Privacy Policy

I have tried to keep this as simple as possible. Here’s what information is collected, how it’s used and how it’s stored.

The bottom line is that The Boat Galley, LLC doesn’t sell your email address (and name) or use it for anything other than to contact you, show you an ad for a TBG product or service, or to follow up on a request you have made. We do everything we reasonably can to safeguard the information that you have given us. If you send me an email, you’re not going to get added to an email list — unless that’s what you asked me to do!

Forms

• Comments. Your name, email, website and comment are collected and stored for others to see. They are stored “forever” on The Boat Galley’s website and servers as described below. If you ask a question or request assistance via a comment, I will use the information to reply to you and/or help you get the information you want; this may include forwarding your information to a third party that I think can help you.
• Contact. Your name, email and question are forwarded to me or whoever else the contact form was directed to. They are stored “forever” on The Boat Galley’s website and servers as described below. They are also stored on the recipient’s computer(s) until deleted. I or the person the email was directed to will use the information to reply to you and/or help you get the information you request; this may include forwarding your information to a third party that we think can help you.

Purchases

If you purchase any of our products, I collect the minimum amount of information needed to process the transaction: your email address and payment information. You may optionally give me your name.

• Email. Your email address is collected so that I can send you any download links and receipt. It is stored on The Boat Galley’s servers, and by the payment processor, all as described below. This is stored “forever” as it is needed to look up your purchase if you need further customer service. Your email may also be used to show ads for other products sold by The Boat Galley, LLC.
• Payment processor: Shopify. If you pay by credit card, the transaction information will be transmitted to Shopify (our store host) so that I’ll be paid. Shopify is GDPR-compliant. Your credit card information is NOT kept on The Boat Galley’s servers or bookkeeping. All transactions are encrypted and transmitted by HTTPS. Transaction information is kept according to Shopify’s data retention policy.
• Payment processor: Paypal. If you pay by Paypal, the transaction information will be transmitted to Paypal so that I’ll be paid. Paypal is GDPR-compliant; you can read their privacy policy here. Your credit card information is NOT kept on The Boat Galley’s servers or bookkeeping. All transactions are encrypted and transmitted by HTTPS. Transaction information is kept according to Paypal’s data retention policy.

The Boat Galley Newsletter

The Boat Galley Newsletter is sent out using MailerLite, a CRM and email automation service. All email addresses are stored on the MailerLite servers and all signups are processed there. Email addresses are retained as long as you have an active subscription. Unsubscribed emails are deleted every six months. Email addresses may be used to show you ads for products and services from The Boat Galley. MailerLite is GDPR-compliant and you can read their privacy policy here.

I do not sell or give the email list to any other companies or individuals.

Social Networks

The Boat Galley site is set up to encourage social sharing and you can share articles on Facebook and Pinterest. Aggregate numbers of shares, likes and pins are tracked through Social Snap (a WordPress plugin/service), there is no individually-identifiable information passed on.

Resource Center

The Boat Galley Resource Center is operated through MemberVault. If you have signed up for a course, your email address is stored on the MemberVault servers as your username. See MemberVault’s privacy policy. MemberVault is GDPR-compliant.

Store

The Boat Galley Store is operated through Shopify. Your transactional information — name, shipping and billing address, credit card information, and items purchased — is stored on the Shopify servers. See Shopify’s privacy policy. Shopify is GDPR-compliant. Where your order includes a subscription to our newsletter, your name, email, and products purchased are sent to our account with Gold Star Pro.

Advertising 

The Boat Galley uses Facebook Custom Audiences to deliver advertisements for TBG products to website visitors on Facebook and Instagram based on email addresses provided for The Boat Galley Newsletter.

Cookies

A cookie is a tiny text file stored on your computer. Cookies store information that is used to help make sites work. Only we and our advertising/affiliate partners can access the cookies created by our website.

I use cookies and/or similar technologies to improve The Boat Galley, give you a better experience and to allow me to participate in affiliate programs. This happens in several ways:

• Analyze reader behavior. For example, knowing how many people read different articles tells me what topics readers are most interested in and what they’re not. That helps me plan future articles. I use Google Analytics to measure traffic on The Boat Galley. Google is GDPR-compliant. Google has their own Privacy Policy which you can review here. If you’d like to opt out of tracking by Google Analytics, visit the Google Analytics opt-out page. (I do not use other Google services such as Adsense.)
• Track what you’ve seen. For example, a cookie is set when you see the popup for the newsletter. Another one is set if you click on that. Without these, you’d see that popup on every single page, every single visit. The Facebook Pixel tracks what pages you have looked at in order to provide more relavent Facebook and Instagram ads.
• Give me credit for items you purchase through my affiliate links. Some affiliate programs not only provide a payment to the referring website for anything immediately purchased through an affiliate link, but for a certain number of days afterward (some of these also provide an automatic discount for you, too). The cookie tells when you clicked the link. The two affiliate networks that I am a part of which use cookies are Amazon and Skimlinks.

You can control your cookies at the browser level. Choosing to disable cookies may hinder your use of certain functions.

You can remove cookies stored on your computer via your browser settings. Alternatively, you can control some third-party cookies by using a privacy enhancement platform such as optout.aboutads.info or youronlinechoices.com. For more information about cookies, visit allaboutcookies.org.

Servers

I do my best to keep your data safe.  I use safe protocols for communication and transferring data (such as HTTPS). I use anonymizing and pseudonymizing where suitable. I use the safest servers I can, which employ professional security experts to provide data protection. My personal computer has constantly-updated security software (firewall, malware, antivirus, internet security, anti-spyware and more).

Even though I try my best I cannot guarantee the security of information. However, I promise to notify suitable authorities of data breaches. I will also notify you if there is a threat to your rights or interests. I will do everything I reasonably can to prevent security breaches and to assist authorities should any breaches occur.

• Kinsta. Kinsta is the host for The Boat Galley and maintains site backups. They are GDPR-compliant.
• Cloudflare. Cloudflare provides enhanced security for The Boat Galley . Cloudflare is GDPR-compliant.
• MailerLite. MailerLite provides the CRM for The Boat Galley and processes our newsletter and any emails in reply to it. MailerLite is GDPR-compliant.
• Zoho Mail. Zoho is the email host for The Boat Galley. Zoho is GDPR-compliant.
• QuickBooks Online. I use Quick Books Online (an online bookkeeping solution for tiny online sellers such as The Boat Galley). All income and expenses for The Boat Galley are recorded here, including the names of course and ebook purchasers, names of anyone else paying or receiving payments from The Boat Galley and names and email addresses of anyone receiving an invoice from The Boat Galley (primarily podcast advertisers). QuickBooks Online is GDPR-compliant.

Children

I do not intend to collect or knowingly collect information from children. I do not target children with my articles, products or services.

Contact Information

Carolyn Shearlock – contact me

Changes to this Privacy Policy

I reserve the right to make changes to this Privacy Policy. The last modification was made March 12, 2024.