really nothing wrong with what you offer? I worked for an e-greeting company this summer. How is an e-greeting company supposed to guarantee "customer satisfaction?" It's not possible! So, in such a case, a statement like this has to go. Would a newborn to the industry have the foresight to make such decisions? My guess is no. Do you sell products via the web? Anything that poses a safety threat should be disclaimed to avoid future legal headaches and thousands of dollars lost. Everything from over-the-counter drugs to children's products to baby clothes to automobile parts to finances must be shielded from potential legal action. Never thought about legal ramifications? Best to get an expert's advice before going forward with your business plan. Still thinking of hiring a novice to help you run your business? Think again. A little extra money spent now can mean a ton of money saved later. Hire a copywriter or marketer with corporate experience, who will exercise legal caution in your business writing and provide financial security for your future. Who knows... you may never even need that lawyer. Copyright 2005 Dina Giolitto. All rights reserved. Dina Giolitto is a New-Jersey based Copywriting Consultant with nine years' industry experience. Her current focus is web content and web marketing for a multitude of products and services although the bulk of her experience lies in retail for big-name companies like Toys"R"Us. Visit http://www.wordfeeder.com for rates and samples
MORE RESOURCES:
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Power of... You certainly must know that Many Big Marketers consider COPYWRITING to be the most important skill you need to be earning online.There's a lot of good copywriting around. Fax Advertising : Hitting Your Target Immediately In the business of marketing and advertising, it used to be that companies that wanted to get the word out quickly to key customers on a new development would rely on email with follow-up phone calls. But with the new technologies available in fax broadcasting, fax advertising has taken over as the advertising medium of choice when it comes to contacting your customers at the speed of light. Print Your Marketing Postcards For A Penny, Address Them For Free, and Automate the Whole Process This article will show you how to cut your printing costs to a penny and have your postcards addressed for free without doing it all yourself, reducing the time you invest in your mailing to almost nothing.So, you have a list of hot prospects in hand; you need a way to get your marketing message in front of them with the hope that a reasonable percentage will call you. The Graphic Problem Digital printing has revolutionized the sign industry. Current printers can reproduce an image at 1440 dpi (dots per inch) at virtually any size. How to Write Great Headlines According to experts, just changing the headline of an ad or sales letter has been known to dramatically improve the effectiveness of an ad or sales letter by up to 1700 percent! Yes, headlines are that powerful--and that important!An effective headline will do many things at once. It will attract the readers attention, convey benefits by appealing to the readers self-interest and it will set the stage for what is to come. Advertising Basics for Beginners So many of us who have decided to do business online have no background in marketing or advertising. It can be so frustrating without any kind of guide. Design Your Own Newspaper Ads Many people in business lay-out (design) their ownads. That old adage "If It Is To Be It Is Up ToMe" prevails. Three Keys to Crafting Successful Print Ads Want to create print ads that get results? Below are three keys to get you started.1. How to Create Ads that Sell with Little Effort One of the main problems people find withmarketing, is the actual selling.How can you create ads which sell?Well there are tons of articles, and payfor e-books to help you create ad copy, butthere is a free and easy way to createyour own ads which sell, sell sell. Double Your Sales Potential With Double-sided Business Cards Swapping business cards is one of the most basic and common forms of networking in the business world. With something that is so common practice, people often hand out cards blindly while not really thinking about what the card does AFTER you hand it out. Business Ideas: 5 Uncommon Ways To Generate More Online Business Sometimes, it is not an obvious business idea that will makeyou more money.It may be what is not so obvious, which most people never thinkof that may make you money. Humor in Advertising Many of the most memorable ad campaigns around tend to be funny. Advertisers use this strategy to attract customers to their product. Measure the Response of Your Advertising Campaigns by Using Promotional Products For most companies, gone are the days of spending money just for the pleasure of seeing their name on TV or the Internet.Most companies today are forced to insist on results. Advertising on a Budget -- Part 3: Frequency, Frequency, Frequency This is the third article of a three-part series. I'm illustrating the marketing challenges of PrescottWeddings. Successful Print Advertising Designs Do you often see print advertisements outdoors, as much as you see Web advertisements when you surf through the Web? I'm pretty sure that you have entirely different views and reactions upon seeing and actually taking notice to these two different kinds of advertising. The differences may vary in their use of color, typefaces, and space. Joint Ventures Increase Profits Quickly A joint venture is when two or more businesses jointogether to work on a project for a set period of time.Doing joint ventures with other businesses can increaseyour chances of beating your competition, increase yoursales and increase your profits quickly. What Makes A Winning Online Ad? Most people who have been involved with sales & marketing for any length of time have heard the axiom, "Sell them what they want. Then sell them what they need". CD Business Cards- Why Use Them? CD Business cards are the electronic version of the now outdated paper business or social card. They are the smaller squared version of the CD-R family. Why I Like The Ads I Hate! It's been said that the antidote to liking/loving is not hating,but indifference. So, when an ad makes you angry or disgusted orevokes any other strong emotion, it has done it's job. Direct Mail Rules of Thumb First and foremost - You should identify your target market. Target your direct marketing lists.
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
youronlineclassifieds.com - home | site map
üClick Here to Earn - an ongoing, monthly residual income - a very SUBSTANTIAL monthly income - even if you don't have a website! |
| © 2006 |
