Every month or so, I end up clicking on a link that takes me to LinkedIn. And when I do, I’ve got a gazillion notifications. Requests to connect from people I don’t recognize and don’t give me any context of how I might know them. Promotional messages from existing contacts. And then just down and […]
Molly the Maker
Do you create and sell a physical product to your customers? Then this post collection will help do it on the legal up and up!
2 contracts that will secure the foundation of your creative business
the artist’s Courtyard Resource Create a Contract Course Get access to a course designed to help you finally ditch the annoying, selfish clients. By creating a contract that you (and your clients) love. Get the course If you’ve ever wondered who goes off into a corner and reads all the fine print in teeny tiny […]
Submitting your copyright registration application
The final steps: making payment and uploading your work If you’ve been following along, you’ve completed the first step to submitting your copyright registration application: filling out the form. Today we’ll tackle the final two steps. As a reminder, three things must come together for the U.S. Copyright Office to register your copyright: Complete registration […]
The ownership section of the eCo application
Explaining who created it and who owns it This series on how to complete your U.S. Copyright Office eCO application was inspired by the webinar Maria Brophy and I co-hosted. In Part One, we tackled selecting the right application and identifying what you are registering. In Part Three, we are going to learn how to […]
Ready to start your copyright application? How to begin
Picking the right copyright application and identifying what you are registering Every Sunday night I make a cup of tea and plot out my week at the kitchen table. I pull out colorful pens and my trusty Little Ostu planner. I make sure my appointments in my planner match up with my electronic calendar and […]
Trademark Basics: Why we have trademarks + 3 things to consider
We generally associate trademark law with brand owners. But what many people don’t realize is these laws are actually designed to protect us! Yes, once acquired a brand owner has the exclusive right to use the trademark. But the reason we allow them to control the use of a word, phrase, or logo is to […]
Letting visitors know your intentions + what you know
As we talked about last week, I like to think of your website as your virtual home. And like your real home, it should welcome your visitors like guests. Making sure your visitors know: What the house rules are What your intentions are What juicy details of their lives you are going to remember the next […]
How to establish house rules for your website
Overwhelmed by all the legal to-dos? Click here to get a free legal tip each week in your inbox from your friendly legal eagle. Your website is the virtual face of your business. Not only is it is an important business tool but it could be the only interaction people have with your business. I […]
Are you confident in where your business is headed?
The other day while wearing my lawyer hat, I was conducting an intake session with a potential client. During these sessions, I ask some pretty non-typical lawyer questions. Things like: What are your goals? Short-term? Long-term? What’s your timeline for meeting these goals? What does success look like for you? How will you know when […]
Is it okay to #regram?
Instagram is probably my favorite social network. As a photographer, I love to see how everyone else views the world. It’s such a sneak peek into understanding them, their perceptions, and what they value. (If we aren’t connected there, and you’d like to connect I’m @theartistsjd!) The last few months I’ve noticed more and more […]
Can drudgery be simple and easy to carry out? Yep, it can.
Last month I wrote a guest post series for Oh My! Handmade Goodness on shoring up your business foundations. We talked about getting your website, contracts, structure, and intellectual property shored up. One of the post comments totally made my day. Arianne Foulks wrote: Thanks so much for making this seeming drudgery accessible and actionable. This comment […]
Can I use this quote on {fill in the blank}?
Probably the most common question I get is: Can I use this quote on {fill in the blank}? I wish I requested a dollar every time I answered it! Although then my bank teller might wonder why I started bringing in stacks of singles and that might be awkward. The serious answer to this question […]