← Call Her Creator with Katelyn Rhoades
Call Her Creator with Katelyn Rhoades
137. My Content Was Stolen Word for Word… Let’s Talk Plagiarism vs. Inspiration
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- [00:02]
Sponsor/Ad Voice
This episode is sponsored by Brevo, Collective and Shopify. Brevo is your all in one marketing and CRM platform that helps you turn attention into actual revenue. From email marketing to automation to CRM tools, Brevo keeps your audience warm without you manually following up 247 and collective helps you handle the business side of being a creator or an entrepreneur. From bookkeeping to taxes to compliance, they make sure you're structured correctly and not leaving money on the table. And Shopify your commerce engine. It's how you actually sell the thing. Whether that's digital products, physical products or services. Shopify gives you the tools to build, market and scale your store all in one place. And if you're serious about building a real business, not just posting the content, these are the tools behind the scenes. Get started today with bravo@bravo.com creator save with collective@collive.com CHC and launch with Shopify shopify.com CHC Today's show is sponsored by Strawberry Me.
- [01:07]
Kaitlyn Rhodes
Are you actually where you want to be in your career right now? Or do you wake up most days feeling like you're capable of more? You're just not sure how to get there? I have been in your shoes, but here's the truth. Success doesn't just magically happen. Y'. All. The people you see doing incredible things
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in their careers, they have guidance, they
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Kaitlyn Rhodes
have mentors, they have coaches and people helping them think bigger and move faster. And that's exactly why I love Strawberry Me. Career coaching. Career coaching gives you the clarity, the strategy and the accountability you need to
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Kaitlyn Rhodes
Instead of guessing your next move, you're
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Kaitlyn Rhodes
identify what's holding you back, build a step by step plan, and then you take action with confidence. Because sometimes the difference between staying stuck
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Kaitlyn Rhodes
the right person in your corner. If you want to try it for yourself, go to Strawberry Me, stick CHC and get 50% off your first coaching session.
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- [02:04]
Kaitlyn Rhodes
Hey friend. Welcome back to Call Her Creator. I'm Kaitlyn Rhodes and today we're talking about something that's honestly driving me crazy and it doesn't get talked about enough in the creator space. And that is the difference between inspiration and outright plagiarism on social media. Guys, this is enough's enough, right?
- [02:26]
Sponsor/Ad Voice
And I want to tell you right
- [02:28]
Kaitlyn Rhodes
now, this episode, I'm not going to drag anybody specifically. It's not a witch hunt, it's not a call out episode because I already called out my predator this week, and if you want to know about it, you can head over to my Instagram if you're nosy. And listen, I'm a nosy girl, you can totally go see the full story. But this episode today, I will not give this man any more attention. I just want to break this down to the creators that get their work stolen. And then the flip side of that, if you're someone who gets a lot of your inspiration from others, there's ways to do it that are safe and legal without being unethical, okay? Because this episode is just about something much bigger than one moment. It's about content ownership. It's about intellectual property. This is what happens when people in this industry get a little too comfortable taking from others and pretending that it's just how social media works. Because, no, that's not how social media works. Yes, there's trends. You know, there is a thing such as inspiration. There's things such as putting your own spin on it, but there's also a thing called crossing the line, and a lot of people are crossing it. So today I want to talk about where the line actually is. I want to talk about what counts as inspiration versus plagiarism, what copyright infringement can look like and what it can cost you. How creators are getting manipulated into doubting themselves when they do speak up. And then what you can do step by step if somebody copies your work word for word, because it's not okay. And I also want this episode to support two different people. Like I said, number one, the creator who's been copied and feels sick over it, because that's me today. And number two, the creator who maybe has been borrowing a little too heavily from others. People on the Internet, people online, and they just need a little wake up call before they end up in a mess, professionally, legally, or, you know, it messes up your reputation. So if you're a creator, a coach, an educator, a speaker, a brand, a podcast, podcaster, a real estate professional, literally anybody building a personal brand online, this episode is so important for you to listen to. It reflects my personal experience. And I do want to say this. This is general educational information. It is not legal advice. And if you are dealing with a serious infringement issue, please talk to a qualified attorney. Now let's get into it. So let me start here. I had a whole debacle last week with an account that literally plagiarized my content word for word. And this happens a lot. I'll tell you, it happens a lot. I see me post Something, it gets, you know, posted by someone else. But usually when this happens, there's a few words change. They'll, you know, turn an adjective to a verb. Okay, whatever. You got inspired by me, okay? But everything on this person's post, and I mean everything down to the hook, the headline, all of the slides, even the picture, was copied word for word from my post. And on top of that, this person was using my ideation, my content, all of it, to promote his own offer, which makes it burn even more like he's using my blood, sweat, and tears to promote his offer and make money. Oh, girl, you know I was heated. So someone tags me in this post when I love when followers tag me, it means so much. It means, like, there's people that actually support you and are looking out for you. So this. This creator tags me, and he's like, whoa, bro, you actually stole this word for word from the Kaitlyn Rhodes. And I look at the post and I scroll through and I'm like, holy shit. Every single word. So when I brought it to the attention, I commented, and I was like, ew, no copying word for word. This isn't okay. Like, at least give me credit. I would have been happy if the guy put my tagged my account in the first line of his caption like this. This information came from the Kaitlyn Rhodes. I would have been happy. Which, legally, what he did is not okay. It's plagiarism. So he really should not have even done that. But whatever, guy. You want to use my content, cool. At least tag me. Nothing. All right? Nothing. So brought it to this guy's attention, and instead of him having a mature conversation, maybe acknowledging the issue, maybe even pretending to care just a little bit, the response from him was mocking, it was dismissive, and it basically framed my anger as a me problem. He even said that he's like, this sounds like a you problem. Ooh, you know your girl is mad. That part, like, really, really got me. It, like, sent me over the edge. I immediately got up on rails talking about the situation, because I wasn't when it first happened. I wanted to talk about the situation anyways, because I know a lot of people deal with this, but I was not going to, like, put this guy on blast. His. I would have blurred out his name, all the things. But when he was a butthead to me, I'm like, okay, it's all out. Like, you're a bully and I'm not gonna protect you. It's one thing for random people on the Internet to not know where the line Is. But it's another thing for someone like this person who claims himself as a coach. He's got influence. He had over a hundred thousand followers. He wasn't a brand new creator. Like he's been here doing this. He, he claims he's a coach, he's got authority, he's got students. And so for him to act like this, with this behavior and act like it's normal and harmless, and I want to say this very clearly, when someone copies your content word for word and then minimizes your reaction, that does not make you dramatic or petty. It doesn't make you insecure, it doesn't make you difficult. It means that you notice something that should not have happened and it's actually illegal. I could sue this guy if I wanted to. Not going to because I don't have time for that, but I could. Creators work hard for themselves. They work hard for their ideas. Like I put so many hours into this dang app. Like I post two to three times a day, guys. And I have children, I have a husband, I have hobbies, I go walking. You know, like I have other things I could be doing, but I put a lot of work into this. I work hard for my angles, I work hard for my hooks, I work hard for my frameworks, my wording, my scripts, my examples, my visuals, my stories, my captions, everything, even down to like the timing of when I'm going to post it. And for him to just steal it and act like it's okay. I want to read to you guys what his response was actually. So I comment on it, that he stole my content and to at least give me some kind of credit. And this dude has the audacity to say, okay, here's what I said. And then here's what he said. I said, ew, you did not copy me word for word. No, no, no, don't do that. At least give credit to my original post. He says if I had a dollar for every time someone R and D my content, which I don't even know what R and D means, I'd have an extra million. Dol. Million. It's called using what works. Haha. Use what works. Pattern recognition and pattern utilization. I said, that can't really be your response, can it? And he responded, it's my exact response. Fire emojis. Fire emojis.
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Sponsor/Ad Voice
That's.
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Kaitlyn Rhodes
That's what I saw in my eyes. I was so mad. Like, this is not pattern recognition, bro. This is you stealing my content word for word. So when someone comes along and does this and takes your content. They're not just stealing a post, they're stealing labor, trust, precious time, precious creative energy, and in many cases they're actually stealing money from you too. If your content is what drives leads, sales authority, attention, speaking opportunities, podcast growth, trust clients, then Copied content is not harmless Internet issue. It can affect your actual business and this is why it matters so much. And I know some people will hear this and think, well, once you post something online, people are bound to copy you. No, I mean, that may be true, they are bound to copy you, but it's not normal and it shouldn't be acceptable. Just because something is common on social media does not mean it's ethical to steal. Definitely doesn't mean it's legal to steal it. There's a survey from the Content Marketing Institute and they have found that over 50% of creators say their work has been copied or repurposed without credit online. That's over half, guys, and that's not okay. We have to take a stance for ourselves. If you've ever felt crazy for being upset about this, you're really, you're not crazy. This happens to creators all the time. Writer Austin Kleon says nothing is completely original, but you still have to make it your own. And that's the part that people skip. Make it your own.
- [12:25]
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- [14:51]
Kaitlyn Rhodes
I think one of the reasons this hit creator so hard is because content is pretty personal. Even if you're teaching a strategy, your content still carries your brain. You've lived experiences. It's your way of seeing the world, your voice. And when somebody takes that, it can feel exceptionally violating. It can make you second guess yourself. It can make you not want to share your best ideas. It can make you feel stupid for putting yourself out there. It can honestly make you feel powerless. And what's worse is when the person copying has a bigger audience, more status, more money, more authority, or a whole community that just automatically believes them over you. There have been so many DMs since I put this on blast from smaller creators who've been stolen. Their. Their content has been stolen by bigger creators, which makes me just so sad. And that power imbalance can make creators feel like they should just shut up and move on. And that's how I felt. I felt like I should just shut up and move on. But then when he got like lippy, like slimy with me, I'm like, I'm not not letting this go. But I, I think this is why we have to talk about it more because silen what lets people keep doing it. And again, I want to be nuanced here. Not every similar post is plagiarism and a repeated topic is not theft. You know social media trends, they don't belong to one person. But there are some things that are way too Close. And deep down, most people know when they've crossed the line or they know if they've stolen stuff word for word. Even if you. I think someone wrote to me. Even if they change one or two words, if, like 80 or 90% of it is still your content, that's still plagiarizing. And I want y' all to know, if this episode is hitting for you right now, please take a screenshot of it, throw it on your Instagram stories, tag me the Caitlin Rhodes so I can see that you're listening. And if you know a creator who has dealt with copycats or plagiarism, send this episode to them, because this conversation has to be louder. We have to get the word out. So, speaking of plagiarism, let's talk about inspiration versus plagiarism. So inspiration is seeing a topic and sharing your own perspective on it. Noticing a trend and creating your own version using a format, but changing the substance, the wording, the structure of the wording, the examples, the insight, referencing someone's work and clearly crediting them or. Or even just being sparked by an idea and building something genuinely new from it. For example, if I see somebody talk about how creators can monetize their audience in new ways, and then I go make an episode with my own story, my own language, my own structure, my own examples, my own conclusions. That's inspiration. Now let me tell you the opposite of inspiration, which is plagiarism. Plagiarism is taking somebody's exact wording, copying their caption or script with minor word swaps, using their unique framework as if you created it, lifting a carousel structure slide by slide, repeating their hook, their points, their examples, and call to action in almost the same order, repackaging their post or teaching it without credit, making tiny cosmetic changes while keeping the core expression the same. And from a copyright standpoint, the law generally protects original expression, not mere ideas or facts. Okay, so the US Copyright Office says copyright protects original works of authorship once they are fixed in a tangible form, but it does not protect ideas, facts, methods, systems, names, titles, or short phrases by themselves. So, practical takeaway here is you cannot own the idea of three ways to grow on Instagram, but you can absolutely have rights in the specific caption, the specific script, graphic design, carousel, copy, teaching framework, blog post, video, podcast, script you created to express that idea. That's where a lot of people are getting confused. They think, well, nobody owns this idea. Correct. But that's not the full story. Nobody owns the general topic. But you do not get to steal how Someone expressed it. Here's why everyone does it is a trash excuse. One of the laziest defenses in the online world is that social media is just one big remix machine, so nobody should care. And I get why people say that social media does move pretty fast. Trends get repeated, sounds get reused, formats spread. But that doesn't get give you permission to become a creative parasite. There's a huge difference between participating in a trend and copying somebody's intellectual labor. There's a huge difference between using a common content structure, but then taking somebody's exact words, the sequence, the insight. Or maybe you're just being influenced by someone that is very different from building your brand off, regurgitating their work. And honestly, the bigger issue is not even just the legal part of this. The bigger issue that I have is the leadership. If you're building a business, and this is why this person grind my gear so much, he has a business where he is coaching other agents in real estate. Okay, he's coaching people. He's letting them know that it's okay to steal from others. If you're building a business on borrowed language, borrowed frameworks, borrowed ideas dressed up as your own, eventually your audience will feel the disconnect. Because copied content, it does not have a soul sister. It has no original thought, it has no lived in experience, no conviction behind it. And people will feel that. So let's talk about what copyright actually protects. Okay, so let's get a little more educational for a minute because I want this episode to be useful, not just my emotional story, right? In the US Copyright protection arises automatically when an original work is created and fixed in a tangible medium. That can include written captions, blog posts, videos, graphics, photos, recorded podcasts, scripts, and more. Registration is not required for protection to exist, although registration can matter a lot if you ever need to, like really reinforce your rights in court, it's not required. What copyright generally does protect Blog posts, written captions, video scripts, recorded videos, photos, original graphics, original slide decks, unique written guides, original course material. Now what it doesn't protect by itself, Processes, systems, methods, ideas, facts, names, titles, short phrases, common concepts, generic formats. That means if you came up with a catchy one line phrase, that alone may not be copyright protected. If you built an entire original post script carousel around it, the full expression may be protected, even if the short phrase itself is not. And fair use is also very real. But people misuse that term constantly online. Fair use is a legal doctrine that can sometimes permit limited unlicensed use for things like commentary, criticism, news reporting, teaching, scholarship Research. There's no real magic rule. Like, I changed 20% of it or I gave credit. So it's fair. Like, no, that is not how it works. Whether something is fair use depends on the circumstances. So if somebody says I changed a couple words or I found it on the Internet, or I used it for educational purposes, that. That doesn't automatically make it okay. Not even close. And I've. I've even had. I've had issues with this, too. And I've been in this. I've been in the spot, too. On accident, but I've been on the spot. I'm not going to say too much, but there's been a. There's been a time when we used a photo from Pinterest for a social media post, and we weren't allowed to do that. It was copyright protected. We got in a lot of trouble, actually. I had to pay money. So you can't. You can't just take things off the Internet because you saw it on the Internet. It's probably protected the reputation side of all of this that not a lot of people will talk about. Let's move beyond the legal stuff for a second. A lot of people may never get sued over copying, but that doesn't mean they're safe, because reputation travels faster than legal paperwork. Okay, if you're known as somebody who copies smaller creators, steals hooks or repurposes captions, doesn't give credit, takes frameworks and teaches them as your own, dismisses people who bring it up, cough, cough. This will catch up with you. Maybe not, Danae. Maybe not publicly, maybe not in a giant scandal, but in the rooms that matter, people will talk. And I can't tell you how many DMs I've gotten over this person that stole from me. There are so many people, his target audience, that is like, this guy's scum. He does this all the time. Like, they know. And I'm like, bro, if you know, why, why is he getting away with this? But I guess at the end of the day, like, I mean, I'm. I'm glad people know. Like, brands talk, creators talk, people talk, peers talk, agency owners talk. Event hosts, collaborators. They all talk. So your reputation is one of your most valuable business assets. And the longer you build on borrowed credibility, the shakier that foundation gets. Because trust is very hard to build. But it's easy to lose.
- [25:27]
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- [25:41]
Kaitlyn Rhodes
one of the best decisions I've ever made.
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- [26:32]
Kaitlyn Rhodes
so let's talk about some red flags that are no longer just inspiration. Okay? You're probably looking at plagiarism or infringement territory when these things happen. Okay, one, the wording is nearly identical. Not just same topic, but the same sentences, same phrasing, same punchline, same examples. Not okay. The structure is identical. Same hook, same point order, same transition, same call to action. Not okay. A unique framework or concept that appears with no credit, especially if it's something specific you coined or taught in a memorable way. Not okay. The visual layout is copied. Same slide by slide, carousel format, same on screen text flow, same graphic hierarchy. This is crazy, because this is just Instagram. I mean, I know people see this and they're like, oh, I can just set my content up to look exactly like hers. I know that's just like a normalized thing, but it's actually on the edge of copyright infringement. The timing of things. They saw your post and they quickly posted a suspiciously similar version. Or they get defensive instead of accountable. If someone was truly inspired and accidentally got too close, most decent people would say, like, you're right, I'm so sorry. I can see that. I'll take it down. I'll change it. I'll give you credit. And that's all I was looking for. I was just looking for credit. I didn't even care if he took it down. I just worked so hard on this podcast, and that post was about my podcast. Like, just tell people to go listen to my podcast, bro. But mocking you when you. When you reach out to these people, that's a red flag. Because healthy people do not respond to ethical concerns by belittling the person raising the concern. So here's what you can do if someone copies you. All right, let's get tactical for a minute. If someone copies your content, There's a few steps. One first step, I'm. I'm covering my eyes. First step is do not spiral publicly first. Okay? And that's kind of what I did yesterday, actually. I'm gonna be honest. My first step was not a public spiral. My first step was I messaged this person, wrote a very simple, kind message. No response. So then I commented on his post, and then he was very rude, dismissive, mocking me. So that's when I publicly spiraled a little bit. And I'm sorry for doing that, but I can't be quiet anymore because I get copied all the fricking time. This morning, there's a girl who posted something, and she literally used my tagline that I've not seen anyone for the last five years. No one has ever used this tagline for social media marketing services. She used it, and I know her personally. She added me on Facebook. I know she got it from me. I'm a lettuce flag this time because they say that mockery or. What do they say? They don't say mockery. They say that when people copy you, it's a form of flattery. I just have a very hard time with that. So step one, don't publicly spiral. Step two, get your receipts. And this is one thing I did before I messaged this guy. Before I commented, I took screenshots and I recorded. I screen recorded the entire post. I also saved the caption and I saved the URL. Note the date and time, which I had that on my screenshot, so I was good to go. And then also make sure your original version is saved somewhere as well. If it's a reel, save the transcript or record the voiceover if needed. If it's a carousel, screenshot, every last slide, you need clean documentation to report this. Step three, go through side by side. Put your original and their version next to each other. Is it the same topic? Is it substantially similar? Did they take the wording? Did they take the structure? Did they take the unique creative choices? Mine was all of the above. Guys, it wasn't one or the other. It was literally, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. This matters because not all copying is equal. So you want to make sure you got your ducks in a row. And then step four, what do you want to do with this? What's your goal? Do you want an apology? Do you want credit? Do you want removal? Do you want a paper trail? Do you want to report? Do you want legal advice? Or do you just simply want to protect your piece and move on? Because that's totally okay too. And I'm telling you, that is what I typically do. I protect my piece and I just move on. But you gotta have a goal there. Step 5 if you choose to message them, keep it short. Do not write a novel. Do not overexplain. Do not beg them to understand. You can simply say something like, hey, I noticed your recent post is very similar to my original content, including XYZ wording, structure, examples. I'm asking kindly that you remove it or revise it immediately. I've documented both posts. Thanks. That's it. That's all you gotta say. Do not get baited, okay? Which is what I did. If they mock you, minimize you, or try to make you look emotional, just stop. Do not keep arguing with these people. Do not argue. I've told you this in a past podcast episode. Do not argue with people who are committed to misunderstanding you. Once they've shown bad faith, move to platform reporting and documentation. Because my problem with how I reacted yesterday was that my followers got so upset for me, they started commenting on his post and that was just giving the guy more engagement. So I finally had to be like, guys, do not give this guy any more engagement. Like, the best thing you can do for me is just go listen to my podcast. That's the best support you could do. Do not. Do not talk to this man. Now, if you are unfamiliar with reporting it on Instagram, they do make it pretty easy to report if you're on a desktop. I was on my phone yesterday all day, so it was very hard for me to report all of this information. Because when you go to report, it opens up the browser in the Instagram app and it makes it very hard for you to find the links and screenshots and all the information that you need. So I am going to tell you now, wait till you can get to a desktop computer. Go ahead and document everything, but then get to a desktop computer and report it there. You'll go to report copyright infringement, and then from there, that's when it's going to ask you for a few questions. It's going to ask you to link your original work, and then it's going to ask you to link their content, and then it's going to ask for a little brief explanation. You're going to have to identify yourself as the rights owner, or maybe you have a representative who does it for you. That's fine too. Once you've filled out all that information, all you have to do is submit the declaration and then Meta says the copyright form is specifically for alleged copyright infringement on Instagram or threads. Important note. Do not file false copyright claims. It's really important. Only report when you genuinely believe someone used your copyright expression without permission. U.S. copyright law requires a good faith belief in takedown notices. And a compliant notice generally must include contact information, identification of the copyrighted work, identification of the alleged infringing material, and then a statement of good faith belief. So don't weaponize reporting just because someone discussed the same topic as you. Use it when the line has actually been crossed. Should you publicly call these people out? No, you shouldn't. I'm gonna say it depends, but really, you shouldn't. Sometimes public pressure works. Sometimes it protects other creators. Sometimes it starts needed conversations. And I pray to goodness that when I publicly called this person out last week, I hope that it. That it did all of the above. But I will tell you that it drained me yesterday. My aura ring had me stressed all day long. It also fed this guy attention, which I did not want to do. And so I. I regret giving him more attention. And I do feel like it might have turned into a personality war instead of an educational moment. And that's another thing. Like, I want you guys to look up to me as an industry expert. I don't want you guys as this dramatic creator who just discusses all her problems online. I don't want that. And I know there's a fine line between. Between being professional and then, you know, getting your emotions involved. I'm a woman. I'm hormonal. I did what I did, and I don't regret it. But you, you do have to take a second breathe, decide how you want to roll with that. But I'm. I'm here to empower my creators. That's why I call her creator was created in the first place. I want to give people a voice. So you have to decide what makes sense for you now. The opposite of all of this. What do you do if you're the one who accidentally copied? I want to speak on this for a second, because if you're listening to this and your stomach drops a little because you've absolutely posted things that were a little too close to somebody else's original work. Here's what to do. First off, do not let me offend you, but don't gaslight the creator that you copied from. Either don't say, well, everybody does it, or you don't own this. I was inspired from you. Don't do that. Instead, what you could do is own up to it, remove it if you need to. If they want you to remove it or give them credit, ask what they want. Apologize and slow down. Build your own voice. Sometimes people really do get overexposed to someone's content and unintentionally mirror them too closely. That can happen. When I first started doing all this, there was a woman that I got very close to, probably overexposed to, and I started creating content very similar to hers. Um, I never copied word for word. I put my own spin on it. But one time she messaged me a really mean message, and I was like, oh, my God, I'm so sorry. I will remove my video immediately. Looking back on it, I'm not gonna say, like, I was. There wasn't an issue because I'm sure she was upset with some of my videos, but they were my own. Like, I'm a creator at heart. I wasn't stealing. I wasn't saying her same words. I wasn't using her same hooks. I was just talking about the same topic. But so early on with reels before, everyone was stealing everyone's content. But I look back on it now, and I handled it as the quote, unquote copier. I handled it very well and apologized profusely. But looking back on it now, I could probably say, like, hey, girl, like, we're talking about the same topic. I'm sorry, but I did not copy you. So, I mean, just be mature with your responses, right? Like, if you did copy them, you know, you're right. This was too close to your original work. I appreciate you bring it up to me. I'm taking it down. I'll be more careful moving forward. That response could save a relationship. It could protect your reputation and show integrity. Mockery, though, does the opposite. So don't. Don't mock. Don't just, like, just talking about this all out loud, it's so draining. It's so hard being a creator, right? It's so hard putting stuff together and getting copied or making sure you're not copying other people. Let's talk about legal risks for a second. Again, I need y' all to know this is not legal advice. I am not a lawyer, I'm not an attorney, but I do want to make this practical for you all. If someone copies your original written caption or video or graphic or training slides, course content, podcast content, anything protectable expression that can move beyond just bad ethics, then this can become a potential copyright infringement. Okay? Copyright exists automatically upon creation and fixation through registration. And it's important if you want to sue in federal court or seek certain remedies the real world the real world path often looks like this. Document the infringement report through the platform's copyright form, preserve your records and then if the infringement is serious or repeated, talk to an attorney. This especially matters if the copy content is part of a paid product or it affects your sales, the copier is profiting from your work or it's ongoing, or it's a part of a broader pattern. Because once money enters the chat, the stakes go up. So here's how to protect yourself going forward. 1. Save your drafts, your timestamps. Keep records of your original work, whether it's in Google documents, notes, Canva, Dropbox, wherever date help keep your raw files. If it's a real Keep the draft, the original, edit, the carousel, the caption, all of it. Just keep it watermark strategically if you need to, when appropriate. Not everything needs a watermark. Instagram has says they don't really like watermarks and logos on content, so be careful with that. But if it I mean I've seen like really nice videographers putting out really good content. You don't want someone to steal it. I'm so for it. If you want to put your logo on there, consider registering key assets. If you have cornerstone materials, courses, guides, books, training stacks like anything of high value content, talk to a professional about copyright registration strategy. Registration is not what creates copyright, but it can strengthen enforcement options and teach your audience your language. When your community knows your phrases, your frameworks, your ideas, they notice when somebody copies them. And honestly, sometimes your audience becomes your best protection team. That's what happened to me. I had my people standing up for me and saying, oh my God, you copied this from Caitlin. That's how I saw this whole post and that's how most people do find out that people are copying them. Their followers will screenshot and send it to them immediately. So make sure you got that community and then the Gaslight piece here. I really want to talk about this because it matters. A lot of the pain is not just in the copying, it's in the response afterward. When someone says things like this is a you problem or you don't own this content or you should be flattered or everybody does this. That that's not accountability, that is deflection. And one thing I want creators to hear today is your anger is not proof that you're unstable or too emotional. Sometimes your anger is just proof that a boundary was crossed. Now, can anger make us react in messy ways? Absolutely. I will be poster child. I probably could have not got on Instagram yesterday and talked about what happened to me. But I'm glad I'm again, I will stand by it. I'm glad that I did because so many of us are silenced because we don't want retaliation. But I'm glad I stood up for myself yesterday and I learned that this person does this more than we think. But don't let someone's confidence trick you into doubting what your eyes can see. And I want you to know this too. If you're listening to this, because this happened to you, I want want to talk to you directly. You're not crazy or dramatic or sensitive. When someone takes your work, it's okay that it bothers you. And also like them. Copying you does not mean they are more original than you. It doesn't mean they're better than you that you lost your voice. It doesn't mean that you should stop creating. If anything, it usually is a sign that your work is powerful. It's powerful enough to make people want to shortcut their way into your brilliance. But let me say this too. Do not let copycats turn you into a smaller version of yourself. Don't dim down because someone else is lazy. Don't stop teaching because someone else is opportunistic. Do not become afraid of your own ideas. Document it, protect yourself, address it if needed, and then keep moving along. Because in the long run, the original voice always has more staying power than that imitation.
- [43:55]
Sponsor/Ad Voice
All right.
- [43:57]
Kaitlyn Rhodes
If you've ever been copied, I hope that this makes you feel seen and equipped. And if you've ever copied too closely, I also hope this gives you a reality check with love. And if you're building a personal brand or you're teaching online or you're creating content, you don't have to steal to be successful. You don't need to mimic people to be magnetic. You don't need to borrow somebody else's voice to build your own authority. Originality will take you longer, but integrity and originality are so worth it in the wrong. In the long run, inspiration should make you better. It should. But plagiarism is what makes you smaller. I want to ask you guys for a really small favor. After listening to today's episode, if you found this helpful, the best thing you could do for me to support me and my work is to download this episode and leave me a five star review. Whether that's on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Those reviews help call her creator, reach more entrepreneurs and creators who need these conversations. And I read every single one of them. So thank you so much if you take a minute to do that for me. I love you guys. I appreciate you. Thank you for letting me vent and be a crazy girl today. And I will talk to you on the next episode of Call Her Creators.