The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast
254: 3 Must-Have Legal Agreements with Erika Kullberg
Description:
Wondering if you need to have a Privacy Policy or Terms & Conditions page on your website? Perhaps you’re interested in preventing people from stealing content you created online, such as a course, curriculum, or PDF. In this episode, Erika Kullberg answers all of these questions and more
Erika Kullberg is the founder of Plug and Law, a company that provides online businesses and entrepreneurs affordable legal services, and an award-winning attorney who has been featured in publications like CNBC, U.S. News & World Report, Business Insider and the Washington Post. She has years of experience in corporate law and represented Fortune 500 companies prior to founding Plug & Law. Today, she shares useful tips, tricks, and hacks online to help people make more money and save more money, and has over 6 million followers across Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
Erika explains what are the three must-have legal agreements for any business owner - Privacy Policy, Terms & Conditions, and a Disclaimer, and why they’re so important. She also shares how yoga teachers can protect their intellectual property through Trademarks, Copyrights & Patents, as well as some things to take note of when signing contracts, such as non-compete and non-solicitation clauses.
Erika shares all this legal information in a way that’s easy to understand and apply, so this is the perfect episode for anyone who has been wondering about the legal aspects of running a yoga business.
Key Takeaways:
[5:24] Shannon introduces her guest for this episode - Erika Kullberg.
[7:38] Shannon highlights some that Offering Tree specifically offers yoga teachers. offeringtree.com/shannon
[9:53] What does Erika do and who does she do it for?
[11:20] Erika and her husband recently decided to become digital nomads!
[12:38] What is the terms and conditions document, and what is a privacy policy? Why do yoga teachers need them?
[18:16] What are some common mistakes or things that online businesses overlook?
[19:56] Erika offers templates that yoga teachers can use on their websites. She shares more about how these templates work.
[21:08] Are Erika's templates ready for yoga teachers to use or do they need to be checked by a lawyer?
[22:13] What are Erika's thoughts on using clearer language in these legal documents, rather than legal language?
[23:20] How often should you update these three documents on your website?
[24:35] Erika recommends keeping a log of your terms and conditions, privacy policy and disclaimer to keep track of the changes you have made.
[25:13] When does a yoga teacher need to set up an LLC? What is an LLC and how does it protect yoga business owners?
[28:17] What are some considerations to keep in mind around non-compete and non-solicitation clauses in contracts?
[31:08] As a yoga teacher at a studio, you are a contract worker. Keep this in mind when signing any contract with non-compete clauses!
[32:36] Shannon shares her personal experience with non-solicitation clauses in contracts.
[33:37] How can yoga teachers protect themselves when it comes to people stealing their ideas from online courses or PDFs? Erika shares more about copyrights, patents, and trademarks as ways to protect intellectual property.
[37:32] How can yoga teachers prove when they created something?
[38:28] When is it helpful to have a trademark? How can yoga teachers go about getting something trademarked?
[40:32] What's the difference between registering a business with a certain name and registering a trademark?
[41:41] Erika has some final thoughts around legal considerations for online businesses.
[43:16] Erika shares some of her services that yoga teachers may be interested in.
[44:23] Learn more about Erika and her work via her website, and check out her YouTube channel for personal finance tips!
[45:52] Is it necessary for every yoga business to include a disclaimer?
[47:12] Shannon shares her takeaways from this interview.
[49:07] Shannon gives a shout out to a listener who left a review.
Links:
Gratitude to our Sponsor, Offering Tree.
Quotes from this episode:
"The privacy policy is not only essential for your website, but it's also required by law."
"These terms and conditions are going to lay out all of these rules for your website so that there's no ambiguity."
"A disclaimer basically states what you are and are not responsible for."
"[Legal agreements are] to take care of our yoga students as well as ourselves." - Shannon
"Make sure when you are signing an agreement, you understand every single word because these are legally binding."
"Also remember that everything is negotiable. If you're not happy with the terms that they want you to sign, push back on them."
"Prior to signing, that's when you're in the greatest position of power to speak up."
"If it is something that's very important to your brand, it's best to register your trademark earlier rather than later."