I have to admit that I got this wrong.
Living in the United Kingdom, I don’t automatically react to changes in U.S. regulations. My general understanding is that I am subject to the laws of the country where I live (or where I am at the time) should I commit a misdemeanour - speaking purely hypothetically, of course 
So a change to American Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations - not even laws - was dismissed when it came up on my radar, as being irrelevant to me.
WRONG!
I’ve just revisited this topic following a question from one of my readers and I’ve now got a bit of work to do just to make sure I don’t unwittingly fall foul of the revised FTC regulations , which came in during December last year. Because, although I cannot personally be pursued by the FTC, what I had overlooked was that I use American web-hosting and auto-responder services. These companies, of course, ARE subject to compliance with the FTC, so in using their services I’m expecting that I’m required to comply as a condition of my continuing to use their services.
That’s why I’m now going to review all my blog posts, sales materials etc. to ensure that they are FTC compliant.
So, if you too had ignored these changes up till now, I would urge you to think again.
When you get into the detail, a lot of these changes amount to good practice when dealing with customers, in any case. As many countries already follow the US in so many ways, anyway, then it’s probably just a matter of time before each country adopts its own version of these regulations. You might as well get in early, AND your American customers will expect it of you.
Now I couldn’t claim to be an expert on these changes, so I WON’T attempt to give you my own understanding of these changes, lest I mislead you. However, having done extensive research myself, I CAN point you towards a resource that has helped me the most and this could save you a good deal of time. The resource is free (so there are no affiliate commissions for me to disclose to you!) and it is available as a web-based video presentation and also downloadable mp3 audio and PDF versions (name and e-mail required).
Comments 1
Living in the U.S., I was intrigued by the global implication of the internet. Though all the US regulations do apply to me, it was an interesting read. Thanks.
Posted 01 Apr 2010 at 3:00 pm ¶Post a Comment