Privacy Policy
Your information, WHAT we collect and what we do with it
We've tried to make this privacy protection policy as transparent and as readable as possible. Basically, we're strong believers of Jesus's words, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." That means we will never spam you, we only partner with reputable and secure internet services and where possible all of our accounts follow best security practices including two factor authentication and strong passwords. Because we're not in the business of making money from the collection or storing of customer info, we don't actually have a lot of it. We collect the minimum needed to serve you as best we can. We've separated this page into the services we offer and the providers we use. If you have any questions related to this page, or your information, please contact us using the form at the bottom of this page.
OUR Podcast
Podcasting - by design - is inherently data light. By that we mean, we can't tell any identifying information about who listens to our podcast. Our podcast host - Buzzsprout - does offer statistics, but this is the only information we have access to:
number of downloads for each episode published
number of downloads for each episode by country and city
number of downloads for each episode by podcast player
If you listen to our podcast via Apple's podcast app, Spotify, Google Podcast or Sticher each of those services offer us listening statistics that include:
number of devices that a show has been played on
total number of hours a show has been listened to across all devices
the average time a show has been listened to per device
top countries by device
how much of each episode was listened to
Again, all of this information is completely anonymous. We can't tell who is listening, only which country they are from, what podcast player they use and (in aggregate) how long an episode was listened to.
HOW WE USE THIS INFO
We use this info to see how popular each episode is and where we are most listened to. This helps us pick topics to discuss or revisit.
YOUR DATA, YOUR OPTIONS
Because all of the data is anonymous we don't technically have any or your data for us to do anything with. This is a good thing!
More information
If you would like to read the privacy policies for the companies we use for podcasting they are linked below for your convenience.
OUR STORE
We sell books and digital downloads via Shopify - a trusted service with a great reputation for online sales. When you place an order with us, here is the information that Shopify collects, that we have access to:
Your name
Your billing address
A shipping address (yours or if it's a gift, the person you want us to mail the items to)
Your phone number (optional)
Your email address (optional)
What you purchased
The last four digits of the credit card used to pay for the order
The kind of credit card used (Amex, Visa, MasterCard, etc)
If it's something we mail to you (as opposed to something you download) we create and store a USPS tracking number
Date of order
Date of shipping
Once an order has been completed, we add your first name, email address and the product purchased to our ConvertKit account. Additionally if a customer chooses to opt-in to our email marketing list at checkout, we pass their email address to ConvertKit. ConvertKit is a highly credible, well respected email marketing service which allows people like us to send emails to customers. We only send email to customers who have explicitly requested information from us. Here is the information that is stored within our ConvertKit account:
Your first name
Your email address
The date you asked to be subscribed to our email list
Any items you have purchased from us (if applicable)
How we use this info
We use your name and shipping address to mail you the items you purchased. We use your contact info (either email or phone number) to contact you with information about your order. Note that customers don't have to give an email address, they can receive information via SMS if they prefer. We don't send customers any unsolicited emails. At checkout customers have the opportunity to opt out of our mailing list (this is a change from the past where customers had to opt in - the reason for this is a boring technical limitation not our desire to slimily collect customer emails - we wish it could be done another way!) Only those customers who have explicitly requested we send emails to them receive further emails. We use the last four digits of the payment card incase we need to verify your order (note that we don't have access to the rest of your credit card information). We generate the USPS tracking number so you can track your shipment and we keep it on your file so we can ensure you received your order. We also like to think at some point, we’ll be better at communicating with you about future projects or products you might like based on your purchase history, but that will only be if you have explicitly opted in to hear about this.
YOUR DATA, YOUR OPTIONS
All of this data is collected with your consent, because you are the one purchasing the goods and/or opting into our mailing list. Because it's your data we're holding, you have rights to it or for it be erased. While all your data is held by reputable firms with great security and clear privacy policies, we understand if you'd prefer for it to be erased. Where the law provides for us to do so, and with written notice from you, we're happy to erase any data we hold on you or provide you with copies of the data we hold relating to you personally. Reach out to us via the form below if you'd like to take action and we'll follow up with you.
More information
If you would like to read the privacy policies for the companies we use for selling our products they are linked below for your convenience.
Our Website
Our website at alynandaj.com is hosted by Squarespace, one of the world's most reputable hosting companies. They provide us with the following information about people who visit our website:
the number of unique visitors to our site
the number of visits to our site
the number of page views our site receives
the type of device used to visit our website
how people arrived at our site (via a link on twitter? facebook? or via a search engine)
the kind of browser used to visit our site
the operating system used on the device that visits us
the country our visitors come from
Google search keywords (what words people typed into google to find us with)
how many people have subscribed to our website and/or podcast
How we use this info
By looking at the device, browser and operating system used by those who visit our site, it helps us prioritize design choices (i.e. will this look good on iPhones as well as on Windows computers). By understanding how people arrive at our site it helps us prioritize how to attract new visitors. Knowing the countries that the people who visit our website come from helps us make informed decisions about whether to invest in translation (so far the majority of our visitors are from English speaking countries). Google search words help us know what people are interested in (and sometimes give us a good giggle!).
YOUR DATA, YOUR OPTIONS
Because this data is anonymous we don't actually know anything about you. Sure we can tell which country you are from or what device was used or if you came directly or via a shared story on facebook, but we have no idea of knowing if it's you browsing our site or somebody else in your country. As such, we can't give you copies of any data we have of you visiting our website (because there is none!) nor can we erase it (because we don't have it!). This is good news for everyone!
More information
If you would like to read the privacy policies for the companies we use for hosting our website they are linked below for your convenience.
Our video courses
We have developed a number of video courses (and more are on the way!) We use Teachable to host these courses and sell them to our customers. If you purchase access to one of our courses, we have access to:
Your name
Your email address
Your address
The number of times you log into teachable to access the course
The last time you logged into teachable to access the course
The date you purchased access to the course
How much you paid to access the course
Your progress through the course, including how much of each video you watch
We can not see any credit card information that you used to purchase a video course.
How we use this info
Your email address is used to uniquely identify you as a student on one of our courses and your purchase receipt, course completion certificate and any enrollment notices are automatically sent to you from Teachable. Once you purchase access to a course, we add your first name, email address and the course you purchased to our ConvertKit account. ConvertKit is a highly credible, well respected email marketing service which allows people like us to send emails to customers. We only send email to customers who have explicitly requested information from us. Here is the information that is stored within our ConvertKit account:
Your first name
Your email address
The date you asked to be subscribed to our email list
Any courses you have purchased
We use the progress and login data to assess which videos need changed and which topics are most popular.
YOUR DATA, YOUR OPTIONS
All of the data at Teachable is collected with your consent, because you are the one purchasing the course. Because it's your data we're holding, you have rights to it or for it be erased. While all your data is held by reputable firms with great security and clear privacy policies, we understand if you'd prefer for it to be erased. Where the law provides for us to do so, and with written notice from you, we're happy to erase any data we hold on you or provide you with copies of the data we hold relating to you personally. However doing so will prevent you from accessing the video course you just purchased in the future. Reach out to us via the form below if you'd like to take action and we'll follow up with you.
More information
If you would like to read the privacy policies for the companies we use for selling our video courses they are linked below for your convenience.
PATREON SUPPORT
We have a Patreon account that allows people who wish to support our podcast and new media efforts financially each month. Our Patreon supporters sign up to pledge money and can cancel their account at any time. If you are a Patreon supporter, Patreon allows us to see the following information about you:
Your name
Your email address
Your pledge rate (i.e. how much you state you want to give)
Your pledge history (how much you have given)
We can not see any financial or other personal information.
How we use this info
Patreon subscribers are rewarded with videos and private content. Your email address allows us to contact you to say thank you. Your pledge history allows us to make refunds if need be (and is a source of encouragement!)
YOUR DATA, YOUR OPTIONS
Because our Patreon supporters are entirely voluntarily the above information is given with your consent when you sign up to support us. Additionally you can withdraw your pledge at any time and disable your account. More information can be found by reading Patreon's privacy policy.
Donations
From time to time people have asked if they can send a financial gift to support or bless what we do. To facilitate this, we have a page where people can make donations. This information is processed via the premier internet payment processor Stripe. Here is the information that our website host Squarespace provides us about any donations:
The amount given
Your name
Your email address
Your billing address
Your phone number
Here is the information that we have access to via Stripe:
Your name
Your billing address
Your email address
The last four digits of the credit card used for payment
The expiration date of the card used
The type of credit card used
The amount gifted
How we use this info
Stripe uses the billing address, credit card number, expiration date to process the transaction and to verify the card is not used fraudulently. Your email address is used so we can send a thank you note and receipt of your transaction. Your phone number can be used in case we need to verify details or contact your regarding a refund.
YOUR DATA, YOUR OPTIONS
We collect this data with your consent, because you are choosing to make a donation. As it's your data we're holding, you have rights to it. The law regarding financial transactions makes it tricky to delete it but if you have questions about your data regarding a donation you made, get in touch via the form below.
More information
If you would like to read the privacy policies for the companies we use for processing donations they are linked below for your convenience.
Summary
We believe in a culture of honor. That means we treat your data like we'd want our data treated. Secure, used only for the purposes it was given for and not abused. We've followed industry best practices and partnered with those with a great reputation. Where available we have turned on two factor authentication for all the services we use. Below is a list of the privacy policies of all the companies we use to run our online presence.
Contact Us
If you have questions about anything on this page, or have concerns regarding our methods of privacy protection, please use the form below.
Last updated August 19, 2021
Changes (August 19, 2021)
we stopped using GoSquared to provide analytics about traffic to alynandaj.com so we removed references to their privacy policy and links to their site
Changes (March 10, 2021)
renamed this page “Privacy Policy” instead of “Privacy Protection”
we switched our podcast host from Libsyn to Buzzsprout so we updated this page to reflect the change
we added Spotify, Google Podcasts and Stitcher privacy policies as we can look at podcast stats via these services
we changed the default behavior for email marketing requests on our checkout page at Shopify from customers having to opt in, to now having to opt out. We really hate this, but there’s a technical limitation when checking out using Apple Pay which meant customers never got the choice to opt in. Ugh. We updated this page to reflect that change
we reaffirmed that we will not send any marketing emails (regarding upcoming projects or products - no matter how exciting we think they are) to any customer who has not explicitly given us permission to do so
we now use Teachable for our video courses so have updated this page to reflect the data we collect and link to their privacy page