Episode 194: How To Prevent Your Website Content From Being Snatched

How To Prevent Your Website Content From Being Snatched Have you ever had your website content snatched? I've had a lot of pet business owners come to me about how other pet businesses STOLE their website content including services and blog posts! What would you do? Could you prove the content was yours? What images have you used? Who would you speak to? This episode was born with my two expert cohosts so that nobody EVER has to go through that. Today, we have Liz Illg, expert wordsmith, who helps business owners with internal and external messaging. She helps businesses really convey their differentiating factors to their audience. We also have Erika Godwin, website guru, who understands the technical/SEO aspect of creating a rocking website.   Sick of doing your own graphics? Want us to do them for you? Space is limited. Show Highlights [2:00] - Who is Bella Vasta, Liz Illg, and Erika Godwin? [5:10] - How do we prevent our website content from being snatched? [12:00] - What is your website actually DOING for you? [20:00] - What does it mean to properly label images on your website? [28:00] - How can you get in contact with Liz & Erika? Links Erika's Website: barketing.co Liz's Instagram: @liz.illg Bella's Instagram: @bellavasta Let's Connect! Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review! Click this link – Bella In Your Business Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section Click on ‘Write a Review’' Are You New Here? Welcome, I am so glad you are here. If you are a dog walker, dog sitter, cat sitter, doggy daycare or kennel owner, then you found the right place. Jump Consulting is the one place on the internet to get all the resources you need for your pet care business. Can I give you some freebies to generate sales and increase revenues for your business? Grab your freebies below. Are you starting out? Been in business for less than two years? Get your startup resources here. Do you own an established pet care business and you want to take it to the next level.? Get Your builder resources here. Transcript: This is episode 194 of Bella in Your Business. Hi there, I'm Bella Vasta from Jump Consulting. You might know me from CBS, NBC, Fox, Huffington Post, Entrepreneur, or maybe you've seen me speak on stage or read my book, The Four Dogs That Every Business Owner Needs. In any case, get ready because you're about to get your hashtag Bella Butt Kickin' in this next episode of Bella in Your Business. So what do you say? Let's get ready and jump. Welcome everybody. My name is Bella Vasta and I am here with Liz Illig. We were supposed to have one more amazing dynamic person join us, but for some reason, as Kim Welker said, technology—ha ha—you totally nailed it. That's the thing with technology, and for some reason, Erica is seeing a blank screen. So, Erica, I know that you're probably watching and listening. We're going to have you comment in the chat. We love you, we miss you, and we hope you are here, but for some reason, the tech is not working. That's okay. The show must go on, and we are so excited that you guys are here. Listen, today we’re going to talk about something super important. The reason why I wanted these two ladies on with me is because I know that at some point you’ve had your website snatched, your content stolen, or your Facebook graphics taken and reposted with someone else’s logo. And yes, some of you might even be guilty of this too! So today we want to blow the lid off this topic because of how amazing the three of us work together. I help people with strategy—what makes you different and how to communicate that. Then they often get stuck figuring out how to say it on their website. That’s where Liz comes in—she’s an incredible wordsmith. And finally, there’s Erica, the website pro. The problem is that people often go straight to Erica expecting her to do everything, and it doesn’t work that way. So we’re here to break that down. Liz introduced herself, saying she runs Liz Illig Consulting and specializes in internal and external communications—helping people tell their team and audience what they need to know. Internally, that means SOPs, training, and hiring; externally, it’s all about branding and how you show up online. She also owns five pet grooming locations in the Phoenix area, soon to be seven years strong, and uses her experience to teach branding and communication strategies. We also introduced Erica, owner of Barketing Blog, who creates beautiful and cost-effective websites and maintenance plans for pet sitting and dog walking businesses. Her templates are gorgeous, but one common problem clients face is not knowing what to say or how to say it—resulting in “word vomit” across their websites. That’s why we brought these ladies together. Liz explained that one major reason people’s content gets stolen is because it’s too generic. When your copy is generic, it’s easy to replicate. The solution is to make your content so unique, so true to your brand, that it can’t be copied. Be authentic—your voice won’t be anyone else’s voice. Use your own style, keywords, and tone. And make sure your website content is strategically placed and aligned with your brand identity. We discussed how being too close to your business can make it hard to write about it clearly. That’s where professionals like Liz help by pulling out your personality and making it shine. She explained that visitors should immediately know what you do when they land on your website—within one to three seconds, even before they scroll. I added that so many pet business websites sound the same—“We’re the premier pet sitter,” “We go above and beyond,” “We treat pets like family.” If I can copy-paste your website onto someone else’s and it still makes sense, that’s a problem. Your site needs to reflect you—your vernacular, your service terms, your tone, even down to your consistent emoji use or colors. I gave an example: imagine if Burger King suddenly had golden arches or Ronald McDonald greeting you—it would be obvious something was copied. That’s what happens when your branding isn’t strong. If your website is generic, it almost deserves to be snatched. But if it’s unique to your voice, no one can duplicate it without it being obvious. Erica shared a story where one of her own templates was literally stolen. A client she once quoted decided not to move forward, then later used another web developer who copied Erica’s entire design—same layout, photos, and icons. It’s risky because Erica pays for licensed materials, meaning the copycat could face legal consequences. She emphasized the importance of using properly licensed photos and icons and not copying others’ work. We discussed how long website builds can take when clients don’t provide content. Erica explained that her biggest challenge is waiting for clients to deliver their text. Even though her packages are structured with easy templates, many clients freeze up because they don’t know what to write. This is where outsourcing content writing to someone like Liz makes a huge difference. I shared how overwhelming creative projects can be when you try to do it all yourself. Delegating to experts saves time and frustration. I even had Liz write my own website content because she understood my voice and message better than I could articulate it myself. Then, Erica joined live after some tech issues—yay! She shared how clients react after launching their new sites: traffic goes up, leads increase, and people compliment them on how professional and beautiful their website looks. She explained that success comes not only from aesthetics but also from backend SEO—proper image labeling, alt text, and optimized site speed. She explained that unlabeled images or oversized photos slow websites down and hurt SEO. Tools like ShortPixel and file formats like WebP compress images properly. We even mentioned ADA compliance—making sure alt text is descriptive enough for accessibility. We wrapped up with the main takeaway: to avoid having your website “snatched,” make it unique. Liz added that copying someone else’s content is like “wearing their underwear”—it doesn’t fit, it’s uncomfortable, and it’s just wrong! We all laughed, but the metaphor stuck. Erica shared a tip for extra protection: a WordPress plugin called WP Content Copy Protection. It prevents right-clicking to save photos and blocks text highlighting, making it harder for people to steal content. While it won’t stop determined thieves, it deters most. We also talked about keeping copyright dates updated (e.g., ©2020), avoiding Google image theft, and using properly licensed photos. I shared a personal story about receiving a $1,200 fine from Getty Images years ago for using an unlicensed photo on my site—a painful but important lesson. Erica reminded listeners that stealing content also hurts your SEO since Google penalizes duplicate text. It’s simply not worth it. We ended with calls to action: Erica can be reached at [email protected] or on Facebook, and Liz at lizillig.com or on Instagram @liz.illig. I wrapped up by teasing a big project Liz and I were working on for the Mastermind and I Own a Pet Sitting Company with Staff group. We thanked everyone for watching and reminded listeners: when life gets you down, always keep jumping. So what did you think? Did you love this episode? I sure hope you did because I put a lot of love into this for you. The best way you can show me that is by going to iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, or wherever you listen to your podcast and leaving a review. I just might read it on the next episode. I also want to remind you that when life gets you down, remember to always keep jumping. Thanks for listening.