Protect Your Expertise
When you are an expert, your most valuable asset is your expertise.
However, unlike physical assets, you can’t lock your expertise in a vault or store it in a display case. Anyone who has access to your expertise can copy it.
So how do you make sure that competitors and former clients aren't stealing your stuff?
Turn your expertise into copyrightable intellectual property, and
Protect the rest with contracts.
Copyrightable Works:
Copyrights are a set of exclusive rights granted by law to the author of original works that have been fixed in a tangible form of expression. The copyright owner has the exclusive rights to (i) make copies of their work, (ii) distribute copies to the public, (iii) create derivatives works, such as translations or sequels, (iv) publicly perform the work, and (v) publicly display the work.
Copyrightable works include fiction and nonfiction literature, art, music, sound recordings, audiovisual works, architecture, choreography, and software.
In your expertise-based business, you create copyrightable works, probably daily, such as blog posts, newsletters, podcast episodes, workshop materials, slide decks, and client deliverables. The key for them to be copyrightable is that they are original and have some element of creativity.
Proprietary but Not Copyrightable Works:
In addition to copyrightable works, you use your expertise to create many works that aren’t copyrightable. These include data, systems, methods, and know-how. To ensure you own and control your non-copyrightable materials and to limit clients’ and others’ use of these works, you must use contracts.
Changes in Ownership and Licenses
In addition, contracts are required to document the assignment and license of rights in copyrightable works. For instance, if a subcontractor creates something for you or an end client, and you don't have a signed contract, the subcontractor is the author and, therefore, the owner of the work. Likewise, if you share your original materials with a client, you need a contract to put limits on the client’s use and reuse of your materials.
Because I love a graphic (visual learners, raise your hands 🙋🏽♀️), here is what that looks like:
Questions about how to protect your expertise? Reach out!
Cheers.💡
Erin