Because of potential liability, it is rarely a good idea to have your website target minor children. Collecting data from them is an even bigger risk. In most cases (unless your business model is built on selling toys or other things for kids), it just isn’t worth dealing with the hassle. That’s why many wise online marketers use terms and conditions of use and privacy policies on their websites that specifically bar children from using their sites without active parental involvement.

If you insist on having kids use your site, you’re going to want to have customized website legal documents that specifically address COPPA requirements and a verified parental consent process for such use.

Sony was just an example made by the FTC - presumably because of the number of kids involved and the deep pockets that could pay a fine which would result in news stories and blog posts (like this one).

But what if your business got caught violating COPPA…even accidentally. Could you afford to defend yourself? Why take the risk. Either don’t let minors use your website or make sure that their use doesn’t violate laws that could put you in legal hot water.

Although there are indeed privacy and national security issues involving Google Maps and Google Earth, let’s put things in perspective. The Indian government has done almost nothing to defend itself against terrorism despite horrific attacks against the United States, Spain, London, Bali, etc. since 2001.

When you’re fighting a ‘cold war’ for control of Kashmir with people who from time to time do use terrorism to further political and religious interests, maybe you should take a few precautions. The first that comes to mind is actually defending your borders.

What’s behind the litigation against Google Earth? Competition. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is about to launch competing satellite imaging called “Bhuvan” (Earth). What an amazing coincidence.

In essence, the court is being asked to hurt Google to benefit ISRO and do it because of a terrorist attack that would have occurred whether or not Google Earth’s satellite images existed. If India wants to ban things used by terrorists, why not go after clothing manufacturers? After all, the terrorists wore clothes before, during, and after the attacks. Forced nudism would have made the attacks more difficult to carry out.[/sarcasm].

Ridiculous? Perhaps. But no more absurd than capitalizing on a pile of dead bodies to hinder the competition.

You don’t collect information from your visitors? What about cookies? Or how about data for your advertisers? If there’s Google Adsense on your site or third party banner ads, think they’re collecting info from your visitors? if so, what are they doing with it. And do you collect e-mail addresses, credit card numbers, names, addresses, etc. as part of your ecommerce?

Some online business owners use a privacy policy template if they can’t afford to retain an Internet lawyer to draft customized privacy policies for their websites.

What’s a privacy policy template? It’s a form, typically generated by a computer software program, that covers most major privacy issues faced by online entrepreneurs.

If you do use website legal forms software to create your privacy policy, be sure to use a program that (a) is up-to-date, and (b) includes forms that were professionally prepared by an Internet lawyer. The big issue that one sees with most software is that the information is old and outdated. There are marketers selling website legal forms software that’s 5-6 years old. U.S. Internet law has changed a lot in that time frame, particularly privacy policy requirements. These old software programs have gaping holes in the types of protection every website owner would want in a privacy policy.

In short, you should seriously consider having your website protected by customized privacy policy prepared by a qualified Internet attorney.

The next best thing (if you can’t afford the legal fees), is to use a software program like Website Legal Forms Generator to protect yourself.

…

I appreciate all those who submitted their complaints about bad
online marketing practices. It took several hours, but I read
every single one. Took a couple more hours to select the best from
a very competitive field. Here they are…

***The 5 Winning Submissions***

Here’s the five selected as the best and the names of those who
submitted them. The words that are not in quotes are my words
describing the ideas being each submission.

1. Deceptive earnings claims. Spin is one thing. Lying about
earnings is wrong. Just ask the guys who cooked the books for Enron.

“Photoshopping checks or screenshots to make their income seem more
impressive…Bragging about revenue with no mention of expenses.
Who cares if you make $1 million a year in PPC if it costs you $1.1
million to do it?”

Mike Collins
IMisEasy.com

and

“Clickbank and Paypal Account Income Pages that date back sometimes
two years so have no bearing on what money has or could be made in
this economy”

Vivien Deighton

2. Deceptive e-mails. Good copywriting emphasizes benefits but
doesn’t lie to the reader.

“What REALLY frosts me is when I recieve emails with the subject
line ‘URGENT,’ when there is no urgency at all, or a falsely
created ‘urgency’ designed only to sell the mailer’s product.”

Gene Pimentel
DomainProfitsClub.com

3. Repackaging old products and selling as new products. Recycling
identical content without disclosure is deceptive.

“I have seen a group of friends (not my friends) run [offers] that
are nothing more than the same product sold over and over. Today
its a mentoring program tomorrow its a membership next week
I see it is now a home study course. The mentoring program failed,
the membership was closed and now its a home study course.”

David Smith
AnotherDavidSmith.com

4. Promoting a product without reviewing it first. Just because
there’s a big affiliate commission or your buddy asked you to
promote to his list, doesn’t mean you should pike a product without
reviewing it first. Blind promotion is a disservice to your lists
and to your business’ reputation.

“[T]he REAL thing that gets me angry is when the ‘gurus’, or anyone
else for that matter, pitches me a product, claims they’ve reviewed
it, say “it’s the best thing since slice bread”, only for the product
to turn out to be…bad. Promoting their ‘mates’ products because
they owe them a favour when the product is blatantly flawed (or
poor quality etc.) is a BIG no no in my book.”

Ian Canaway
Manchester, UK

5. Piking everything to lists indiscriminately. Don’t promote
everything just to make an extra buck. If a product doesn’t match
your market, there’s absolutely no ethical reason to try to sell it
to them.

“What ticks me off is others promoting ANYTHING/EVERYTHING to their
list. Instead of using an actual example of how it really helped them,
they send out a copy and paste “this is the greatest” “buy from my
link” I think it really hurts their credibility.

Also, some of the BEST credibility building that I’ve seen is from a
marketer sending out an email saying why they are NOT going to buy a
product.  Out of thousands of emails, I can tell you TWO that have
NOT recommend a launch.  I found that to be especially honest and
credible.”

John Mazzara
JohnMazzara.com

*************

Each winner chose

(1) a free personal copy of the Website Legal Forms Generator
software
(2) a copy of my new digital guide “How to Create Your Own Internet
Business Without a Lawyer for Under $175″ with resale rights,
(3) or a copy of Dan Kennedy’s No B.S. Time Management book

Thanks again to everyone who participated. By working exposing bad
marketing practices, you and I are taking a step towards cleaning
up ecommerce.

…AND, although the contest is over, if you have any additional
thoughts on bad online marketing practices, I’d love to hear them.
Simply reply to this e-mail and feel free to vent.

Best wishes,

-Mike

P.S. To recap, here’s my personal list of five marketing peeves:

1. Spamming. No explanation needed.
2. Hidden continuity programs where you’re getting billed monthly
for something you didn’t know you ordered.
3. Nonexistent refunds. If there’s a refund policy, it should be
honored. Period. End of story.
4. Overpromising. If anything, marketers should under promise. Not
every product will make one millions or cure cancer.
5. Lack of support. Phone numbers and e-mails that don’t work…and
fifteen different hoops to jump through to get a response.

Based on U.S. federal Internet law, the software generates 7 quality website legal forms (including Terms and Conditions of Use and a Privacy Policy) in just 17 minutes or less.

Do I recommend this product? Of course. I created it.

It is a substitute for professional legal advice? Of course not. But if you can’t afford a lawyer, it’s the next best thing. And you’ll be amazed how quickly and easily it is to generate the forms.

There’s a special introductory offer that will disappear as soon as there’s enough customer feedback and testimonials. So you’ll want to go to LegalFormsGenerator.com right now to learn more.

The man who sits in the Oval Office will not make or break your online business. You’ll succeed or fail on your own terms. That being said, a President Barack Hussein Obama supported by a Democrat majority in both houses of Congress can and will make life more difficult for you online.

Here’s a look at what to expect in 2009.

1. Fairness Doctrine. A priority issue for the Democrats is to revive the misnamed Fairness Doctrine as a way to squelch the opposition on talk radio. Unless there’s a specific exemption in new legislation for blogging, the Fairness Doctrine will chill your free speech. When you voice an opinion, you’ll be bound to give your opponents/competitors equal time to refute it. Disgusting.

2. Workers’ Rights. As part of efforts to appease union interests, look for new employee rights to be created that are anti-employer. This will make it especially important for you to dot your I’s and cross your T’s when outsourcing work to independent contractors in order to avoid getting penalized.

3. Higher taxes. Tax cuts will be allowed to expire rather than renewed. This is a de facto tax increase on your income. Anyone who complains about higher taxes will be accused of being greedy, selfish, and not willing to pay their fair share. The prevailing political philosophy is that government can spend your income better than you can. For the public good. For the children. For the elderly. You get the picture.  If you oppose the looting of your earned income, it will mean that you are mean-spirited and hate puppies. If you’re even thinking about feeling guilty, you’ll want to get a copy of Ayn Rand’s The Virtue of Selfishness now to understand how you’re being manipulated and what you can do about it.

4. More taxes. Expect there to be a big push for a uniform taxation system for e-commerce. The states and cities will now have a friendly ear in Washington for setting up a system that makes you the tax collector for the welfare state. Once the tech is in place to impose a uniform system, bet that it will be used. Too much money on the table for it to be otherwise.

5. Astroturfing. Obama’s campaign was masterminded by David Axelrod. Think Karl Rove with a 21st Century talent for getting things done behind the scenes. Astroturfing is the term for creating fake grassroots support online for a particular cause in the hopes of altering public perception. Successful online marketers will want to ethically model Axelrod’s astroturfing of the package he sold (Obama) to pitch their own products and services via the Internet.

Remember that it is up to you to succeed in your online marketing activities. Do not credit or blame the government for your actions. As of now, it is not yet time for Atlas to shrug.

What do you think?

Who is Sam?

Sam is a six-year-old boy who has been diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. One of nine types of muscular dystrophy, Duchenne is one of the worst that you can get. It is the leading genetic killer of young boys.

By age 12, most kids with it have to use a wheelchair to get around. Muscles deteriorate, the body becomes severely deformed, and few children live beyond their late teens with it. Towards the end, it is common to be placed on a ventilator in order to even breathe. And the whole time, the mind remains alert, i.e. the child knows what’s happening.

It’s a parent’s worst nightmare…and you have to wonder what you would do if your own child was diagnosed with it. Hopefully, your response would be something as positive as Sam’s Day.

And what is Sam’s Day?

Sam’s Day was created by his parents and family friends as a way to raise funds to help find a cure for Duchenne. 100% of the funds raised go towards Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy’s research programs. Featuring entertainment by Radio Disney, and with filled with activities that kids of all ages like (bounce houses, magicians, etc.), it is a great way to help others while having a good time in the process. You can read more about Sam’s Day here. And here’s the link to a video where Sam tells you about it himself.

How You Can Help

Right now, you can make a donation to Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy by clicking this link. Or, you can write a check to “Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy” and send it to Kathrine Foster, Northwestern Mutual, 12221 Merit Drive, Suite 1500, Dallas, Texas 75251. Check with your employer because your donation might qualify for matching funds.

Here’s a video with more information about Duchenne.

And next year, be sure to attend Sam’s Day. I look forward to seeing you there.

Asset forfeiture and civil judgments just aren’t enough to deter spamming when it is so profitable for those who do it.

What’s the solution?

It is time for a law that requires career spammers be executed. I’m not talking about the Internet newbie who sends you spam inadvertently after getting your business card. That’s annoying but the newbie isn’t maliciously profitting by sending tens of millions of unsolicited junk e-mails monthly that waste countless labor hours trying to delete or fix damage caused by trojans, etc.

As for those hours wasted, imagine what humanity could do with it instead? Increase work productivity? Make technological and medical discoveries? Even a worldwide twiddling of thumbs would be better than cleaning out the inbox, updating spam filters, and running virus checks on everything to combat spammers.

Jerks who knowingly and willingly send you spam about diet pills, sexual enhancement drugs, fake Rolex watches, etc. should be put to death.

Does this mean we should become vigilantes and execute them? Of course not.

What I do mean is that Congress should spend half the time it does protecting Hollywood with bad IP laws passed because of bribes disguised as campaign contributions and devote the time instead to passing draconian laws that make it extremely painful for spammers to live and breathe on Planet Earth.

Before the bleeding heart Pollyannas of this world start screaming about spammers’ civil rights, let me be clear. The cretins should be afforded due process of law. But once convicted, sentenced, and the appeals exhausted, they should be led to a public square and executed. Ideally, the execution would be webcast and televised as a deterrent to others thinking of embarking on a spamming career.

And for those who are adamantly against the death penalty, I’m willing to compromise. Let’s borrow the penalty imposed by some Middle Eastern countries on thieves. After all, spammers steal our irreplaceable time.

Let’s provide due process in a court of law but chop off the hands as a sentence instead of imposing the death penalty. Repeat offenders lose other body parts (tongue to eliminate voice recognition software spamming) until Stubby the Spammer realizes it is time to pursue a legitimate vocation.

What do you think? How should spammers be punished?

Some flames accused me of attacking Ryan Deiss in the process. While it is true that Deiss is Belcher’s friend and supporter, it is insane to infer that pointing out Belcher’s arrest somehow meant I was going after Deiss too.

Now back to Belcher. According to The Memphis Commercial Appeal (Shelby County man sentenced for health-remedy scam), Belcher has pled guilty to computer fraud, received a 10-year suspended sentence, forfeited many websites, and more than $1 million in assets as part of the plea agreement.

The next time you consider treading into gray or black hat Internet marketing tactics, consider what has happened to Belcher.

I have no doubt that he’ll rebound from the experience and do well if he positions himself in Internet marketing circles as a martyr to a government witch hunt.

But that’s beside the point. It could have been avoided. And you can learn from his experience to prevent it from happening to you.

Hat tip to the AP - Fake health care scam draws guilty plea in Memphis.

What do you think about the plea deal? Was Belcher picked upon? Did he get a fair deal? Was the sentence a slap on the wrist? Should Belcher’s alleged victims receive restitution from him?

When I sat down to read Stephen Pierce’s new free book, Make Real Money on the Internet, I wasn’t sure what to expect.

Here’s my review.

If you’re an intermediate or advanced Internet marketer (i.e. you’ve got a steady part-time or full-time income from e-commerce), this probably isn’t the book for you.

However, if you’re just starting your first Internet business or are having trouble earning money online, you should read this book now (use a highlighter while reading and take notes with a pen in the back of the book in the space provided).

What does Pierce’s guide cover? He provides an easy-to-understand overview of: (1) niche research; (2) product selection; (3) traffic and lead generation; (4) social networking and blogging; and (5) automating your business, including back end offers.

The book is a quick read that’s well worth your time if you’re not making enough money online…and you can’t beat the price. It’s free.  Get your copy now at this link.