Starting a blog comes with a surprisingly long to-do list.
You need to choose a blog name, buy a domain, set up hosting, install WordPress, create content and eventually figure out how you’re going to get traffic.
If you’re planning to make money from your blog, you’ll probably also start thinking about affiliate marketing, ads, email marketing and other ways to monetize.
But there’s another part of building a blog that’s much easier to overlook:
The legal side of running your website.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. This article is provided for general educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Legal requirements vary depending on your location, business, audience and circumstances. Consult a qualified legal professional for advice about your specific situation.
Legal pages aren’t the most exciting part of starting a blog, but they’re something every blogger building an online business should understand.
In this guide, we’ll look at three important legal pages commonly used on blogs, what they’re for, and one way to get lawyer-drafted legal templates without having to create everything from scratch.
What Legal Pages Does a Blog Need?
Three of the most common legal pages you’ll see on professional blogs are:
- Privacy Policy
- Terms and Conditions
- Disclaimer
Each serves a different purpose.
Let’s look at them one by one.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. For more information, please read my full Affiliate Disclosure
1. Privacy Policy
A Privacy Policy explains how your website collects, uses and handles information about its visitors.
Even a relatively simple blog may use tools that collect or process visitor information.
For example, your website might use:
- analytics
- cookies
- email signup forms
- contact forms
- advertising
- affiliate services
- tracking pixels
- social media tools
- third-party WordPress plugins
Privacy requirements can depend on factors such as where your business operates, where your visitors are located and what information your website collects.
For example, bloggers may need to consider privacy regulations such as the GDPR in Europe and applicable privacy laws in the United States.
This is also why copying another blogger’s Privacy Policy isn’t a good solution.
Their website may use completely different services and operate under different circumstances.
Your legal documents should reflect your own website and business.
Want a Lawyer-Drafted Starting Point?
If you don’t want to try to write a Privacy Policy yourself, A Self Guru offers lawyer-drafted legal templates for bloggers and online business owners.
Its Starter Legal Bundle includes a Privacy Policy template together with the other core website templates discussed below.
→ See the A Self Guru Starter Legal Bundle
2. Terms and Conditions
Terms and Conditions — sometimes called Terms of Use — establish rules surrounding the use of a website.
Depending on the website and business, they may address areas such as:
- permitted use of the website
- intellectual property
- third-party links
- warranties
- limitations of liability
- prohibited activities
- dispute provisions
- governing law
This becomes particularly relevant when a blog starts becoming a business.
You’re creating original articles, photographs, graphics, downloads and other content that has value.
Your Terms and Conditions can form part of the legal framework explaining how visitors may use your website and content.
Rather than copying Terms and Conditions from another website or trying to create legal language yourself, one option is to start with a lawyer-drafted template and customize it appropriately for your business.
3. Disclaimer
A Disclaimer is another important page to understand, particularly if you plan to monetize your blog.
Depending on your website, a Disclaimer may address things such as:
- general informational disclaimers
- affiliate relationships
- third-party links
- sponsored content
- testimonials
- product reviews
- earnings-related statements
- warranties and limitations of liability
For example, if you write about blogging income or ways to make money online, another person’s results may be completely different from the examples or experiences discussed on your website.
And if you’re using affiliate links, there are also disclosure requirements to consider.
A general Disclaimer page should not be treated as a replacement for appropriate affiliate disclosures where your recommendations and affiliate links appear.
Should You Use Free Legal Templates?
When you’re starting a blog on a budget, it’s understandable to look for free options.
But be careful about simply copying legal pages from another website.
Another blogger may live in a different country, use different tools, collect different information and operate a completely different type of business.
There’s also a simple question you need to ask:
How do you know whether the document you’re copying is actually suitable for your website?
Free resources can be useful for learning, but legal documents are an area where it’s worth understanding exactly what you’re using and why.
3 Ways to Create Legal Pages for Your Blog
There are several ways to approach your website’s legal pages.
Option 1: Hire a Lawyer
Working directly with a qualified lawyer gives you the opportunity to receive advice and documents tailored to your particular circumstances.
For businesses with more complicated legal needs, this may be the appropriate route.
The downside for a new blogger is cost.
If you’re still getting your website started, hiring a lawyer to prepare multiple customized documents may not fit your initial budget.
Option 2: Use Free Resources
There are free templates and legal-document generators available online.
These can provide a starting point, but you’ll still need to determine whether the resulting documents are appropriate for your particular website, business and applicable legal requirements.
Option 3: Purchase Lawyer-Drafted Legal Templates
Another option is to purchase templates that have already been drafted by a lawyer.
This can sit between the two approaches above.
You’re not hiring a lawyer to create each document specifically for your business, but you’re also not trying to write legal documents entirely by yourself.
One resource offering this option is A Self Guru.
A Self Guru Legal Templates for Bloggers
For someone starting a blog, one of the most relevant products is the Starter Legal Bundle.
It includes the three core website legal templates discussed in this article:
The bundle also includes additional policies and clauses related to areas such as cookies, email marketing, earnings, testimonials and product reviews, sponsored posts and third-party links.
This can be particularly relevant for bloggers who plan to monetize their websites through affiliate marketing, advertising, sponsored content or other online income streams.
→ See what’s included in the A Self Guru Starter Legal Bundle
Why Consider a Legal Template Bundle?
The biggest advantage is convenience.
Instead of trying to determine how to write several legal documents from scratch, you start with templates drafted specifically with online businesses in mind.
It’s also worth comparing the cost of a template bundle with having several documents individually prepared for you by a lawyer.
Of course, templates and personalized legal advice aren’t the same thing.
A template still needs to be reviewed and customized appropriately for your particular website and business, and there may be situations where professional legal advice is necessary.
But for bloggers researching their options, lawyer-drafted templates provide another route to consider.
→ Check the current A Self Guru Starter Legal Bundle
What If Your Blogging Business Grows?
Your legal needs may change as your business grows.
A blog might begin with articles and affiliate links but eventually expand into:
- sponsored content
- digital products
- freelance services
- coaching
- collaborations
- guest posts
- contractors
- its own affiliate program
A Self Guru also offers additional legal templates and bundles covering different online-business situations.
There’s no reason to purchase documents you don’t currently need.
Instead, determine what applies to your business now and reassess as your business develops.
Don’t Ignore the Business Side of Your Blog
It’s easy to spend most of your time thinking about content, Pinterest, SEO, affiliate programs and traffic.
Those are important parts of building a successful blog.
But if your goal is to eventually make money from your website, you’re not only creating content.
You’re building an online business.
And understanding the legal side of that business should be part of the process.
You don’t need to become a legal expert.
But you should understand what your website is doing, what requirements may apply to you and when it’s appropriate to get professional advice.
If you’re currently setting up your blog’s legal pages and don’t want to start completely from scratch, you can explore A Self Guru’s lawyer-drafted templates and decide whether they’re suitable for your business.
Ready to Set Up Your Blog’s Legal Pages?
The A Self Guru Starter Legal Bundle includes the three core templates covered in this guide — Privacy Policy, Website Disclaimer and Terms and Conditions — along with additional policies and clauses for online businesses.
Take care of the foundations now so you can focus on the next part:
building, growing and monetizing your blog.
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