I started a business (a publishing company) a year ago. It started from my living room, it's still small. I work with young teen writers.
Anyways, when I first started out I was selling basic apparel using online shops (yikes...) and what not.
One of my contributors always emailed me asking basic questions and requesting certain products to be created...I said good idea, but not within our budget.
She emailed me about a month ago and asked 'can I be something? like you're the senior editor and founder, and 'bob' is the director of communications...can I have a title?' She is 15 years old. She's a writer but she's 15 and unable to offer me any specific skill outside of that. I told her such a thing that she needs to graduate from highschool and post-secondary school like we have and then apply what she learns. I thought she understood.
Then she started a free website using my company name as her web address.(like mycompanyname.freesite) She didn't tell me this, I just stumbled upon it finding an incoming link. I asked her about it and she said she wanted to help promote it. The site is not neat which stamps on my company. I told her the ways she could promote without using the website she created. Telling her friends. She kept the site and takes photos and text off of my blog.
Now she is asking me to give her designs to put on tees, and to make certain designs for her to sell to her friends. She is also talking to people about my company like she is an employee and having them email her. She asked me to write a 300 word write up for her newspaper, to start a facebook page, things that are my responsibility. And she says 'we should' not 'I should' (as in directing to me, it's as if she thinks she works for me)
She even asked me to advertise her blog (with my company name) on my website.
She is young and I think she is a tad bored, and not taking what she is a part of seriously. I dont' think she understands she contributes work to my company. This may have been my mistake for accepting her as a contributor in the first place and that I suck with being... approachable. However it seems to me she thinks I just woke up and tossed out an idea and she can just use it. i put hard work into all of this. How do I tell her that this is serious, the works and images she's taking are copyrighted? I hate to be rude which is my problem, and I hate to be rude to a young girl who may be doing this for a specific reason. But the fact she's talking to my potential customers who tumble on her site because she has my company name everywhere is awful! She's trying to start up her own thing using my ideas. Help!!
Help!
I've been rehearsing speeches in my head, but I'm defined as 'authoritative' so I tend to be rough around the edges without smoothing it out lol. Any ideas???There's a person I work with causing my new business problems...I need advice?
You have to decide what is more important to you: How this 15-year old thinks of you or how your company will fare in the future. In my opinion, you should be more worried about your company. It is much better to hurt her feelings than to jeopardize your livelihood. You should be firm with her, and if she takes it as rudeness, so be it. At least you protect what you have built.There's a person I work with causing my new business problems...I need advice?
consider her age . and how did you think at that age.do you both a favor and be honest with her. it is your gig not hers, if you must let her go. but make sure she understands why you must let her go. tell her if she wants online to bring her own laptop. i'm not sure you should have a minor involved in this any way. how do you think your customers are looking at you. do you look bad to them?
Shes 15, go to her parents and tell them that is using your copyrighted material on her website and that it is illegal and that if she doesn't remove it, there will be repercussions. I doubt her parents would appreciate her causing so much trouble.
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