Stop Doing This One Thing in Your Planner Design
Here’s the 101 on copyright text for your custom planner design:
Stop overlooking the prime real estate potential near the front of your planner and start maximizing this space for multiple uses with your end user in mind.
Rather than just drop a simple copyright line at the bottom of your title page, you can make the most of this necessary addition by adding an entire page to your planner dedicated to copyrighting your product AND promoting your business.
Adding a simple line of copyright text to your title page is perfectly OK. Many large planner brands do this — mostly those widely known brands sold at big box stores.
But I think there is so much room for opportunity here for a more strategic, powerful approach when it comes to taking advantage of this space.
That’s smart marketing that keeps working hard for you long after your customer buys and brings your planner home.
Here’s a stellar example of a copyright page that does this really well:
Curious to know what your exact copyright line should include?
I’ve got you covered.
Here’s a breakdown of what you need to know to write a simple, legal copyright line for your custom planner design.
The Minimal Version
At the very least you need to include:
The copyright symbol © (preferred), the word “Copyright,” or both.
The year of first publication — so, the year your planner will first hit shelves! If your planner has been produced over multiple or successive years, indicate the date range: ex. 2005, 2007, 2009 for multiple (non-consecutive) years or 2005–2018 for successive years.
The name of the copyright owner, whether it is your legal business name, your DBA (doing business as), or your personal name.
The words “All rights reserved.”
The country of origin. This is where your planner is manufactured—only a legal requirement if made outside of the US.* However, if you do manufacture in the US, it’s nice to let your customers know that you are supporting the good ol’ US of A!
*This is extremely important. All products imported into the United States must be marked with the country they were made in, sometimes called “the country of origin,” by law. (source) The copyright page of your planner is a good place to add this information since it’s where all of your other legal information resides.
Examples for a company in its first year of production
Copyright 2018 by Copper Bottom Design Co., LLC. All rights reserved.
© 2018 by Copper Bottom Design Co., LLC. All rights reserved.
Examples for a company with successive years of production
Copyright 2005–2018 by Copper Bottom Design Co., LLC. All rights reserved.
© 2005–2018 by Copper Bottom Design Co., LLC. All rights reserved.
Examples for a sole proprietor in its first year of production
Copyright 2018 by Heather Harris. All rights reserved.
© 2018 by Heather Harris. All rights reserved.
Examples for a sole proprietor with successive years of production
Copyright 2005–2018 by Heather Harris. All rights reserved.
© 2005–2018 by Heather Harris. All rights reserved.
Examples for a DBA with multiple years of production
Copyright 2014, 2016, 2018 by Copper Bottom Design Co., LLC dba The Copper Shop. All rights reserved.
© 2014, 2016, 2018 by Copper Bottom Design Co., LLC dba The Copper Shop. All rights reserved.
Examples for the country of origin
Printed in China.
Published in the United States of America. Printed and bound in China.
Published and bound in the United States of America. Printed in China.
Proudly made in the USA.
THE FULL BRANDED VERSION
There is a variety of additional useful information you can include on your copyright page. Here are some ideas:
Many companies choose to further define the copyright with additional copy:
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever without written permission from the publisher.
If you have quotations in planners you might also like to include one of the following statements:
The author has made every effort to ensure the accuracy of all quotations.
The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable.
If you include Islamic holidays in your planner, this additional text is helpful:
For Islamic holidays, regional customs or moon sightings may cause a variation of the date, which begins at sundown the day before the date specified for the holiday. The Islamic calendar is lunar and the days begin at sunset, so there may be one-day error depending on when the New Moon is first seen. Dates apply to North America.
For planners that have multiple contributors, it’s nice to give credit where credit is due, for example:
Cover design by Jane Doe Illustrations.
We love it when companies add information about their product that sets their brand apart from others, making it special. Get creative and use this space to give insight on what’s important to you, like where and how the book was manufactured and/or published.
Printed and bound in China with non-toxic dyes on recycled paper.
Or use this space to give your customers information on where to order more products:
Additional refills can be found at www.copperbottomdesign.com.
A nice way to end your copyright page is with your company name, address, and website — although not necessary if you would like this information to remain private. This is also a place where you can put your logo, ISBN number, and/or product style number if you have one.
Keep in mind that these are just a few examples. The possibilities are endless, but as long as you stay true to your brand, your copyright page can be truly unique to you.
Now you can rest assured that you are not only protecting your work, but that you are following the proper legal guidelines of writing your copyright page.
Have you been feeling inspired and ready to kick off the design process for your own custom planner?
I created a guide featuring 5 things your day planner MUST include . . . and it’s available now at the link below.