To be shocked and hurt by this

[SquirrelsAndNuts]

I didn't know what to put as a title. I do feel shocked. And I think a little hurt.

I have a friend I met a few years ago. We are in the same line of work. We live quite far away from each other. There’s around a couple of hundred miles between us, but we stay in touch regularly. 
Anyway, we were chatting this week about work, and I decided to have a quick look on her website. 
I was shocked to see that she has copied and pasted everything from my website onto her own. It’s all the same - word for word. 
I don’t think at all this will have a negative impact on my business. But I just feel so shocked by this. I’m not sure if I also feel quite hurt? Or foolish? I couldn’t quite believe it at first. 

I really don’t know what to do. Part of me wants to do nothing and pretend that I haven’t seen it, but I also would prefer for her to remove it. However, I don’t want to risk hurting her or embarrassing her, or jeopardising our friendship.  
What would you do? 

[DrSbaitso]

@Bluntness100

I’m not sure, you say it won’t impact on you at all and you’re a fair distance apart, many businesses a fair distance apart wouldn’t have an impact on each other.

She’s copied as she’s struggling and you’re not. I don’t know if it doesn’t do you any harm and you’re sure of it, then I’m not sure I would be too bothered.

If they're online sellers then the distance between them won't matter, and if they use SEO to be found, which they very likely do, then yes, it will have an impact. It'll dilute OP's customer base and customers are likely to think the two sites are for the same company, or that they are connected.

Quite apart from that, there's a principle involved here. Partly copyright and partly business ethics. It's not petty or somehow lesser to protect your original content that you use for your business.

[Loudestcat14]

Stealing someone's content from their website is a breach of their copyright. For that alone I would be confronting her. She needs to know it is not okay and if she does it to someone who isn't a friend like you, OP, who can address it directly with her, she could be on the receiving end of a legal letter to cease and desist, or worse.

[rrhuth]

@Tal45

Why would you want to be friends with and protect someone who steals from you? That's the bottom line.

Yes this.

This person is not your friend.

Send them an email saying they've infringed your intellectual property rights and you want the content removed.

[DrSbaitso]

@Holly60

Ok it sounds like you like her and want to maintain the friendship.

How about ‘hi X, was just looking at your website and saw that some of it is really similar to mine. No worries about that but at some point did you want me to help you edit it so it’s even more relevant to your business?’

Then see what she says?

Why make out that it's not important when it is? That gives her carte blanche to continue.

"Hi X, I was just checking out your website and I couldn't help noticing that the content is the same as mine. I rely on that content for promotion so I'm going to have to ask you to take it down. I'm sure you don't mean it to, but it'll lose business for me otherwise."

You can offer to help her with her own content if you want to.

I can't see many businessmen apologising for it and pretending it doesn't matter.

[belleissmart]

That could definitely affect your business - Google scans websites and if it finds the text is duplicated, it massively affects your ranking and you could be hard to find for new customers.

[Lotusmonster]

I had this a few years back. But I was the perceived ‘guilty’ party. The devils In the detail 100%….make sure your eyes are not selectively seeing the similarities rather than the clear differences in your websites OP.
In my case, I used the same web developer as my rival. The content, layout and all the imagery was different. But because we’d used the same developer I’d say the ‘feel’ was similar even though the sites were materially different. You need to be definite and specific on this. My rival had felt that they ought to have exclusive use of the developer! They did not.
The rival failed in her attempts to bring my site down.

[RobinsReliant]

She’s not a friend. A friend would have asked if she could copy it. I would definitely raise it with her and say that a copyright issue has been brought to your attention and please could she remove it by the end of the day. You can say it nicely. Her response will tell you whether she can remain a friend or not.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t realise it would be an issue. Of course I’ll remove it now” - Friend

“I didn’t copy it. It’s fine for me to use it. I’m not sure why it bothers you. I wrote it. I don’t see the problem” - Not a friend. Get rid.

[SunflowersInTheShade]

She's not a friend, & she's not professional.

We've used other people's content in the past - you always ask and put up the approval, and follow whatever instructions the owner of the copyright has (mostly related to giving credit)

You shouldn't be so worried about her reaction when she clearly doesn't give a toss about yours.

[NewlyGranny]

I think the key question is; is the friendship older than your business and its website?

If it is, I'd go after her gently through anonymous channels.

If not, go in all find blazing: she's not a friend at all, she's an economic spy and a plagiarist. Copyright everything, watermark your images and check her site daily!

[DrSbaitso]

If it is, I'd go after her gently through anonymous channels.

What does that mean? And why anonymous if you're friends?

[NewlyGranny]

All guns, not find! Autorrect, I hate you more each day. 🤭

[NewlyGranny]

DrSbaitso, I mean use an agency as PPs who know more than I have suggested.

[NewlyGranny]

DSiL got into very hot water ripping off website wording from a bigger, more successful business than her own. She had a sort of cease and desist solicitor's letter with warnings of the consequences if she didn't comply.

Shamed and embarrassed!

[LookItsMeAgain]

I wouldn't go softly about this. I'd contact a solicitor who works with internet companies and companies that have an internet presence and who deals with copyright laws.

She is effectively purporting to be you, she is claiming the things you have done, she has done. The products you have made, she has made. She is a fraud.
Why didn't she get someone else to develop her website presence? She is no better than someone who copies off a someone else in an exam!

Please don't offer to help her develop her own site. That is up to her to do, and to do it honestly and transparently.

[Rainbowsew]

@Holly60

Ok it sounds like you like her and want to maintain the friendship.

How about ‘hi X, was just looking at your website and saw that some of it is really similar to mine. No worries about that but at some point did you want me to help you edit it so it’s even more relevant to your business?’

Then see what she says?

Don't say this! Why say "no worries" when actually you're upset by this and also don't do "work" to improve a rivals website and for free. The onus is on her to change it not you.

I'm no business person but that's got to the worst idea ever!

[GreenFingersWouldBeHandy]

Why are you so worried about 'embarrassing' her? She's basically stolen intellectual properly from you and posted it as her own.

It's downright disrespectful for a start. And as others have said, could well have a negative impact on your SEO ratings. Is your website copyrighted or trademarked?

You need to ask her to take it down and write her own content. For me, this would end the friendship anyway.

[NCforsafety]

Duplicate copy will be killing your SEO OP. We work extremely hard on ensuring there is no duplication of any of our sites just for this reason. Haver you run an SEO plug in optimiser on your site to check if your rankings are now effected by this? And have you checked your GA reports? Best to know what the implications are for your site before contacting her I think.

[LindaEllen]

What kind of business is it? Do you both run similar companies where you hire people in the same sector, or are you Body Shop (or similar) reps and the website you mention is your Facebook group?

I don't know why so many people are pussy-footing round the issue. Send a text saying Hi, just had a glance at your website and saw it's the same as mine. I spent a lot of time on that and you need to delete my content and come up with your own.

Job jobbed.

[Mix56]

YES, She us not your friend.
I would get an official letter sent. There's no point in tiptoeing around it.

[DrSbaitso]

What would a businessman do?

[LettertoHermoine]

Lazy way out of not putting in the work that you did, not to mention entitled, disrespectful and downright rude.

I'd message her and say "Here Imelda, what's the story on ya copying my website? Take it down with the quickness before I shoot you with balls of your own shite"

[DrSbaitso]

@LettertoHermoine

Lazy way out of not putting in the work that you did, not to mention entitled, disrespectful and downright rude.

I'd message her and say "Here Imelda, what's the story on ya copying my website? Take it down with the quickness before I shoot you with balls of your own shite"

Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish yo subscribe to your newsletter.

[Hopeisallineed]

I would be asking her to take it down or amend it in some way as, but only if you are 100% sure she has directly taken it from yours.

[starrynight87]

No, it's wrong. You also don't want people finding hers first and thinking you copied her!

[sansucre]

@SquirrelsAndNuts

I didn't know what to put as a title. I do feel shocked. And I think a little hurt.

I have a friend I met a few years ago. We are in the same line of work. We live quite far away from each other. There’s around a couple of hundred miles between us, but we stay in touch regularly. 
Anyway, we were chatting this week about work, and I decided to have a quick look on her website. 
I was shocked to see that she has copied and pasted everything from my website onto her own. It’s all the same - word for word. 
I don’t think at all this will have a negative impact on my business. But I just feel so shocked by this. I’m not sure if I also feel quite hurt? Or foolish? I couldn’t quite believe it at first. 

I really don’t know what to do. Part of me wants to do nothing and pretend that I haven’t seen it, but I also would prefer for her to remove it. However, I don’t want to risk hurting her or embarrassing her, or jeopardising our friendship.  
What would you do? 

If this is really the case, it's plagiarism and theft of intellectual property and you can take legal action.