Remember that a user-friendly notice not only

reflects user input and involvement, but also how

much your company values its customers.

Plain Language

How to communicate the content clearly?

Start with a description of the purpose of the notice

and the questions it will answer. This “heads up” to

your readers tells why to read the notice. Remember, readers didn’t ask for your notice. It simply

shows up in the mail. Chances are that they’ll read

it if they know at the outset what’s in it for them.

Use informative headings that preview what

follows. Where appropriate, let your customers

know whether there’s an action step.

Notice language should be:

- concise – simple and straightforward,

not “jargoned up” or “dumbed down.”

- direct – using the word “you” to engage

your reader.

- affirmative – telling customers what is,

rather than what isn’t; what they should do,

rather than what they shouldn’t do.

- active rather than passive.

- respectful.

If you must use technical terms, you can still help

your reader understand them.

- define the term in a text box close to its use.

- include a glossary in the notice.

- on your website, hyperlink the term to a

definition or use a simpler term or phrase

in the text and link to the technical term.

GETTING

NOTICED:

 Effective

Writing Financial

Privacy Notices

• indents to show subcategories of information or examples

• limiting the length of the document as well

as individual paragraphs and sentences.

Lengthy or dense-looking text is offputting.

• appropriate use of white space between text

and margins

For More Information

More information about effective communications tools and techniques, including the

transcript of the GLB workshop and panelist

materials on which this brochure is based, is

posted at www.ftc.gov/glbworkshop.

Your Opportunity to Comment

The National Small Business Ombudsman and

10 Regional Fairness Boards collect comments

from small businesses about federal compliance

and enforcement activities. Each year, the

Ombudsman evaluates the conduct of these

activities and rates each agency’s responsiveness

to small businesses. Small businesses can

comment to the Ombudsman without fear of

reprisal. To comment, call toll-free 1-888-

REGFAIR (1-888-734-3247) or go to

www.sba.gov/ombudsman.

Highlight your company’s contact information

clearly and conspicuously.

Graphics

Create your notice with attractive and pleasing

styles and formats. Consider:

• the typeface

- 12 point preferable; at a minimum,

10-point type

- serif fonts for paper

- sans serif fonts for headings and Web

• the case: use upper and lower

• bold, italics or underlining for emphasis

• headings

• bullets or numbers

• color for interest

• graphics, symbols and text boxes

F TC EDERAL RADE OMMISSION FTC OR HE ONSUMER

1-877-FTC-HELP www.ftc.gov

October 2002

* Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Federal Trade Commission

National Credit Union Administration

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

Office of Thrift Supervision

Securities and Exchange Commission
Does Your Financial Privacy Notice...

• use legal jargon?

• give new meaning to dense, indecipherable text?

• contain lengthy, unnecessarily complex sentences with convoluted clauses, multiple

punctuation marks, and incomprehensible polysyllabic verbiage?

Was Your Notice...

• “borrowed” from another company without regard for your privacy practices or your

customers’ concerns or needs?

• written by a committee of lawyers?

Since 2001, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley (GLB) Act has required financial institutions to

provide notices that explain their privacy practices and their customers’ rights. To be sure,

many notices satisfy the basic legal requirement to explain obligations and rights accurately.

But many notices seem to fall far short when it comes to providing explanations that are

meaningful to the reader.

To help businesses create more useful privacy notices for their customers, several federal

agencies* brought together a panel of communications experts to talk about effective

communications tools and techniques. The consensus among the experts was that meaningful communication can enhance customer confidence and trust – and that the GLB

notice requirement can offer an opportunity to make that happen.

Listen to their tips...

What Makes A Notice Effective?

An effective privacy notice includes:

• a customer-based process that invites and uses

consumer feedback

• plain language that enables a short, simple,

easy-to-read message

• graphics that make a notice attractive and

inviting

Getting Started

Drafting an effective notice should be a “team”

effort. Ask employees from the legal department

and the marketing department, for example, to be

involved in the process. Once you assemble the

team members, make sure they review and understand your company’s information collection and

sharing practices. Understanding how your company handles customers’ information is critical to

ensuring that your notice is accurate.

Engage production personnel throughout so that

you develop a format that is affordable and feasible

for your company. Ask legal experts to review the

drafts at each stage to make sure the notices are

accurate and satisfy the requirements of the law.

Customer-Based Process

Keep in mind that many of your customers may

not be familiar with privacy issues in general, and

their privacy rights in particular. Many of them

may not have read a privacy notice before. Involve

them in the drafting process.

At a minimum, test your draft on people who were

not involved in the creative process: ask for feedback from a wide range of people, from employees

throughout your company and family members to

independent consumer “focus groups.”

To refine your messages, solicit feedback from

customers who have received a notice.

I think I’ll read

this one!

?