Every business needs to be on social media these days. However, social media can be legally risky if done wrong! Learn five top tips to keep your business from getting sued while using social media for marketing.
The research upon which this William Fry report is based was undertaken by Amárach Research.
Two separate surveys were conducted, one among employers and one among employees of organisations operating in Ireland and of a size of 50 employees or more. A range of questions relating to social media in the workplace were asked of both groups to allow for an employer and employee perspective to be captured. A total of 200 employers were surveyed via telephone interviews and 500 employees were interviewed online. All interviewing was conducted in February 2013.
More details from William Fry: www.williamfry.ie
PowerPoint slides from general session of the Grow Revenue: Get Online and Boost Sales Restaurant Education Series event hosted by the Ohio Restaurant Association for their members. Speakers included Jarrod Clabaugh of the Ohio Restaurant Association and Jaime Kolligian of Kastner Westman and Wilkins.
The research upon which this William Fry report is based was undertaken by Amárach Research.
Two separate surveys were conducted, one among employers and one among employees of organisations operating in Ireland and of a size of 50 employees or more. A range of questions relating to social media in the workplace were asked of both groups to allow for an employer and employee perspective to be captured. A total of 200 employers were surveyed via telephone interviews and 500 employees were interviewed online. All interviewing was conducted in February 2013.
More details from William Fry: www.williamfry.ie
PowerPoint slides from general session of the Grow Revenue: Get Online and Boost Sales Restaurant Education Series event hosted by the Ohio Restaurant Association for their members. Speakers included Jarrod Clabaugh of the Ohio Restaurant Association and Jaime Kolligian of Kastner Westman and Wilkins.
Navigating Social Media Legal Risks Featuring Author Robert McHaleSocial Media Club
Author Robert McHale joined Social Media Club for our July Book Club Webinar featuring his new title, Navigating Social Media Legal Risks: Safeguarding Your Business - View the introductory post here: http://socialmediaclub.org/blogs/from-the-clubhouse/social-media-july-book-club-navigating-social-media-legal-risks-robert-mcha
Slides are property of Author Robert McHale, Esq.
Your Social Media Presence – Adhering to Ethics Rules While Being Social“ Peggy Gruenke
An Overview of Social Media Platforms and Ethic Rules for lawyers to adhere to while using social media tools like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook.
Applying the ABA Model Rules using Social Media:
Rule 7.1: False or Misleading Information
Rule 7.3: Use of Disclaimers
Rule 1.6: Confidentiality of Client Communications
Rule 7.2: Are your social media sites considered advertising
Rule 7.3: Solicitation vs Advertising
Rule 7.4: Specialization and Expert Status
Tips for building ethically compliant profile
Whether or not your organization is using social media for business, your employees probably are using it. Whether they're engaging in a personal or professional way, your company needs a social media policy.
see attachedTitle social Media in the work placeWhat is the .docxbagotjesusa
see attached
Title social Media in the work place
What is the advanges and disadvanges of social media in the work place
the effect of social media in the workplace
10 The Enterprise Feb. 1-7,2010
Social media and the workplace Manners and your bottom line
In some social circles,if you aren't "tweeting,"
you're considered disconnected or entirely out of
touch. Certainly, it seems that social networks like
Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin and other Web 2.0
environments have eclipsed comer bars, coffee
houses and country clubs as the common gathering
places for some groups. Take, for example.
Generation Y. By 2010, Gen Y will outnumber
their Baby Boomer predecessors, and 96 percent of
them have joined a social network. What's more, if
Facebook were a country, it would be the world's
fourth largest nation, with 300 million "citizens."
But individuals aren't the only ones socializing
online. Companies are finding a voice within
social networks too. Just a short decade
ago companies were creating inviting Web
sites to allow their constituents to visit
them. Now, many courageous companies
are reaching outside their firewalls
and enlisting social media forums, like
Twitter and Facebook, to actively engage
and directly communicate with their
constituents. Others are generating original
content and encouraging discussion about
their products and services through blogs
and chat rooms on their Web sites. .
But despite the relatively widespread adoption
of social media among companies for purposes
of marketing and PR, many businesses are still
struggling with the " i f and "how to" of allowing
access to social media within the workplace. In
fact, one recent study reported that 54 percent of
companies prohibit any access to social media
networks on the job, and another 19 percent of
companies permit only limited access solely for
business purposes. Why?
Businesses and their management teams
have valid concerns about opening the door,
or firewalls as the case may be, to social media,
but proponents for employees' open access have
equally compelling arguments to counter those
concerns. For example, business leaders worry that
they'll see a decrease in productivity if employees
are allowed to access their Twitter or Facebook
accounts from their office, but others will argue that
access to social media networks actually promotes
productivity because workers can conduct more
thorough research and interact with coworkers and
customers more effectively. Proponents also point
out that workers who are able to tweet during work
hours are more likely to respond to work e-mails or
check voicemail during non-work hours.
Of course, many managers voice serious
concerns about the potential for employees to leak
confidential company information, spread negative
comments about the company or conduct illegal
online activity from the workplace. Certainly these
are real issues for company leaders to consider.
Given the prevalence of social media today,
however, it is beg.
Developing a Social Media Policy for Your Law FirmLisa Hopkins
While many rules are clearly laid out for lawyer advertising in Texas, social media continues to be uncharted territory. Understanding how social media affects your law firm on multiple levels is important. This presentation addresses the ethics surrounding posting on social media, including discussions on what content the firm can share in relation to case results and client testimonials. As well, Lisa it provides insight on how your law firm can craft a social media policy for your firm as well as your employees that will help avoid any brand disasters.
Social Media Best Practices: Pacific New Media, April 2017Gwen Woltz
Social media is intended to be both holistic and strategic. Who your business follows, how you converse, what content you share, all tells a story of who you are as a company. Through a tour of best practices of "need to have," "nice to have," and "great to have," you gain with a better understanding of the latest trends, etiquette, what it looks like to "do social media right", and why the details matter.
Gwen Woltz is co-founder of Wahine Media, a local social media agency that specializes in strategically building thriving and engaged online communities for businesses (wahinemedia.com). Gwen is a graduate of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, past president of Social Media Club Hawaii, a finalist for Pacific Edge Magazine`s Young Professional of the Year, one of Hawaii`s Top 15 Social Media Influencers in 2012, and has over 8 years of digital media and marketing experience.
Corporate Social Media Guidelines - Protecting Your Organization From Hidden ...Raul Colon
One wrong move can land you or your company into an unknown abyss. The lack of guidance from Social Media and non-existent controls can cost companies hundreds of thousands or even millions. The hidden risks of not understanding the many channels of Social Media are immeasurable. With a better understanding and some guidance on Social Media Patterns yourself and your company are going to be able to mitigate the arising risks.
Social media have changed the way our consumer society works.
In this piece, we’ll share guidelines to succeed in gathering social media intelligence, and share use cases where it can be helpful.
Stacey Burke and Megan Hargroder speak to the American Association of Justice Women Trial Lawyers Caucus about digital marketing for lawyers and law firms.
How Law Firms Build Trust for Your Business Online (Social Media Policy)Mike Mintz
This presentation gives the legal and business framework for corporations looking to build trust online with their customers. Through partnering with a law firm to craft a custom social media policy, deploy it to staff, and maintain continuous monitoring and litigation support, businesses can more effectively enter the social media space with confidence.
Navigating Social Media Legal Risks Featuring Author Robert McHaleSocial Media Club
Author Robert McHale joined Social Media Club for our July Book Club Webinar featuring his new title, Navigating Social Media Legal Risks: Safeguarding Your Business - View the introductory post here: http://socialmediaclub.org/blogs/from-the-clubhouse/social-media-july-book-club-navigating-social-media-legal-risks-robert-mcha
Slides are property of Author Robert McHale, Esq.
Your Social Media Presence – Adhering to Ethics Rules While Being Social“ Peggy Gruenke
An Overview of Social Media Platforms and Ethic Rules for lawyers to adhere to while using social media tools like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook.
Applying the ABA Model Rules using Social Media:
Rule 7.1: False or Misleading Information
Rule 7.3: Use of Disclaimers
Rule 1.6: Confidentiality of Client Communications
Rule 7.2: Are your social media sites considered advertising
Rule 7.3: Solicitation vs Advertising
Rule 7.4: Specialization and Expert Status
Tips for building ethically compliant profile
Whether or not your organization is using social media for business, your employees probably are using it. Whether they're engaging in a personal or professional way, your company needs a social media policy.
see attachedTitle social Media in the work placeWhat is the .docxbagotjesusa
see attached
Title social Media in the work place
What is the advanges and disadvanges of social media in the work place
the effect of social media in the workplace
10 The Enterprise Feb. 1-7,2010
Social media and the workplace Manners and your bottom line
In some social circles,if you aren't "tweeting,"
you're considered disconnected or entirely out of
touch. Certainly, it seems that social networks like
Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin and other Web 2.0
environments have eclipsed comer bars, coffee
houses and country clubs as the common gathering
places for some groups. Take, for example.
Generation Y. By 2010, Gen Y will outnumber
their Baby Boomer predecessors, and 96 percent of
them have joined a social network. What's more, if
Facebook were a country, it would be the world's
fourth largest nation, with 300 million "citizens."
But individuals aren't the only ones socializing
online. Companies are finding a voice within
social networks too. Just a short decade
ago companies were creating inviting Web
sites to allow their constituents to visit
them. Now, many courageous companies
are reaching outside their firewalls
and enlisting social media forums, like
Twitter and Facebook, to actively engage
and directly communicate with their
constituents. Others are generating original
content and encouraging discussion about
their products and services through blogs
and chat rooms on their Web sites. .
But despite the relatively widespread adoption
of social media among companies for purposes
of marketing and PR, many businesses are still
struggling with the " i f and "how to" of allowing
access to social media within the workplace. In
fact, one recent study reported that 54 percent of
companies prohibit any access to social media
networks on the job, and another 19 percent of
companies permit only limited access solely for
business purposes. Why?
Businesses and their management teams
have valid concerns about opening the door,
or firewalls as the case may be, to social media,
but proponents for employees' open access have
equally compelling arguments to counter those
concerns. For example, business leaders worry that
they'll see a decrease in productivity if employees
are allowed to access their Twitter or Facebook
accounts from their office, but others will argue that
access to social media networks actually promotes
productivity because workers can conduct more
thorough research and interact with coworkers and
customers more effectively. Proponents also point
out that workers who are able to tweet during work
hours are more likely to respond to work e-mails or
check voicemail during non-work hours.
Of course, many managers voice serious
concerns about the potential for employees to leak
confidential company information, spread negative
comments about the company or conduct illegal
online activity from the workplace. Certainly these
are real issues for company leaders to consider.
Given the prevalence of social media today,
however, it is beg.
Developing a Social Media Policy for Your Law FirmLisa Hopkins
While many rules are clearly laid out for lawyer advertising in Texas, social media continues to be uncharted territory. Understanding how social media affects your law firm on multiple levels is important. This presentation addresses the ethics surrounding posting on social media, including discussions on what content the firm can share in relation to case results and client testimonials. As well, Lisa it provides insight on how your law firm can craft a social media policy for your firm as well as your employees that will help avoid any brand disasters.
Social Media Best Practices: Pacific New Media, April 2017Gwen Woltz
Social media is intended to be both holistic and strategic. Who your business follows, how you converse, what content you share, all tells a story of who you are as a company. Through a tour of best practices of "need to have," "nice to have," and "great to have," you gain with a better understanding of the latest trends, etiquette, what it looks like to "do social media right", and why the details matter.
Gwen Woltz is co-founder of Wahine Media, a local social media agency that specializes in strategically building thriving and engaged online communities for businesses (wahinemedia.com). Gwen is a graduate of the University of Hawaii at Manoa, past president of Social Media Club Hawaii, a finalist for Pacific Edge Magazine`s Young Professional of the Year, one of Hawaii`s Top 15 Social Media Influencers in 2012, and has over 8 years of digital media and marketing experience.
Corporate Social Media Guidelines - Protecting Your Organization From Hidden ...Raul Colon
One wrong move can land you or your company into an unknown abyss. The lack of guidance from Social Media and non-existent controls can cost companies hundreds of thousands or even millions. The hidden risks of not understanding the many channels of Social Media are immeasurable. With a better understanding and some guidance on Social Media Patterns yourself and your company are going to be able to mitigate the arising risks.
Social media have changed the way our consumer society works.
In this piece, we’ll share guidelines to succeed in gathering social media intelligence, and share use cases where it can be helpful.
Stacey Burke and Megan Hargroder speak to the American Association of Justice Women Trial Lawyers Caucus about digital marketing for lawyers and law firms.
How Law Firms Build Trust for Your Business Online (Social Media Policy)Mike Mintz
This presentation gives the legal and business framework for corporations looking to build trust online with their customers. Through partnering with a law firm to craft a custom social media policy, deploy it to staff, and maintain continuous monitoring and litigation support, businesses can more effectively enter the social media space with confidence.
New FDA Social Media Guidelines 2014: Star Group AnalysisJoshua Spiegel
What does the recent draft guidance from the FDA for social media mean for Pharma brands? Find out what Star Life Sciences thinks, then visit us at starlifebrands.com to see more articles with our thinking.
Tata Group Dials Taiwan for Its Chipmaking Ambition in Gujarat’s DholeraAvirahi City Dholera
The Tata Group, a titan of Indian industry, is making waves with its advanced talks with Taiwanese chipmakers Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC) and UMC Group. The goal? Establishing a cutting-edge semiconductor fabrication unit (fab) in Dholera, Gujarat. This isn’t just any project; it’s a potential game changer for India’s chipmaking aspirations and a boon for investors seeking promising residential projects in dholera sir.
Visit : https://www.avirahi.com/blog/tata-group-dials-taiwan-for-its-chipmaking-ambition-in-gujarats-dholera/
"𝑩𝑬𝑮𝑼𝑵 𝑾𝑰𝑻𝑯 𝑻𝑱 𝑰𝑺 𝑯𝑨𝑳𝑭 𝑫𝑶𝑵𝑬"
𝐓𝐉 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐬 (𝐓𝐉 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬) is a professional event agency that includes experts in the event-organizing market in Vietnam, Korea, and ASEAN countries. We provide unlimited types of events from Music concerts, Fan meetings, and Culture festivals to Corporate events, Internal company events, Golf tournaments, MICE events, and Exhibitions.
𝐓𝐉 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐬 provides unlimited package services including such as Event organizing, Event planning, Event production, Manpower, PR marketing, Design 2D/3D, VIP protocols, Interpreter agency, etc.
Sports events - Golf competitions/billiards competitions/company sports events: dynamic and challenging
⭐ 𝐅𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬:
➢ 2024 BAEKHYUN [Lonsdaleite] IN HO CHI MINH
➢ SUPER JUNIOR-L.S.S. THE SHOW : Th3ee Guys in HO CHI MINH
➢FreenBecky 1st Fan Meeting in Vietnam
➢CHILDREN ART EXHIBITION 2024: BEYOND BARRIERS
➢ WOW K-Music Festival 2023
➢ Winner [CROSS] Tour in HCM
➢ Super Show 9 in HCM with Super Junior
➢ HCMC - Gyeongsangbuk-do Culture and Tourism Festival
➢ Korean Vietnam Partnership - Fair with LG
➢ Korean President visits Samsung Electronics R&D Center
➢ Vietnam Food Expo with Lotte Wellfood
"𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲, 𝐚 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐣𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐲. 𝐖𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐚 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬."
Affordable Stationery Printing Services in Jaipur | Navpack n PrintNavpack & Print
Looking for professional printing services in Jaipur? Navpack n Print offers high-quality and affordable stationery printing for all your business needs. Stand out with custom stationery designs and fast turnaround times. Contact us today for a quote!
Skye Residences | Extended Stay Residences Near Toronto Airportmarketingjdass
Experience unparalleled EXTENDED STAY and comfort at Skye Residences located just minutes from Toronto Airport. Discover sophisticated accommodations tailored for discerning travelers.
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3.0 Project 2_ Developing My Brand Identity Kit.pptxtanyjahb
A personal brand exploration presentation summarizes an individual's unique qualities and goals, covering strengths, values, passions, and target audience. It helps individuals understand what makes them stand out, their desired image, and how they aim to achieve it.
What is the TDS Return Filing Due Date for FY 2024-25.pdfseoforlegalpillers
It is crucial for the taxpayers to understand about the TDS Return Filing Due Date, so that they can fulfill your TDS obligations efficiently. Taxpayers can avoid penalties by sticking to the deadlines and by accurate filing of TDS. Timely filing of TDS will make sure about the availability of tax credits. You can also seek the professional guidance of experts like Legal Pillers for timely filing of the TDS Return.
Enterprise Excellence is Inclusive Excellence.pdfKaiNexus
Enterprise excellence and inclusive excellence are closely linked, and real-world challenges have shown that both are essential to the success of any organization. To achieve enterprise excellence, organizations must focus on improving their operations and processes while creating an inclusive environment that engages everyone. In this interactive session, the facilitator will highlight commonly established business practices and how they limit our ability to engage everyone every day. More importantly, though, participants will likely gain increased awareness of what we can do differently to maximize enterprise excellence through deliberate inclusion.
What is Enterprise Excellence?
Enterprise Excellence is a holistic approach that's aimed at achieving world-class performance across all aspects of the organization.
What might I learn?
A way to engage all in creating Inclusive Excellence. Lessons from the US military and their parallels to the story of Harry Potter. How belt systems and CI teams can destroy inclusive practices. How leadership language invites people to the party. There are three things leaders can do to engage everyone every day: maximizing psychological safety to create environments where folks learn, contribute, and challenge the status quo.
Who might benefit? Anyone and everyone leading folks from the shop floor to top floor.
Dr. William Harvey is a seasoned Operations Leader with extensive experience in chemical processing, manufacturing, and operations management. At Michelman, he currently oversees multiple sites, leading teams in strategic planning and coaching/practicing continuous improvement. William is set to start his eighth year of teaching at the University of Cincinnati where he teaches marketing, finance, and management. William holds various certifications in change management, quality, leadership, operational excellence, team building, and DiSC, among others.
Kseniya Leshchenko: Shared development support service model as the way to ma...Lviv Startup Club
Kseniya Leshchenko: Shared development support service model as the way to make small projects with small budgets profitable for the company (UA)
Kyiv PMDay 2024 Summer
Website – www.pmday.org
Youtube – https://www.youtube.com/startuplviv
FB – https://www.facebook.com/pmdayconference
Implicitly or explicitly all competing businesses employ a strategy to select a mix
of marketing resources. Formulating such competitive strategies fundamentally
involves recognizing relationships between elements of the marketing mix (e.g.,
price and product quality), as well as assessing competitive and market conditions
(i.e., industry structure in the language of economics).
Attending a job Interview for B1 and B2 Englsih learnersErika906060
It is a sample of an interview for a business english class for pre-intermediate and intermediate english students with emphasis on the speking ability.
Falcon stands out as a top-tier P2P Invoice Discounting platform in India, bridging esteemed blue-chip companies and eager investors. Our goal is to transform the investment landscape in India by establishing a comprehensive destination for borrowers and investors with diverse profiles and needs, all while minimizing risk. What sets Falcon apart is the elimination of intermediaries such as commercial banks and depository institutions, allowing investors to enjoy higher yields.
1. TIPS TO MARKET
YOUR BUSINESS ON
SOCIAL MEDIA
a n d n o t g e t s u e d
C L E A R F O C U S L A W , P L L C
5
2. These days, everyone is on social media – including your
clients or customers! Marketing on social media simply
isn’t optional if you want your business to thrive. The
legal pitfalls of social media marketing can be tricky and
devastating though. This guide is a roadmap to help you
avoid those legal pitfalls.
C L E A R F O C U S L A W , P L L C
ABOUT THIS GUIDE
3. Failure to Establish Guidelines about
Use of Third-Party Intellectual
Property in Company’s Official Social
Media Publications
1
4. L E S S O N L E A R N E DTHE SCENARIO
Your company has Facebook® presence and one of
your employees has the responsibility to post regularly
to the page. You are developing relationships with
your clients, engagement is high, and client enjoy
commenting on your upcoming products.
A major software company claims infringement of their
trademark and copyrighted material, demanding that
you delete 50% of your previous year’s posts. This
company is an affiliate of one of your biggest
competitors and your social media employee has been
regularly referencing this company in the context of
rants, comparisons, and testimonials.
Your company hires a high-priced defense attorney. He
replies that the posts are likely covered by the “Fair
Use” exception but that if there was a lawsuit, it could
cost $100,000+ to defend (+ penalties) if you lose.
Wouldn’t it have been nice to have established proper
use guidelines, including how to stay within the
It is absolutely critical that
employees who post on
official company social
media publications (and this
includes “older” tools such
as blogs or even email) be
given bright-line guidelines
on what they should and
should not post when it
comes to the intellectual
property of others. This
should include information
on how to stay within the
safe harbor of the Fair Use
Doctrine.
5. R E C O M M E N D AT I O N S
Employees who post on official company social media
publications should receive training on proper etiquette to
respect the intellectual property of others. This includes
using their intellectual property in compliance with their
brand usage guidelines if they exist.
Establish guidelines that specify what your employees should
and should not post on your social media publications, and
remind everyone to be cognizant that everything that is
posted can (and most likely will) be read by the whole world.
Provide an easy protocol by which “take-down requests ” can
be easily submitted, received and acted on. Include this
protocol in the terms and conditions of your website and
other online presence.
6. Failure to Establish Guidelines
Regarding Employee Disclosure or
Reference of Company Information in
Personal Social Media Posts
2
7. L E S S O N L E A R N E DTHE SCENARIO
Your company is in the investment advising business,
focusing on high net worth individuals. You hire a
smart and motivated account executive who also
happens to have a Twitter® account where he
regularly gives flip investment news and even throws
some barbs at competitors. After a couple of years, he
has been featured in the news a few times, has done a
remarkable job with networking, and is inextricably tied
to your company. Not long after this new rise to fame,
your company is sued for defamation by a competitor
and your state’s Securities Commission also fines your
company for providing investment advice without
supplying a proper prospectus.
As it turns out, your new account executive is rather
competitive and, in return for your biggest competitor
“stealing” a few key clients, posts some negative
comments about the ethics of this competitor. Also,
while he never makes outright stock or fund
recommendations in his social media posts, he often
Unfortunately what is posted by an
employee on his/her private time on
his/her privately owned or controlled
social media account doesn’t always
stay private. In a world where
importance (and sometimes self worth)
is determined by the number of social
media “friends” or “followers,”
sometimes it is easy for supposedly
private posts to be taken out of
context. Especially when the poster is
well known to be employed by a
particular company, it is not a difficult
leap for a disgruntled competitor or
person to attribute the posts to the
company, leading to an unwelcome
dose of hot water!
8. R E C O M M E N D AT I O N S
A social media policy is an absolute must for every business and
organization.
Social media policies must address the possibility that posts made by
employees may be attributable to employers. Therefore, policies
should provide guidelines on what topics an employee may not post on
even on their own time (without running afoul of First Amendment or
whistleblower rights).
If your business “officially” publishes social media content, whether it is
in a company branded account or accounts associated with employees
but clearly for use in promoting your business, then clear guidelines on
protocol and etiquette should also be established in your social media
policy.
The best policies in the world are useless unless they are followed.
Since the legal aspects of social media are a very new and seldom
considered subject matter, some training to accompany the policies is
also a good idea.
There are many additional risks related to social media policies.
Whenever a company doesn’t have such a policy, or adopts an
under-broad (or even over-broad) policy, the risks include legal
liability, bad press or even criminal fines and penalties. Instead of
adopting generic plans or simply borrowing plans from other
businesses found through an internet search, it is usually best to
have a customized policy drafted with your business and its practices
in mind.
9. Failure to Understand (and Abide
by) the CAN-SPAM Act
3
Everyone hates spam right? Unfortunately this fact has not stopped a few enterprising
leaches to abuse electronic communication tools (most often email), resulting in a pretty big
law, with big teeth, that can ensnare ordinary law-abiding businesses as easily as spam
peddlers. With penalties running as high as $16,000 per violation, every business needs to
know how not to run afoul of the CAN-SPAM Act.
10. L E S S O N L E A R N E DTHE SCENARIO
Your company has started using email lists and regular
emails that are essentially digest versions of your blogs
and recent Facebook® posts. A link has also been added
to your website offering a free report if someone signs up
for your “free newsletter.”
A year and 300 subscribers later, one of your employees
purchases an email list from a vacation advertiser who
operated a “contest booth” at the local mall and, based on
the preferences indicated in their contest entries, some of
these emails were added to your list.
Your company receives a demand letter from a consumer
protection attorney representing multiple “subscribers” to
your email list, and a cease and desist letter from the
Federal Trade Commission. It seems that many of your
subscribers were sending unsubscribe requests to the
email account your company had dedicated to receive
such requests, but were ending up in the spam folder.
Since your company moved its offices six months ago and
did not update the address information on the emails,
these letters weren’t received until it was too late to
If your company utilizes
direct emailing as part of its
social media, customer
engagement or even
product update strategies, it
is absolutely critical that the
provisions of the CAN-SPAM
Act be followed exactly. In
fact, there is some indication
from recent case law that
even other social media
tools may start to be subject
to CAN-SPAM Act scrutiny.
11. R E C O M M E N D AT I O N S
Make sure your employees (and agents*) are aware of
the requirements of the CAN-SPAM Act and how to
comply with it.
Establish best practices to be followed by anyone who
sends commercial communications on behalf of your
business.
Use a commercial email list management vendor to
manage your commercial communications. Most of
them have safeguards in place that help ensure that
you follow the CAN-SPAM Act. ✝
*The CAN-SPAM Act makes it clear that even if a third-party is conducting email campaigns for a business, the business
remains liable for any violations of the act.
✝One of the most important features of these services is an automatic unsubscribe link that will unsubscribe recipients
without any action on your part. This is a much superior system to a manual system where recipients are asked to send
email (that can be misdirected, caught in spam filters, or simply overlooked) to a particular email address in order to
request to be unsubscribed.
13. THE SCENARIO
As a growing business, your brand is one of your most important assets, if not the most
important of your assets. Beyond properly registering key brand names as Trademarks
under State or Federal law, and establishing copyright ownership of your authored
materials, there are steps that you must take to properly protect your brand against a
significant but often overlooked threat: brand genericness.
Regardless of registration under State or Federal law, brand genericness is the death knell
of any brand. Once a brand has been declared to be “generic” then it is considered public
domain and can be used freely by anyone. So how exactly does a brand become generic
and how does a careful brand owner prevent this?
A brand becomes generic when its use in everyday conversation, writing and language is so
commonplace and general that it no longer has any significance as a brand. Examples of
well known brand that have become generic and that have lost their trademark protection
include: Aspirin (originally owned by Bayer); Escalator (originally owned by Otis Elevator
Company); and more recently, Pilates (originally owned by Pilates, Inc.) Factors that the
courts look at to determine whether a brand has become generic include: a) inclusion in
dictionary definitions, b) use by the brand owner in a generic fashion, c) generic use by the
media, and d) generic use by competitors.
14. L E S S O N L E A R N E DTHE SCENARIO (cont’d)
First the bad news: the latter three of these
factors is often implicated by social media. Social
media may have made it easier for everyone to
“build relationships” and “stay in touch” but it has
also made it easy for anyone and everyone to be
a published author. Whether in the context of
product reviews or discussions, this has also made
it easier for these same users of social media to
be careless about using your brand in a generic
manner. These careless users can be the “media,”
your competitors, or even your own employees or
agents. Bottom line: in a social media world, it is
much easier for your brand to become generic.
The good news is that as a proactive brand owner
you can be quite effective in doing something
about it.
As a small business, your brand and
brand assets are some of your most
important assets. You absolutely
cannot afford not to take proactive
steps to protect them.
Think of your brand and brand assets
(that includes your logos, trademarks,
copyrighted materials, etc.) as your
business’ crown jewels and protect
them accordingly. The next page has
recommendations on how to do this.
16. Failure to Follow State Laws and
Social Media Provider Guidelines
for Contests or Promotions
5
17. L E S S O N L E A R N E DTHE SCENARIO
Your company a successful “brick and mortar” local
business with a loyal following. To capitalize on the
success of online coupon programs, you create your own
online coupon program. To publicize it, you establish a
Facebook Fanpage and hold a contest whereby every
patron who “checks in” to your business on their Facebook
page and makes a purchase gets an entry, and at the end
of the month, a random drawing will be made for a
particularly highly desired product that you sell. You make
a general statement about the contest on your website and
Facebook Fanpage and launch the contest.
Unfortunately, just a few days into your contest period, you
receive a Facebook notification that your contest violates
their Promotions Guidelines and that as a result, your
Fanpage has been suspended. At the end of the month,
you hold your drawing anyway. However, a disgruntled
customer who didn’t win complains to the Attorney
General’s Office and Federal Trade Commission and you
are notified that your contest did not comply with your
The holding of contests is actually a very
involved process with a myriad of legal
requirements to comply with, both on the
Federal and state level. To compound the
problem, any contest that is conducted
through a social media account must also
comply with the terms and conditions of the
social media provider.
As an example, Facebook’s Promotions
Guidelines have many guidelines that must
be followed for contests promoted or
conducted through a Facebook page
including a specific provision that entries
cannot be made by “liking” a page or
“checking in” to a location through
Facebook. Other notable guidelines include
a prohibition on using Facebook’s brand
names in such a way as to imply that
Facebook sponsors or his responsible in any
18. R E C O M M E N D AT I O N S
Unless your business has already successfully conducted
many contests on its own already and are therefore very
familiar with the landscape, it is highly recommended
that you use the services of a marketing firm with
experience in planning and executing social media
related contests, or utilize the services of an attorney
who practices social media law.
19. C L E A R F O C U S L A W , P L L C
NEED HELP?
This publication has been provided as an education
research only, by Clear Focus Law, PLLC.
If you need help with making your business use of
social media, please contact us for a consultation or
strategy session.
We are based in Richland/Kennewick, Washington,
but, being a digital law firm, we can help you
regardless of where in Washington you are located.
20. I’M ERIC
I ’ D L O V E T O H E L P Y O U
P L A N F O R L E G A L S U C C E S S !
E R I C H S U | A T T O R N E Y
( 5 0 9 ) 8 5 0 - 0 8 0 4
C L E A R F O C U S L A W . C O M
/ C L E A R F O C U S L A W
L I N K E D I N . C O M / I N / E R I C - H S U /
/ C L E A R F O C U S L A W
22. This has been a publication of Clear Focus Law, PLLC
and was written by Eric Hsu, an attorney who practices
business law in the State of Washington. The contents
of this publication, including recommendations
contained therein are general educational material and
are not tailored to the specific circumstances of any
person or business and therefore should not be
regarded as legal advice. Readers desiring legal advice
on any topic covered in this publication are advised to
seek the services of a qualified attorney.
C L E A R F O C U S L A W , P L L C
DISCL AIMER