Effective Date: October 6, 2025

Welcome to mariajohn.com (the “Website”), owned and operated by Maria John (“I”, “me”, or “my”). 

This Privacy Policy including amendments from time to time (the ‘Privacy Policy”) explains how your information is collected, used, disclosed, and protected when any visitors, users, clients, and any other individuals (“You”,’ “Your”) who access or use the Website for any purpose, including but not limited to:

• Visit or browse the Website;
• Purchasing my services or products as available on the Website;
• Reading, downloading, printing, or otherwise interact with the content of the Website;
• Subscribing to my newsletter or waitlist;
• Submit comments, reviews, testimonials, or other content on the Website;
• Contact me via email or through forms on the Website.

This Privacy Policy is designed to inform you about how your information is handled when you browse or otherwise interact with the Website, engage with content available therein or while purchasing my services or products.

Please carefully read this Privacy Policy before using the Website on any device. This Privacy Policy should be read together with my Terms and Conditions, as both documents govern your rights and obligations while using this Website.

By accessing or using the Website, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy, you must not access or use the Website.

I reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy from time to time at my sole discretion to reflect legal requirements, business updates, or changes in how the Website operates. If any significant changes are made, I will notify you of any changes by posting the updated Privacy Policy on this page with the new effective date at the top and sending an email notification to my newsletter subscribers (if applicable). Any other updates may be made with or without prior notice. Your continued access or use of the Website after any changes become effective constitutes your acceptance of the revised Privacy Policy and agreement to the changes, whether or not you have read them.
Please review this page periodically to stay informed of any updates and understand the latest terms of this Privacy Policy applicable to your access or use of the Website.

For clarity and consistency, these terms have specific meanings throughout this document:

• Personal Information/Data: Any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person.
• Processing: Any operation performed on personal data, including collection, recording, organization, storage, etc.
• Content: All material on the Website, including but not limited to text, graphics, images, audio clips, digital downloads, and designs.
• Services: Professional writing services including website copy, sales pages, consulting sessions, website audits, VIP days, case studies, and positioning workshops, as well as any customized services agreed upon in writing.
• Products: Digital products including but not limited to templates, webinars, and digital resources that may be offered for sale.
• Client: An individual or entity who has purchased Services or Products by paying in full or making a deposit.
• Contract: A specific agreement between me and a Client detailing the scope, deliverables, timeline, and payment terms for particular Services.

I collect and process your information on the following legal grounds:

• Consent: When you voluntarily provide information or opt into services like newsletters;
• Contract: When necessary to fulfill my contractual obligations to you;
• Legitimate Interests: When processing is necessary for my legitimate business interests, such as improving services or website functionality;
• Legal Obligation: When required to comply with applicable laws.

Before providing any information, it is important to understand what information is required and what is optional. 

By sharing your information, you confirm that it is correct, you confirm that it is:

• Accurate, complete, and personal to you—and that you have obtained consent if providing information on behalf of someone else. 
• Provided voluntarily by you based on your interactions with the Website.

The type of personal information collected depends on how you interact with me and the Website, the choices you make, the services you avail, products you purchase, and features you use. This may include details you provide voluntarily, data collected automatically, and information processed during transactions.

The personal information collected may include the following:
1. Personal Information provided by you:
a. Information that you voluntarily provide such as when you browse or visit the Website, you subscribe to my newsletter, join my waitlist, inquire about my services (via contact form), or purchase my services/products, or otherwise engage with me or my content on the Website the following personal information may be collected:

• First Name & Email Address: To communicate with you and provide requested services.
• Message/Project Details: If you fill out the contact form, this helps me understand your needs.
• Newsletter Preferences: If you subscribe, send relevant content based on your interests.
• Business/Project Inquiry Information: If applying to work with me, to evaluate potential client relationships and project details.
• Location Information (City, derived from IP Address): To provide location-relevant content.
• IP Address: Automatically collected by MailerLite (email service provider) for security and analytics.
• Date & Time of Subscription: Automatically recorded when you subscribe.

b. When you post or submit content (“Submissions”) on the Website including, but not limited to reviews, comments, testimonials, and discussions, I may use it to promote my services/products, improve the Website, and reach a wider audience. 

I truly appreciate when clients and visitors allow me to showcase their feedback—it helps me reach and serve new audiences more effectively through your support and brand advocacy!

However, please keep in mind that once your Submissions are transmitted to the Website, it becomes publicly accessible and can be viewed, shared, or used by others at your own risk. I have no control over how other third-parties or users interact with your Submissions. Please remember this before posting your Submissions on the Website. If you wish to remove a submission, please contact me at mj@mariajohn.com.

This data helps improve the Website’s performance, troubleshoot issues, and enhance user experience. It is collected through tools like Google Analytics and Showit (my website host). I typically do not use automatically collected information for any purpose other than as explicitly stated in this Privacy Policy, as required for security and analytics, or as notified to you before collection.

3. Payment Data

When you purchase my services or products, your payment-related details may be collected or processed such as payment method (e.g., PayPal, Wise, or Direct Bank Transfer), your transaction details such as payment confirmation, transaction reference id, your payment instrument number (eg. a credit card number), the associated security code, etc. 

However, I do not store or process payment information directly—it is securely handled by third-party service providers such as PayPal, Wise, and direct bank transfer. These payment providers are responsible for handling your financial data in accordance with t
heir own privacy policies. Please read their respective privacy policy to understand how they manage your payment information.

4. Client Information

Once you purchase my Services by paying in full or the deposit amount, you become my client. For the clients who work with me, I may also collect additional voluntary information to optimize my services for you. This may include:

• Business Details (to align my strategies with your brand)
• Goals and Aspirations (to tailor services to your needs)
• Other Project-Specific Information (only if needed for service delivery)

Cookies and Tracking technologies

The Website may use cookies and similar tracking technologies provided by Google Analytics (for visitor insights) and my website host, Showit (for website hosting & performance tracking). 

These tools help us understand how visitors interact with the Website. This data is used for research purposes, allowing us to uncover the browsing patterns, behavior habits, expedite search inquiries, and characteristics of the users or visitors of the Website. Further, trends may be monitored to identify new strategies for improving the Website. This analytic-based information influences our messaging, marketing, user experience, and more — all so I can deliver more value to you. For more information on cookies please see Cookies Policy section below.

Data Security

Reasonable precautions are taken to protect your information from unauthorized access or disclosure. However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, so I cannot promise or guarantee that hackers, cybercriminals, or other unauthorized third parties will never be able to circumvent these protections, and improperly collect, access, steal, or modify your information

I reserve the right to modify or delete some or all of your collected information. However, I will retain data as reasonably necessary to comply with legal obligations, including regulatory, security, and dispute resolution requirements. This includes obligations related to law enforcement requests, fraud prevention, abuse mitigation, and contractual enforcement, as well as fulfilling any specific requests from you.. 

Data Retention
Your personal information will be retained for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was initially collected or as outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required by law. This may include:

• Comply with legal obligations (e.g., tax, accounting, or regulatory requirements).
• Preventing fraud, abuse, or security threats.
• Resolve disputes and enforce legal agreements and policies.
• Improve security and website functionality (when applicable).

Usage Data collected through your interactions with the Website is generally retained for a shorter period for internal analysis purposes. Once the retention period expires, your data will be securely deleted unless a longer retention period is necessary to enhance security, improve my services, or fulfill legal obligations.

Below is an overview of our typical retention periods:

I do not share your personal information with others except as outlined in this Privacy Policy or when you are informed and given an opportunity to opt out of having your information shared.

To facilitate the operation of the Website, I may engage third-party service providers, including:

• MailerLite (email service provider)
• Showit (website host)
• Google Analytics (analytics provider)
• Cloudflare (domain hosting)
• Dubsado (CRM system)
• PayPal (payment processor)
• Wise (payment processor)

These third parties have access to your personal information only to perform specific tasks on my behalf and are obligated not to disclose or use it for any other purpose. For further information, please refer to their respective terms and privacy policy.

For details on how Google Analytics may collect and process your data, please refer to the Cookies Policy section below.

Additionally, this Website may contain links to third-party websites, including social media platforms (Instagram, LinkedIn) and affiliate links. These third-party sites may collect and process personal data according to their own privacy policies, which I do not control. Please refer to the "Third-Party Links & Affiliate Disclosure" section in the Terms & Conditions for more details.

I may also share anonymized, aggregated information with my business coach for business development purposes. However, this information will not include any personally identifiable details.

Furthermore, I may disclose your personal information 

• where required to do so by law and order to comply with applicable law, governmental requests, a judicial proceeding, court order, or legal process, such as in response to a court order or a subpoena (including in response to valid requests by public authorities to meet national security or law enforcement requirements).
• where I believe it is necessary to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding potential violations of policies, suspected fraud, situations involving potential threats to the safety of any person and illegal activities, or as evidence in litigation in which I am involved.

What are Cookies?

Cookies are small pieces of text sent to your browser by a website you visit. They help that website remember information about your visit, such as your preferred language and other settings, to enhance your browsing experience.

How Cookies are used on this Website?
The Website uses cookies for the following purposes:

• Analytics cookies: To understand how visitors interact with the Website and improve user experience;
• Necessary cookies: To enable core functionality and ensure the Website operates correctly.

Your Choices regarding Cookies
If you prefer to avoid the use of cookies on the Website, you have several options:

• Disable cookies in your browser settings
• Use your browser's incognito or private browsing mode
• Install browser extensions that block tracking technologies

Please note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality of certain parts of the Website, meaning you may be unable to access certain features or services.

Google Analytics
This Website uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google. Google Analytics collects data to track and analyze website traffic, helping us understand how users engage with the Website. This data is also shared with other Google services and may be used to personalize ads within Google's advertising network.

If you prefer to opt out of Google Analytics tracking, you can do so by:

• Installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, which prevents Google Analytics from collecting data about your visits.
• Adjusting your ad settings through Google’s Ads Preferences.
• 
  

For more information on how Google handles collected data, please review Google’s Privacy Policy.

I do not share your personal information with others except as outlined in this Privacy Policy or when you are informed and given an opportunity to opt out of having your information shared.

To facilitate the operation of the Website, I may engage third-party service providers, including:

• MailerLite (email service provider)
• Showit (website host)
• Google Analytics (analytics provider)
• Cloudflare (domain hosting)
• Dubsado (CRM system)
• PayPal (payment processor)
• Wise (payment processor)

These third parties have access to your personal information only to perform specific tasks on my behalf and are obligated not to disclose or use it for any other purpose. For further information, please refer to their respective terms and privacy policy.

For details on how Google Analytics may collect and process your data, please refer to the Cookies Policy section below.

Additionally, this Website may contain links to third-party websites, including social media platforms (Instagram, LinkedIn) and affiliate links. These third-party sites may collect and process personal data according to their own privacy policies, which I do not control. Please refer to the "Third-Party Links & Affiliate Disclosure" section in the Terms & Conditions for more details.

I may also share anonymized, aggregated information with my business coach for business development purposes. However, this information will not include any personally identifiable details.

Furthermore, I may disclose your personal information 

• where required to do so by law and order to comply with applicable law, governmental requests, a judicial proceeding, court order, or legal process, such as in response to a court order or a subpoena (including in response to valid requests by public authorities to meet national security or law enforcement requirements).
• where I believe it is necessary to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding potential violations of policies, suspected fraud, situations involving potential threats to the safety of any person and illegal activities, or as evidence in litigation in which I am involved.

In the event of a personal data breach that is likely to result in a high risk to your rights and freedoms, I may:

1. Notify the relevant supervisory authority within 72 hours of becoming aware of the breach, where feasible;
2. Inform you about the breach within reasonable time after becoming aware of it;
3. Provide you with information about the nature of the breach, likely consequences, and measures taken or proposed to address the breach;
4. Document all breaches, including facts, effects, and remedial actions taken.

Depending on your location, you have certain rights regarding your personal data. These may include:

• Right to access your personal information or request updates;
• Right to correct your information if it is inaccurate or incomplete;
• Right to erasure (right to be forgotten) and request the deletion of your personal data, subject to certain limitations;
• Right to object to or restrict processing of your personal data in specific circumstances;
• Right to data portability, allowing you to obtain a copy of your data in a structured format;
• Right to withdraw consent at any time, where processing is based on consent;
• Right to non-discrimination for exercising your privacy rights;
• The right to grievance redressal, if you have concerns about your data processing or data privacy rights.

These rights are provided under various regulations including the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP), Australia’s The Privacy Act 1988, United Arab Emirates (UAE)’s The Federal Decree Law No. 45 of 2021 Regarding the Protection of Personal Data, and Qatar’s Law No. 13 of 2016 on Protecting Personal Data Privacy.

To exercise any of your data protection rights, please feel free to reach out at mj@mariajohn.com. I will respond to your request within a reasonable timeframe.

Please note I reserve the right to refuse to update or delete your personal data if such change would violate any law or legal process or if I have reason to believe the requested change is incorrect. 

If you would like to request additional information or exercise your rights, please email mj@mariajohn.com, and provide:

• Verification of identity (e.g., government-issued ID); and
• Specify the information you request to be accessed, corrected, or removed

Please note that I reserve the right to:

• Request additional information to verify the above, including a form of government-issued identification. 
• Decline to process requests if:

1. You fail to provide sufficient information requested, 
2. The request violates any other law or legal requirement,
3. The request may compromise the privacy of others.  

Written responses to information requested under this section will be delivered electronically. I will respond within 45 business days from the day the request is received. If there are extenuating circumstances preventing the fulfillment of your request, I reserve the right to extend our response due date, if reasonably necessary, and will notify you of such extension electronically. 

If a request is declined, I will provide a reason as to why. You have the right to appeal a denial, and I will not discriminate against you for exercising any rights available to you under applicable law.

To make a request, you can designate an agent to make a request on your behalf by you and the agent executing and sending us a notarized power of attorney stating that the agent is authorized to act on your behalf. Please note that I may still require you to verify your identity before processing the request submitted by your agent.