A Guide to Crafting an Effective Privacy Policy
A Guide to Crafting an Effective Privacy Policy
A company's or organization's policy on how it will handle the personal information that is gathered from site visitors is called a Privacy Policy. By "privacy," the majority of us mean the freedom from having our private information shared with other parties without our knowledge or consent and the assurance that no one will approach us when we have specifically asked them not to.
What gave rise to the recent consumer obsession with privacy? The reason behind this is that consumers want guarantees before they trust a stranger with their sensitive data. Even if they enjoy your site and come here frequently, they will likely become skeptical if you ask for their name. People get anxious about your intentions when you request personal information such as their address, phone number, credit card number, bank name, account number, health history, and current employment details. They were probably right. Sure, you can't. You need to craft a privacy policy that is easy to understand and implement, and you must address certain fundamental yet important areas of their concern.
When drafting your company's privacy policy, keep the following points in mind:
1) Describe the data you gather and how you put it to use.
Reassure the individual. Make your purpose for collecting visitor data and the kind of information you intend to use clear. What further types of data do you store, aside from personally identifiable information? Is data collected from kids something you do? When collecting personal information about a child, how do you ensure that parents have given their consent? Keep in mind that data holds immense power; while approximately two-thirds of internet users could be open to a promise that you won't misuse their personal information, the remaining quarter is understandably worried about the potential consequences. So, to avoid major legal issues, you need to explain how you share information within and outside your family of companies if your website uses raw transaction data to identify visitors, generate new offers, or sell their names to merchandisers.
2) Give an account of the reasons your website and server are safe to use online.
People already know what data you collect and how you use it, but that's only scratching the surface. The next step is to detail the measures you've taken to ensure the safety of your server and internet business. When asked questions like "How can I be sure that no one steals my credit card information?" or "How can I be sure that my emails sent to your customer support team remain private?" you certainly don't want to be caught off guard without a response. Make it clear to your customers that there are telltale signs that they have arrived at a secure server, such as a changed URL or new icons in the status bar. Perhaps you could even try to break down SSL and encryption for someone. Keep in mind that most customers won't care about the precautions you take or the money you spend on website security unless those things directly help them. So, focus on what the customer benefits from.
Thirdly, release clients
Upon first reading your Privacy Policy, individuals may naturally wonder how they can opt-in or opt-out of getting emails from your company. Building trust and lowering personal barriers can be achieved by providing clients with an opt-in and opt-out option. Although it's never pleasant to see a customer go, you have to respect their wishes if they tell you they no longer want to receive your emails; after all, people's wants, needs, and interests may and do change over time. Your clients' privacy is important to you, thus you should enable them access and erase their own profile or account. You should make it possible for people to subscribe to your email newsletter in two ways: first, by checking the box and clicking the Submit button; and second, by responding to the email notification that they can subscribe if they reply -. This is because spam is one of the biggest invasions of privacy, according to The Anti SPAM League, an organization that fights spam. People are more likely to be informed volunteers for email lists when they use double opt-in. Every newsletter you send out to your clientele should have a clear "unsubscribe" link at the very bottom. Naturally, the situation becomes considerably more critical when a majority of your clients ask to be deleted from your mailing list, as this poses a significant threat to your organization. But you must constantly provide an exit strategy for your clients.
4) Make it easy for consumers to access and update their own personal data
Giving users the option to view and amend their own data increases the likelihood that they will supply more. Almost no one ever deletes their own data, thus this makes sense. As a result, make sure that labels showing how customers can amend their personal information are clearly accessible anytime you display it. "You can access all your personally identifiable information that we collect online by logging in and clicking the 'Change User Info' link in the box on the right-hand side of every page." This makes it obvious how they may view and change their information. Questions like "Can I review information you have about my child?" can be quite important to some customers, therefore it's important to address them.
5) Keep consumers updated on policy modifications
To keep things fresh, most companies update their privacy policies periodically. Please let your customers know how they can get these modifications and revisions if your business is one of these. The phrase "New versions will be posted on this web site, so please check back periodically for updates" is a good example of what you may put in your privacy policy.
Sixth, make it clear to consumers who they can reach out to with any privacy-related inquiries.
Even if your Privacy Policy addresses most common concerns, some users may still have queries. For instance, they need to know who to contact with any privacy-related questions or where they may find further information regarding their right to privacy. Include a means for customers to contact you in the event that they have any privacy concerns. As far as comfort goes, this is a huge help.
Seventh, make sure your privacy policy is easy to read.
Finally, this matter can be the deciding factor between a reliable company and one that appears OK on the outside but you have doubts about on the inside. Too many technicalities end up in most Privacy Policies because attorneys write them. While we acknowledge the need of using proper legal language, we want to stress that a Privacy Policy should not come across as overly formal or beautiful. A clean and simple design is all that's needed for the average consumer to grasp it effortlessly. Without proper elucidation, using industry or in-house jargon gives the impression that you are attempting to trick readers, which undermines the policy's goal of establishing confidence. so is necessary to discuss your security measures, but do so in simple English rather than using technical terms that the average person will not comprehend.
"Do not lie to your customers" and "keep it simple" are the two pieces of advice we have for creating an effective Privacy Policy. Among other things, www.Anti-Spam-League.org is a great resource for learning more about this. Joining our group is completely free, and once you do, you'll have access to a wealth of useful resources covering a variety of issues, including responsible marketing, privacy, spam, email abuse, and Internet fraud.
What gave rise to the recent consumer obsession with privacy? The reason behind this is that consumers want guarantees before they trust a stranger with their sensitive data. Even if they enjoy your site and come here frequently, they will likely become skeptical if you ask for their name. People get anxious about your intentions when you request personal information such as their address, phone number, credit card number, bank name, account number, health history, and current employment details. They were probably right. Sure, you can't. You need to craft a privacy policy that is easy to understand and implement, and you must address certain fundamental yet important areas of their concern.
When drafting your company's privacy policy, keep the following points in mind:
1) Describe the data you gather and how you put it to use.
Reassure the individual. Make your purpose for collecting visitor data and the kind of information you intend to use clear. What further types of data do you store, aside from personally identifiable information? Is data collected from kids something you do? When collecting personal information about a child, how do you ensure that parents have given their consent? Keep in mind that data holds immense power; while approximately two-thirds of internet users could be open to a promise that you won't misuse their personal information, the remaining quarter is understandably worried about the potential consequences. So, to avoid major legal issues, you need to explain how you share information within and outside your family of companies if your website uses raw transaction data to identify visitors, generate new offers, or sell their names to merchandisers.
2) Give an account of the reasons your website and server are safe to use online.
People already know what data you collect and how you use it, but that's only scratching the surface. The next step is to detail the measures you've taken to ensure the safety of your server and internet business. When asked questions like "How can I be sure that no one steals my credit card information?" or "How can I be sure that my emails sent to your customer support team remain private?" you certainly don't want to be caught off guard without a response. Make it clear to your customers that there are telltale signs that they have arrived at a secure server, such as a changed URL or new icons in the status bar. Perhaps you could even try to break down SSL and encryption for someone. Keep in mind that most customers won't care about the precautions you take or the money you spend on website security unless those things directly help them. So, focus on what the customer benefits from.
Thirdly, release clients
Upon first reading your Privacy Policy, individuals may naturally wonder how they can opt-in or opt-out of getting emails from your company. Building trust and lowering personal barriers can be achieved by providing clients with an opt-in and opt-out option. Although it's never pleasant to see a customer go, you have to respect their wishes if they tell you they no longer want to receive your emails; after all, people's wants, needs, and interests may and do change over time. Your clients' privacy is important to you, thus you should enable them access and erase their own profile or account. You should make it possible for people to subscribe to your email newsletter in two ways: first, by checking the box and clicking the Submit button; and second, by responding to the email notification that they can subscribe if they reply -. This is because spam is one of the biggest invasions of privacy, according to The Anti SPAM League, an organization that fights spam. People are more likely to be informed volunteers for email lists when they use double opt-in. Every newsletter you send out to your clientele should have a clear "unsubscribe" link at the very bottom. Naturally, the situation becomes considerably more critical when a majority of your clients ask to be deleted from your mailing list, as this poses a significant threat to your organization. But you must constantly provide an exit strategy for your clients.
4) Make it easy for consumers to access and update their own personal data
Giving users the option to view and amend their own data increases the likelihood that they will supply more. Almost no one ever deletes their own data, thus this makes sense. As a result, make sure that labels showing how customers can amend their personal information are clearly accessible anytime you display it. "You can access all your personally identifiable information that we collect online by logging in and clicking the 'Change User Info' link in the box on the right-hand side of every page." This makes it obvious how they may view and change their information. Questions like "Can I review information you have about my child?" can be quite important to some customers, therefore it's important to address them.
5) Keep consumers updated on policy modifications
To keep things fresh, most companies update their privacy policies periodically. Please let your customers know how they can get these modifications and revisions if your business is one of these. The phrase "New versions will be posted on this web site, so please check back periodically for updates" is a good example of what you may put in your privacy policy.
Sixth, make it clear to consumers who they can reach out to with any privacy-related inquiries.
Even if your Privacy Policy addresses most common concerns, some users may still have queries. For instance, they need to know who to contact with any privacy-related questions or where they may find further information regarding their right to privacy. Include a means for customers to contact you in the event that they have any privacy concerns. As far as comfort goes, this is a huge help.
Seventh, make sure your privacy policy is easy to read.
Finally, this matter can be the deciding factor between a reliable company and one that appears OK on the outside but you have doubts about on the inside. Too many technicalities end up in most Privacy Policies because attorneys write them. While we acknowledge the need of using proper legal language, we want to stress that a Privacy Policy should not come across as overly formal or beautiful. A clean and simple design is all that's needed for the average consumer to grasp it effortlessly. Without proper elucidation, using industry or in-house jargon gives the impression that you are attempting to trick readers, which undermines the policy's goal of establishing confidence. so is necessary to discuss your security measures, but do so in simple English rather than using technical terms that the average person will not comprehend.
"Do not lie to your customers" and "keep it simple" are the two pieces of advice we have for creating an effective Privacy Policy. Among other things, www.Anti-Spam-League.org is a great resource for learning more about this. Joining our group is completely free, and once you do, you'll have access to a wealth of useful resources covering a variety of issues, including responsible marketing, privacy, spam, email abuse, and Internet fraud.
Post a Comment for "A Guide to Crafting an Effective Privacy Policy"