Visit www.awbfirm.com/vimeo-video/podcast95 for the video version of this podcast episode.

Learn how affiliate programs can increase the reach (and bottomline!) of your online course without having to hire an entire sales team.

In this episode we’ll cover:

• Important things to consider when you’re thinking about who you want to be your affiliates
• Some of the potential downsides to having a large number of affiliates
• Why it’s important to outline what your affiliates are required to do, and what type of training, perks or collateral will you provide them with
• Why you want to make sure your process is running like a well-oiled machine before you start your affiliate program

Key takeaway: With a little bit of forward planning, affiliate programs can help your online course sales skyrocket.

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com/course for instant access to our brand new, free masterclass, 3 Legal Protections Your Course Business is Probably Missing, and our legal checklist for course creators (plus you’ll be the first to know when new episodes are live).

Resources:

Marie Forleo affiliate page: https://marieforleobschool.com/bschool-affiliate-partner-info/

ConvertKit affiliate page: https://convertkit.com/affiliate/

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

Collaborating with a guest expert for your online course is a great way to provide incredible value to your students. But mapping out (in writing!) things like who’s doing what, and how the expert is compensated is crucial to preventing a guest expert collaboration from going south.

In this episode you’ll learn the important questions to ask when you’re collaborating with a guest expert in your online course:

• What type of collaboration is this? – Is your guest expert contributing material for a single lesson, creating the course with you 50/50?
• Who’s earning what? – Is your guest expert paid a percentage of sales, a flat fee, or something else? Or is your guest expert paying you in exchange for exposure?
• Who is paying the expenses? – Who pays the invoice from your graphic designer, videographer, etc.?
• Who is responsible for marketing? – Is your guest expert required to send emails to their list, do a FB live, etc. to promote your launch?
• What happens if it falls apart?
• Who owns the intellectual property? – Is your collaborator allowed to create a spin-off live event from the online course or is that not allowed?
• Do you need a nondisclosure agreement? – Are you lifting the curtain on your business’s secret sauce?

Key takeaway: Guest experts can make a great addition to your online course, but asking some key questions and agreeing to terms in writing can help you ensure the collaboration is a success.

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com/course for instant access to our brand new, free masterclass, 3 Legal Protections Your Course Business is Probably Missing, and our legal checklist for course creators (plus you’ll be the first to know when new episodes are live).

Resources:

Legal Road Map® Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/legalroadmap

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

You’re a busy entrepreneur, and you *probably* can’t handle every single task it takes to create a successful online course.  You’ll likely need to enlist the help of graphic designers, copywriters, videographers, and more to complete your online course.

But how do you make sure your working arrangement, and your content + brand!, are protected?

In this episode you’ll learn:

• Why you MUST use a contract with your independent contractor
• The most important thing you need to look for if you use your independent contractor’s agreement instead of sending your own
• If you can include a non-compete clause in your independent contractor agreement
• The one term you definitely should include in your own independent contractor agreements

Key takeaway: Working with independent contractors to create a successful online course can be a breeze if you take the time to consider the terms of your agreement with them.

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com/course for instant access to our brand new, free masterclass, 3 Legal Protections Your Course Business is Probably Missing, and our legal checklist for course creators (plus you’ll be the first to know when new episodes are live).

Resources:

Legal Road Map® Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/legalroadmap/?ref=br_rs

Legal Road Map® to Protect Your Online Course contract template bundle: www.onlinecourselegal.com

Individual contract templates: www.awbfirm.com/contract-templates

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

If you sell an online course, digital product, or do business online, you may offer payment plans to your customers. But what do you do when the customer stops paying?

In this episode you’ll learn:

• If it’s possible to totally avoid chargebacks (spoiler alert: it is, but only if you stop taking credit cards altogether)
• Some practical customer service tips to help you cut down on chargebacks
• Why including a clear refund policy in your terms of use will be your strongest evidence to fight an invalid chargeback claim
• The (potentially) tricky business of payment plans and what regulations you may need to comply with
• Tech & practical tips to make sure your customers follow through on a payment plan
• The important payment plan details you should definitely include in your terms of use

Key takeaway: Between including clearly outlined terms in your contract and using a few practical & tech tips, you can make sure your payment plans don’t become non-payment plans.

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com/course for instant access to our brand new, free masterclass, 3 Legal Protections Your Course Business is Probably Missing, and our legal checklist for course creators (plus you’ll be the first to know when new episodes are live).

Resources:

Legal Road Map® podcast episode 85: www.awbfirm.com/podcast85

Autumn’s Gravy affiliate link: www.sharegravy.com/autumn

Legal Road Map® Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/legalroadmap/

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

Some of the links on this page are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, the AWB Firm will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. We have experience with these companies, and recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money on these products unless you feel you need them or that they will help you achieve your goals.

If you are providing an online course or digital products to students, members, or customers, you’re bound to come across a few tricky situations sooner or later. But are you doing all you can on the front end to prevent these situations from the start?

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The importance of clear payment language in your terms of use
• How tech tools can prevent your students from copying your course content
• Why including a dollar amount for damages in your terms of use can save you a lot of headaches if someone does copy your course content
• Important legal and practical tips for managing your online community
• Why including disclaimers in your terms of use could be essential, depending on the nature of your online course/program topic
• Why promising guaranteed results is tricky business
• Why you should keep your refund policy on the strict side in your terms

Key takeaway: We all want to believe the best in people, but in business, it’s next to impossible to completely dodge unpleasant situations. By taking a closer look at your terms of use, you can prevent or avoid a lot of them.

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com/course for instant access to our brand new, free masterclass, 3 Legal Protections Your Course Business is Probably Missing, and our legal checklist for course creators (plus you’ll be the first to know when new episodes are live).

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

It’s easy to want to check out when you’re ready to sell your business, but making sure you have a team in place to help with a smooth transition is an essential part of the sale process.

In this episode I talk about important questions to ask and preparing your team for the sale of your business:

• Important things to consider when thinking about who will run the business after you sell
• Terms to have in writing if you plan to stay on after the sale to help with the transition
• Why you might be required to sign a non-compete agreement
• Making sure your trade secrets are protected by nondisclosure agreements
• The right time to let your key employees know about the sale of your business
• Making sure your employees and independent contractors are appropriately qualified before you sell
• What you need to know about your independent contractor contracts before you sell

Key takeaway: Making a break from your business can be a stressful process, but with the right people and protections in place, you can confidently move on to the next adventure.

Visit www.awbfirm.com/podcast61 for a transcript and show notes, and sign up to get a free 5 Minute Intellectual Property Audit.  You’ll learn how you can make more money from the copyrights and trademarks in your business (you can also sign up there to be the first to know when new episodes are live and receive other legal updates and special offers from the AWB Firm).

Additional resources:

Contract templates: https://awbfirm.com/contract-templates/

Episode 12: https://www.awbfirm.com/podcast12

Episode 37: https://www.awbfirm.com/podcast37

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

Terms of Use, Terms of Service… whatever you call it, you might not think of it as a contract, but it is – and an important one at that! This week’s solo episode is all about this critical contract between you and your customers, students, or clients.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Where your TOU must be linked on your website
• The 11 terms you should include in your TOU to protect you and your students
• Why including more strict terms in your TOU is always better, and how you can be gentler when difficult circumstances come up
• Why including a “refunds at our discretion” clause is a bad idea
• How your TOU can give you a way to resolve issues with someone stealing your intellectual property, without having to file a costly copyright or trademark lawsuit

Key takeaway: Unlike your website’s privacy policy, TOU are not required by law, but they are the legal foundation of your course business.  Strong TOU will put you and your customers on the same page and will save you a lot of legal headaches.

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com/course for instant access to our brand new, free masterclass, 3 Legal Protections Your Course Business is Probably Missing, and our legal checklist for course creators (plus you’ll be the first to know when new episodes are live).

Resources:

Contract templates: www.awbfirm.com/contract-templates

AWB Firm Masterclass: www.awbfirm.com/course

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

If you’re running an online business, it’s highly likely that you’re collecting some form of personal information from your website visitors. But do your visitors know what happens to their data once they’ve given it to you?  

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• When you must have a privacy policy on your website
• What your privacy policy needs to include
• Extra steps you need to take if you’re collecting information from children under 13
• Where your privacy policy must be present on your site post-GDPR
• What GDPR penalties are being handed out, almost one year after the new rules went into effect

Key takeaway: Whether your business must comply with GDPR or not (odds are it does!), the trend is that privacy regulations are becoming more stringent across the board. Taking simple steps to comply now can prevent you from having to implement an expensive fix down the road.

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com/course for instant access to our brand new, free masterclass, 3 Legal Protections Your Course Business is Probably Missing, and our legal checklist for course creators (plus you’ll be the first to know when new episodes are live).

Resources:

FREE downloads – Website Documents Guide AND Privacy policy + GDPR guide: Sign up below to receive our website documents guide AND our updated GDPR guide immediately in your inbox

GDPR in-depth episodes of the Legal Road Map® podcast: www.awbfirm.com/podcast38, www.awbfirm.com/podcast39, www.awbfirm.com/podcast40

Running list of GDPR enforcement actions as of February 2019: http://www.mondaq.com/unitedstates/x/777680/Data+Protection+Privacy/GDPR+Enforcement

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

Video marketing & YouTube expert Liz Germain joins the podcast in this episode to talk with Autumn about keeping integrity at the forefront of your business and some legal lessons learned.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How offering online courses can unlock your time as a business owner
• How to use online courses to prequalify potential 1:1 clients
• Why too much learning and attending too many conferences can be a bad thing
• Important lessons Liz learned about required FTC disclosures for sponsored content
• The downsides of using Paypal for payment processing, plus how your written refund policy can be your saving grace

Visit www.awbfirm.com/podcast82 for a transcript and show notes.

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com/course for instant access to our brand new, free masterclass, 3 Legal Protections Your Course Business is Probably Missing, and our legal checklist for course creators (plus you’ll be the first to know when new episodes are live).

Resources:

Liz Germain: www.lizdoesvideo.com

Liz’s Video Growth Course: https://videogrowthcourse.com/

Marketing School Podcast: https://marketingschool.io/

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.

If you’re an online course creator, you may not even know what you need to worry about when it comes to legal for your business.

Season 4 of the Legal Road Map® podcast is a great place to start. This season, Autumn is alternating solo episodes with interviews of some of the biggest names in the online course world, like Beth McCord, Chris Winfield, Corinne Crabtree, and more.

Solo episodes will focus on legal issues for course creators, like:

• The policies and documents you need to have on your website, such as privacy policy, terms & conditions, disclaimers, and disclosures
• GDPR – the European Union law affecting personal data collection and privacy
• Using guest experts
• Working with affiliates
• And last but not least, copyright and trademark

BONUS: Head over to www.awbfirm.com for instant access to the 10 Step Checklist we use with our million dollar clients, and make sure you’ve got the legal basics covered for your business (plus be the first to know when new episodes are live).

This podcast is information, not legal advice specific to your situation.