The FALDP Docket

Volume 10 Issue 11; November 2020

Announcements

What About FALDP Zoom Parties?

Another suggestion at the conference was to have Zoom parties, Zoom Happy Hours. No agenda, members getting to know one another, held in the early evening. What do you think? If we hosted these would you come? Write us, we want to hear from you. Would you attend? Does it sound fun? staff@faldp.org All reactions we received to this idea were 100% positive.

So, here we go, FALDP Members' Happy Hour on Zoom, scheduled for Tuesday 11/24 @ 5:30 p.m. No agenda, just getting together to get to know one another better, consider it a team building exercise. Invitations will go out this week. No politics, no religion, pretty much any other topic of conversation is fair game. Come and join us, it'll be fun.

And on Saturday, December 5, @ 11:00 we're hosting a work related webinar. The topic will be included in the invitation, which will go out next week.

Marketing Tips

I want to share what became a very successful marketing experience for STOREFRONT SECRETARY, that I opened May 1st. During the summer, I bought five $25 gift cards (Publix, Applebees, Cracker Barrel, Gianni's Pizza and Culver's), plus a bottle of wine, two wine glasses and a wine bottle opener. I arranged them in a basket and had people fill out slips of paper with their name, address, phone number and email address that they could drop in a box for a drawing later in the summer. Everyone had to be at least 21. I ended up with over 100 contacts and a dozen new customers....this was the best $150 I've spent so far for advertising. It was very popular.

I also have a "toddler table" for children of people who come in (generally divorce customers) where I include coloring books, crayons and a bulletin board where their artwork can be displayed. Parents/grandparents seem to appreciate have a place where the kiddos can't get into trouble while they talk to me. Just another thought.

Submitted by - Nancy Sanders, of Storefront Secretary Do you have a marketing tip or strategy that worked for you? Please share!

Turn Key Bundle Update - Black Friday Special

We now offer four Turn Key Bundles, starting at $699. All include membership and the Avoid UPL Course. Each of the bundles also includes up to three course choices and business products.

Choose your best bundle. We're offering more options so that you get more of what you want. You can still purchase any of our services one at a time. Our bundles provide you a way to save. We'll be happy to help you calculate your savings, just give us a call at 800-515-0496, or explore this site to find all the information you'll need.

One additional course choice with all Turn Key Business Bundles at no additional charge. This offer is only available on Friday November 27th 2020, between the hours of 9:00 am, and 12:00 midnight. Offer available for new Turn Key Business Bundles only.

Beware of Online Scammers

Constant vigilance is the only way to avoid online scammers. A couple of weeks ago one of my business cards was scammed, I have no idea exactly what happened. My bank caught it as suspicious activity and declined the charge which was substantial. I'm still waiting for my replacement card. Today, I received an email that looked like it had come from Paypal saying that my account had been suspended due to suspicious activity, and please click this link to verify my information. I didn't click. I logged onto my Paypal account, and everything there was fine. I was able to transfer funds out of Paypal, which the email said I could not due to the suspension.

Then I took a closer look at the email. The incoming email address appeared to be service@paypal.com, but upon closer inspection I saw that the incoming email address was service@paypaI.com. See the difference? The “l” is a capital “I”. Another giveaway was that, although I have a Paypal account, I don't have a Paypal account associated with the email address where I received the email.

Be careful out there. You can report scams to - If you got a phishing email, forward it to the Anti-Phishing Working Group at reportphishing@apwg.org. And file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, here - https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/#/

About Freedom of Speech

The First Amendment only protects your speech from government censorship. It applies to federal, state, and local government actors. This is a broad category that includes not only lawmakers and elected officials, but also public schools and universities, courts, and police officers.  It does not include private citizens, businesses, and organizations. This means that:

I see a fair amount of people complaining on social media that the site is censoring their speech. While everyone is entitled to their opinion, these complaints are futile. The social media sites are private businesses and can censor you all they want, providing they are not discriminating against a protected class.

Also, a fair amount of people say that freedom of speech is not absolute. [Which is true.] But, then go on to give the example as – You can't shout fire in a crowded theater. [This is not true.] The actual quote is – You can't falsely shout fire in a crowded theater. People almost always misquote this. The phrase comes from a U.S. Supreme Court Opinion written by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes upholding the conviction of Charles Schenk.

As a matter of fact, if the theater's on fire, I'm hoping someone will let me know.

You can share our videos & articles!

We have a growing list of videos on our channel. They're all about different aspects of document preparation, branded with the FALDP logo and information. Members are invited to use our videos on their sites, online ads, or on social media. Depending on where you display, you can share from YouTube, by using the share link or embed code.

For example, on your own business FB page, you could share one of our divorce videos, and above it simply state that you are an FALDP member, and you prepare documents for divorce.

And, FALDP members are also invited to use content from our blog on their site and social media. Check out our searchable blog on Legal Sunshine Please remember to give proper attribution. Almost all blog articles were written by Ruth Tick, a few are guest posts. Excerpts are allowed, as some of the articles are very long. Be sure to state that this is an excerpt of ...

FALDP Logo Display Guidelines

When you request your video logo, please do so by sending us an email stating your areas of coverage: counties, all of Florida, etc; and your business name. And attach your logo if you have one.Email us at FALDP2010@gmail.com

We are issuing Video Logos to members when they join or when they renew membership. The Video Logo is the only proper way to display the FALDP logo on your website, in social media, and in any online advertising.

According to FALDP's logo display guidelines, members who have a website are required to display the FALDP logo on their site. The size should be large enough for people to read, something around 400 x 400 pixels. And remember to consider people who may view your site on their phone. Size matters. This video logo helps consumers verify FALDP membership, and also gives more explanation as to what FALDP is all about.

We have been phasing this in for several months, beginning with new members, and now we're providing members with the FALDP Video logo upon membership renewal.

We realize that not everyone has received their video logo yet. Please bear with us. Members may continue to use the static logo on their site, while waiting to receive their video logo. Once you have received your video logo - this is the ONLY WAY to properly display the FALDP logo on your site, in social media, and in any online advertising. And the static logo can always be used on print advertising, letterhead, business cards, etc.

Spanish Parenting Course Now Available

The Spanish version of the Parenting Course, offered through our sister company, Horizon Research Network, LLC, has been approved by DCF. We received notification of its approval on October 9th.

Prices are the same as our English version. $29.99 and $14.99 for low income. Here's the link directly to the Spanish version - spanish parenting course The Spanish version is also displayed on our FALDP site, and can be accessed by going to the English version.

Parenting Course

Parental Education and Family Stabilization Course is mandatory for all divorcing couples who have children; and all people seeking a paternity action. The cost is $29.99 and $14.99 for indigent. Here's the link directly to the - Parenting Course

Reminders

Business presence in Florida

Business presence in Florida - Members who are not physically in Florida are required to maintain a business presence in Florida. This means if you are physically located out of state, you must either form a Florida corporation or Florida LLC, or register as a foreign entity.

Mandatory Annual Course - Avoid UPL!

Most members have completed this course by now. If you have not yet taken this course this year, please do so as soon as possible. Those of you who have never taken this course, will receive a letter soon, prompting you to do so. This is a Members Only course. If you did not purchase this course when you joined, you can register for it inside the Members Only area. Members who have not completed this course may be suspended. Suspension means that your information will be removed from the Member Directory and you'll be required to remove the FALDP logo from your advertising. Members are required to take this course every year. It is your responsibility to let us know you've completed the course by taking the quiz, completing the essay, and/ or submitting the exit survey. If you have any question as to whether you completed the course - contact us. This course was designed to protect our members from falling into the vast sea of nothingness and confusion, also called a UPL investigation.

Don't have a site yet? Try Monarch Web Strategies

FALDP Private Facebook Group

About one third of our membership has joined the FALDP private Facebook group. We created it to make it easier to interact with each other. So far, people have given work referrals to one another; asked questions to the group; received help in locating a form; and discussed various issues. If you're working toward FALDP Certification, you earn one CEU just by joining the group. So, what are you waiting for? Look for the private group after going to the official FALDP Facebook page at FALDP,LLC on Facebook.

Member's Announcements & Contributions

Have something to share?

If you would like to write an article, editorial, opinion piece, or web page please let us know. We are always in need of fresh information and insights.