That doesn’t make it legal, though!
Ever since I started blogging, I’ve found a constant problem with websites commandeering original content I’ve written for their own use. When it first happened, I was flattered that someone else thought enough of my writing to re-post it! I quickly found that there was also a pretty hideous downside to such a backhanded compliment: I was losing Google Juice because people were cloning my content and passing it off as theirs!
The first few times it happened the sites that were copying my info were older and better established in the search engines, so I found that traffic I should be getting to my own blog was actually going elsewhere simply because Google and I weren’t on a first name basis yet. Here I was working my butt off to create unique, original content, and some goofball who figured out how to copy and paste was stealing my thunder.
Can Someone Really Do That?
In a word: YUP! Legally, however, this would be considered a big “No-No”! I’ve since made it a habit of posting two snippets of code on my website in order to try and prevent this sort of thing from happening.
- A Creative Commons License from creativecommons.org
- A Copyscape Banner from copyscape.com
Creative Commons
A Creative Commons License is essentially a public notice on your site stating whether or not you allow republishing of your content for commercial use (I don’t allow this, but to each their own). They don’t monitor or enforce, but it serves as notice should anyone claim that they didn’t know the information was copyrighted. (This does not replace a copyright, however!)
Copyscape
Copyscape is a service I use to monitor my published content and notify me if it looks like someone may be plagiarizing my work. They don’t enforce on violations, however, so bear that in mind when using their service.
Does It Really Matter?
How much control do you want over your content? When I write a keyword rich blog post about my local area, The last thing I want to see is search returns leading visitors to some other site that copied my work. Why do any of us write articles and blog posts? To attract visitors, period. If those visitors are led to another site that has stolen your content, why bother to write at all?
How Do I Stop It?
If you’re concerned about people stealing your original content, here’s what you do: Pick up the phone and call a lawyer. When I find my content used by others without permission, I usually call the offending agent directly and request that it be removed before I take legal action. I usually get a plethora of excuses including “I didn’t know”, “my assistant did it”, “are you sure it’s copyrighted?”, blah, blah, blah. Doesn’t matter. If the agent cannot or will not remove the content, I call the lawyer and let them send Cease and Desist letters, file for damages, whatever. I always try to give the benefit of the doubt and assume it’s all just a big misunderstanding. At the same token, keep in mind that ignorance does not absolve one from responsibility, so it’s reall up to the individual to determine how to proceed.
Keeping a firm grip on your original content is key to creating a successful business. If everybody else has your content on their site, what makes it (and you as an agent) so unique?
