Advertising Disclosure
Last updated: December 8, 2024
Our Commitment to Transparency
At Steeping Room, we believe in maintaining complete transparency with our community regarding any commercial relationships or advertising arrangements that may exist on our website at steepingroom.org. This disclosure statement explains how we may earn income through various partnerships and what that means for you as a visitor.
We are committed to providing honest, unbiased information about tea and related products. Our recommendations are based on genuine quality and value, regardless of any financial relationship that may exist.
Affiliate Relationships
Affiliate Program Participation
Steeping Room participates in various affiliate marketing programs. This means that when you click on certain links on our website and make a purchase, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. These affiliate relationships help support our work and allow us to continue providing valuable content and services.
How Affiliate Links Work
Affiliate links are special tracking links that identify when a purchase originated from our website. Here's what you should know:
- • You pay the same price whether you use our affiliate link or go directly to the merchant
- • The merchant pays us a small commission for referring you to their product or service
- • We only recommend products and services we genuinely believe in
- • Our opinions remain independent and unbiased regardless of affiliate relationships
Product Recommendations
When we recommend tea products, brewing equipment, or related items, our primary consideration is quality and value for our community. While some of these recommendations may include affiliate links, we never recommend products solely because of potential compensation. Our recommendations are based on careful evaluation, personal experience, and consideration of what would genuinely benefit those interested in tea culture.
Financial Relationship Transparency
We believe you have the right to know when we have a financial relationship with a product or service we mention. In accordance with FTC guidelines, we clearly disclose affiliate relationships where applicable. This transparency ensures you can make informed decisions about the content you consume and the purchases you make.
Sponsored Content
Paid Promotions
From time to time, we may feature paid promotional content on our website. This occurs when a company compensates us to highlight their products, services, or brand. All sponsored content is clearly labeled as such, and we maintain editorial independence in how we present this material.
Sponsored Content Labeling
We ensure that all sponsored content is clearly identified using appropriate labels such as:
- • "Sponsored by [Brand Name]"
- • "Paid Partnership"
- • "In collaboration with [Brand Name]"
- • Other clear indicators that the content is sponsored
Brand Partnerships
We occasionally partner with brands that align with our values and mission. These partnerships may involve various forms of collaboration, including sponsored content, product features, or joint events. All such partnerships are disclosed, and we maintain our commitment to providing honest, valuable information regardless of any commercial arrangement.
Content Authenticity
Even when content is sponsored, we maintain creative control and ensure that all information provided is accurate, useful, and aligned with our community's interests. We do not compromise our editorial integrity for commercial gain, and we reserve the right to decline sponsorship opportunities that don't align with our values or serve our audience.
Third-Party Advertising
Display Advertising Networks
We may use third-party advertising networks to display advertisements on our website. These networks use technologies such as cookies and web beacons to collect information about your visits to our site and other websites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services that may be of interest to you.
Behavioral Targeting
Some advertisements on our website may be tailored to you based on your browsing behavior across different websites. This practice, known as behavioral advertising or interest-based advertising, helps ensure that the advertisements you see are more relevant to your interests. You can learn more about this practice and your options to opt out by visiting the Cookie Policy page.
Cookie Usage for Advertising
Advertising partners may use cookies and similar technologies to track your interactions with advertisements and measure campaign effectiveness. For detailed information about how we and our partners use cookies, please review our Cookie Policy. You have the option to manage your cookie preferences and opt out of certain types of advertising tracking.
Ad Personalization Practices
We work with advertising partners who may use information about your visits to our website and other sites to provide personalized advertisements. This personalization aims to show you ads for products and services that are more relevant to your interests. You can control these preferences through your browser settings or by using our cookie management tools.
User Rights and Controls
You have various rights and options regarding advertisements on our website:
Ad Preference Management
You can manage your advertising preferences by adjusting your cookie settings. Visit our Cookie Policy page to access cookie management tools and control which types of advertising cookies are enabled.
Opt-Out Procedures
If you prefer not to receive personalized advertisements, you can opt out through various industry opt-out programs or by adjusting your browser settings to block third-party cookies. Please note that opting out does not mean you will stop seeing advertisements; it means the ads will be less personalized.
Data Collection for Advertising
Our advertising partners may collect certain information about your browsing behavior to provide personalized advertising. This typically includes pages visited, time spent on pages, and general demographic information. For detailed information about data collection practices, please review our Privacy Policy.
Rights Under Privacy Regulations
Depending on your location, you may have additional rights regarding how your data is used for advertising purposes under laws such as GDPR or CCPA. To exercise these rights or learn more about them, please contact us or review our Privacy Policy.
FTC Compliance
We comply with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines regarding endorsements, testimonials, and advertising disclosures. This means we clearly and conspicuously disclose any material connections between ourselves and the products, services, or brands we mention.
Our goal is to ensure you have all the information you need to make informed decisions about the content you consume and the products you purchase. If you ever feel that we have not adequately disclosed a relationship or if you have questions about our advertising practices, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Editorial Independence
We maintain strict editorial independence from our advertising partners. Our content decisions are not influenced by advertisers, and we never allow advertisers to review or approve editorial content before publication. The presence of advertising on our website does not indicate endorsement of the advertiser's products or services.
Our primary commitment is to our community and to providing valuable, accurate information about tea culture and related topics. Commercial relationships exist to support this mission, not to compromise it.
Updates to This Disclosure
We may update this Advertising Disclosure from time to time to reflect changes in our advertising practices or relationships. When we make significant changes, we will update the date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, provide additional notice.
We encourage you to review this disclosure periodically to stay informed about how we handle advertising relationships and what that means for your experience on our website.
Questions About Advertising
If you have any questions about our advertising practices, relationships, or this disclosure statement, please contact us through our contact page. We value transparency and are happy to answer any questions you may have about how we work with advertisers and partners.