In my previous post, I spoke about some of the legal obligations involved in online business and how to come over them. This is the concluding part of the series “Online Business And it’s Legal Obligations”
Agreements and contracts
Any business transaction is an agreement between the enterprise and the customer and there can be several if the contract is not drafted properly. The common conflicts could arise in the conditions specified, reception of the terms, execution and obligation, reliable and convenient ways to pay among others.
Internet transactions should be similar to physical ones. You as the entrepreneur should take onus and set up a good system of support, agreements, customer and enterprise obligations, transparency, payback, etc. There is a legal stricture which clearly states that specifying the agreement conditions on your webpage is enough to hold customer liable to the terms, but it is recommended that you set up an interactive system where the client can actually specify that he is agreeable to the terms set by you. On your marketing website you must have additional information such as the terms of use, your company’s privacy policy, disclaimer etc.
Legal problems generally arise when a customer is not happy with your product and the after sales support. You must tailor your guarantee and warranty conditions to conform to local consumer support laws.
Ensure that your website provides a safe payment gateway and uses suitable encryption technologies. Give options to customers to place orders on phone etc. State a clear policy for fraud prevention and redressing. Ensure that your agreements are suitably worded and posted on your site.
Marketing, collections and handover of goods
If your business is completely online the conditions mentioned earlier in this article is relevant and there is lot more risks involved. Text and pictures posted on your shop windows can be easily copied and replicated in other sites and lead to frauds. The only way to combat this online piracy is to have a continuous audit of your intellectual property by filing for patents, copyrights and trademarks.
Eliminating plagiarism in these high-tech zones has not been successful at all. Evaluate the risks before agreeing to deliver your products online and also inform your customers about the possible risks involved.
Customer support online
The internet was originally conceptualized as a communication tool between two computers. This has now progressed to enable individual and community interactions subject to existence of such facilities in the relevant geographic areas. Ensure that your website clearly mentions the different areas in which your services are available. If you do get an order from a location you don’t service, ensure that you don’t process them.