3 Legal Pages Your Website NEEDS to Have

If you’ve been running a website for any length of time, you know about the different types of pages your site should have. Typically, the most popular pages on a website are home, about, contact and work with me. But many business owners and bloggers (even professionals) forget about the essential legal pages that protect their websites. Trust me, it’s important to protect your website.

Keep in mind that I am not a lawyer, so the content in this blog post must be treated as mere suggestions and not legal advice. Now that the disclaimer’s out of the way, I have another one.

Disclosure: Some of the links in this blog post are affiliate links, meaning I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase, at no additional cost to you. Affiliate links are displayed with an asterisk*

The 3 Most Important Legal Pages for Your Website

1. Terms & Conditions

The first page we need to talk about is your Terms and Conditions, also known as Terms of Use. We’re on a first-name basis around here, so I’m going to call it terms. Let’s have a quick look at what your terms page typically does.

Why you need a terms & conditions page —

. Sets rules and guidelines for using your website
. States ownership and protect your rights to your website
. Limits liability in the event of any legal action because of your website

While it’s not always required to have this page, it may actually be a legal requirement depending on your governing law  Hence, you better get started writing those terms! But what if you’re not a lawyer? Here are some quick resources for finding the proper way of preparing your website terms.

How to create your terms & conditions —

. On one hand, you can use a free tool like Terms & Conditions generator
. On the other hand, you might prefer a template from The Contract Shop

2. Privacy Policy

You’ve probably heard the whispering: if you don’t have a privacy policy, you’re playing with fire. Proverbially speaking, of course. Contrary to the “suggested” terms page, the privacy policy is LEGALLY REQUIRED if you are collecting information on your website.

You need a privacy policy if you —

. Use email newsletters and subscribe forms
. Include Shop the Post widgets or shop trackers
. Feature Google AdSense or Amazon Affiliates

Since this page is legally required if you’re creating personal data, I highly suggest that you either work with an attorney or find a trustworthy peer-reviewed template that has been created by a lawyer. Here are my suggestions, which I have used and recommended to all of my web design clients.

How to create your privacy policy —

. Automatically generate your own policy in just a few clicks at Iubenda*
. Check out this lawyer-approved, peer-reviewed template from The Contract Shop*

3. Disclosure Policy

Much like how you need to disclose when an Instagram post is sponsored, you also need to disclose sponsored blog content. But it’s not enough to add a short blurb at the end of your blog post anymore. What you need is a dedicated disclosure policy, preferably in the footer of your website.

Signs you need a disclosure policy —

. You publish or have published sponsored blog content
. Your blog posts contain affiliate links
. You include product reviews in your content

However, with the FTC increasing their rules to create greater compliance among bloggers, it’s a good idea to get your disclosure policy completed sooner than later. While this doesn’t have to be perfect or written by an attorney, it should show some care.

How to create your disclosure policy —

. Firstly, familiarize yourself with the official FTC Endorsement Guides webpage
. Secondly, look at (but never copy) what your favorite bloggers are writing
. Finally, check out this Disclosure Policy by The Contract Shop*

In summary, your website should have the required and recommended legal pages

Do you have any questions about protecting your website?