Each time you visit one of your favorite websites, you somehow stumble upon some legal document like terms and conditions, privacy policy, etc. Reading it through always seems like a waste of time. You might ask yourself why these documents even exist, and in fact, there are actually very good reasons standing behind them.
The most simple explanation is they are used as a word of trust between the website operator and its visitor, for protecting information coming from both sides. There are many different types of website policies to be aware of, and the main will be further explained.
Terms and conditions
This is one of the essential pages that a website must-have. It gives the potential customers an idea of how the business is run and how the brand will deal with customer issues, purchases, and intellectual property. Having well-drafted terms and conditions is essential for protecting the brant from legal liability.
Common things that should be taken into consideration when doing terms and conditions for a website are information accuracy, payment processing, and intellectual property rights.
Some websites might include warranty limitations also. Having this individual page displayed on the website, it doesn’t only save the intellectual property from public abuse but can set the behavioral standard for visitors to follow.
Copyright notice
This type of policy is probably the most important one for protecting the identity of the brand. It firmly lets visitors know that the content published on the website is legally owned by the brand and that they cannot use it without taking prior permission.
While they may allow people to use certain materials from their website, they still make sure it is understood that they hold ownership over it. Some of the details often included in the website copyright notice are the name of the copyright holder, the year the website was created, and the copyright symbol.
Additionally, it can inform visitors about how they can or cannot use the content from the website and under what conditions.
Privacy policy
This is the term you will mostly come across while visiting any website. This legal policy gives visitors an overall idea of what can be done with their personal information provided on the website.
This ensures complete transparency between the brand and the customers. It also assures visitors that the website is safe and trustworthy enough to purchase and make transactions. Since this policy is mandatory by law, it is crucial to have it written very precisely.
To help companies write this policy more easily and with high accuracy, there is a free sample privacy policy template to be found online. It saves a lot of time during the quite long process of writing down all these legal documents for a website. Aside from providing a detailed explanation of the type of information collected and where it’s going to be used, the privacy policy must also include age restriction, thus regulating the biggest issue in modern life on the web.
Cookie policy
People these days are mostly familiar with website cookies. The cookie policy is basically the agreement that makes visitors familiar with the fact that the website will be putting specific cookies on their devices.
More than that, it is also meant to inform visitors about how these cookies are going to be used, and even let them choose which cookies they want to allow to be put on their device. Asking users for their consent before taking any action on your own lets visitors know they are cared about. Some websites still write Cookie policy as a column in the privacy policy page, while others chose to create a dedicated page to this policy separately.
Refund policy
Even though a refund policy can be a part of your Terms & Conditions page (like the cookie policy sometimes is), creating a different page for the same would be a better idea. It would make it easier for visitors to locate this policy and get to know about all the rules and regulations in a crystal-clear way.
Assuming that the website participates in digital commerce, a return and refund policy is necessary and also legally required. In some countries, providing refunds and replacements are mandatory, while others choose not to regulate these policies. However, to protect themselves and their business from potential legal issues, companies need a clear refund policy displayed on their website.
Regardless of being in the process of creating a website for your own brand or being a regular visitor, being aware of the types of policies is highly beneficial.
These few mentioned above are essential for establishing the trust between visitors and the brand by providing detailed information on everything there is to know about websites and the information stored on them while caring for the safety of all parties involved.
