Our policy on advertising, promotion and product reviews

Advertising & Promotion
Our members want access to a wide array of kilts and kilt related products and services. To provide this we have accepted paid advertising from select companies who wish to present their products to our membership. All X Marks has ever asked of those who wish to advertise here, is that they do so on an even playing field. Therefore we have agreed to use as our definition of Advertising and/or Promotion, the following -

Advertising and/or Promotion are defined as:
"A form of communication used to encourage, persuade, drive or induce an audience to take or continue some action concerning a commercial offering. It can be used to change or reinforce consumer behavior or offer assurances to consumers. Advertising often involves repetition of an image or product name in an effort to associate certain qualities with the image or name.
Advertising does not always involve the direct sale of a good or service. One example would be a "Social Media Influencer" who receives payment to post reviews of products. If the result is an increase in awareness of a good or service it is advertising and /or promotion."

Any member of the forum who produces a kilt or kilt related product and who wishes to advertise on the forum will be directed to our advertising plan for details of our ad space and rates.

No other advertising or promotion will be allowed except those listed in the advertising plan.

Posting in the DIY, For Sale, and Photo Galleries

The DIY Section is intended as a place to share ideas and accomplishments of items made by our members for their personal use. It is not intended to be a "show room" for new products being introduced by any commercial enterprise.

The “For Sale” section of the forum is intended for private sales of items owned by our members for their personal use. No product or service will be listed, or linked to, in the “For Sale” section by any Commercial Enterprise.

The posting of photos on the forum or in the "Photo Galleries" is intended for our members to show off their own, personally owned, kilts, accessories, and outfits. Posting photos of products for sale by any commercial enterprise other than paid advertisers is not allowed.

Product Reviews & Endorsements

One of the functions of X Marks is to allow open and honest reviews of kilts, kilt related products and services.

Product Reviews are the best way for new members to gain information about suppliers. We encourage our members to post Product Reviews. All reviews must be about a product purchased for the members own use. Product reviews must contain only verifiable factual information.

Negative product reviews are also encouraged as an important warning to other potential buyers, but the reviewer must be very careful not to denigrate or libel the manufacturer or supplier. Negative reviews must contain only verifiable factual information.

If member wishes to post a review, of a product purchased from one of our advertisers, it would be best if the review is posted in that advertisers section of the forum.

Product Endorsements, while not prohibited, are not encouraged. We understand that everyone has their favorite supplier, but endorsements often cross the line and become unauthorized advertisements. Any endorsement of a product must have the approval of the manufacturer or seller. Endorsements must contain only verifiable factual information. Defining when a Product Endorsement crosses the line and becomes Advertising will rest solely with the Forum Owner. For example: an endorsement made as a first post would be very suspicious.

Announcements of events and functions are helpful and can keep our members informed of what is going on. We welcome announcements of events and functions as long as they do not cross the line and become promotion. It would be very suspect if your sole reason for joining is to post announcements of your event or if you are directly involved with, or would profit from the event. Dates, times and locations can be listed but pricing, ticket sales or collections of funds is not. When an announcement crosses the line and becomes promotion will lie solely with the Forum Moderators. An announcement made as a first post would not normally be accepted.

Hello,

I am Steve Ashton the owner of X Marks the Scot.com and I would like to thank you for your interest in advertising on our forum.

Advertising on an on-line forum is a truly unique method of bringing customers to your products. In traditional advertising you buy your space, put up your ad and hope people see it and are drawn enough by the ad to visit your site.
Advertising on an on-line forum is a bit different. The logo that is in your ad space contains an embedded link directly to your website.
But in fact, this is not all there is to your ad, nor is this all your money is buying. Each advertiser on X Marks has their own personal forum section. Within your forum section you may announce sales, highlight new products and speak directly to your established and prospective customers.
It is this one-on-one, direct line of communication that makes advertising on X Marks one of the most powerful and cost effective advertising investments.
All the advertisers on X Marks participate as individuals. You are not just a company name. To the other members of the forum you are a real person. Someone they can know and trust.

We have four levels of Advertising available. Each level is tailored to, and priced for, a particular type of business. Regardless of your ad location each advertiser is entitled to the following:

• Each X Marks advertiser will have a dedicated section on the forum under their Company name. These sections give them a 'showroom' to highlight their products. Customers of the advertiser can use the section to post photos, reviews, and comments. Advertisers sections of the forum also serve as direct access to our advertisers for questions and comments.
• Each advertiser will receive an instant email notifying them of a post within their forum section.
• Each advertiser may use their Company Logo as their avatar.
• They may have a title such as "Owner"or " Representative" or "Kiltmaker" under their username.
• Advertisers may have a URL link under their username on all their posts and in their Public Profile.
• Advertisers would be able to include a URL link to their website in their signature block.

"The Top, Premium Banner (Partner) Ads"

The Premium Top Banner Logo Ads are tailored for, and specific to, the larger companies who desire a more prominent presence on the forum.
There are 10 Top Banner Ad spaces.


"The Side Column Banner (Sponsor) Ads

The Right Side Column Banner Ads are tailored for and specific to, smaller companies who may or may not have a brick and mortar location but do have a web presence supported by a retail inventory.
There are 10 Side Column Banner Ad spaces.


The Lower (Supporter) Banner Ads

The Lower Banner Ads are tailored for, and specific to, the small, usually home-based, businesses of artists and craftspeople who produce custom or one-off items instead of maintaining a retail inventory.
There are 10 spaces available on the Lower Banner.


Registered Hobbyists

Registered Hobbyists are those who make things for the sheer love of doing it. Hobbyists do not have a Company or website therefore do not have a Logo to display or a website to link to.
All it takes to become a Registered Hobbyist is to contact the Forum Owner and request it. However, a Registered Hobbyist is limited to one "For Sale" post in the For Sale Section of the forum per month.
Registered Hobbyists may also use the Registered Hobbyist Forum Section to show off their current projects but may not offer them for sale there.


The most unique feature of advertising on an on-line forum is the one-to-one contact with your customers. Therefore we require each advertiser to be, and remain, an active participant in the forum.

We also stress this one-to-one concept by requiring our advertisers to participate on the forum as individuals. No one may use a Company name as their username on X Marks.

You may of course, put up your logo and never fully use your dedicated forum section. How you run your business is totally up to you. If you do take full advantage of what advertising here offers, you may be pleasantly surprised with the response, increased flexibility, and exposure, advertising on an on-line forum brings to your business.


To inquire about ad space on X Marks:

Please send an email to;
Steve@xmarksthescot.com
I will respond with our advertising prospectus. The prospectus will give you all the details including pricing, and give you the requirements for logo size, and contact information.
All payments for ad space on X Marks are done via PayPal subscriptions. (You do not need a PayPal account)

Again, thank you for your interest in advertising with X Marks,

Our policy on member profiles, graphics and signature blocks.

To keep our forum from looking like a bazaar we set these limits on the appearance of member profiles.

• All avatars, profile graphics, text and all content in a member’s profile are subject to all other rules.
• Member usernames, avatars and profile pictures are intended to be personal and will not be, or contain, a company name.
• Avatars and profile graphics are limited to 100 X 100 pixels or 20,000 bytes.
• No dynamic or animated avatars or graphics are allowed.
• Signature blocks may contain up to a total of four lines of text or 500 characters. Text size may be 1 or 2.
• Fonts and Colors for text will be only those available to all members.
• Non commercial - non fund raising embedded links are permitted in Signature Blocks. Links are included within the text limits above. One embedded link may be to the member’s personal, (non-commercial, non-fund raising), or blog site.
• Members may have a personal show of support for a cause, (I support ---) a clan affiliation (Proud member of ---) or a personal affirmation of faith (Chap. x, verse y) within their signature block but no link to a commercial or fund raising site or a call to action directed towards others. ie 'join me' or 'for more information'.
• No commercial links, company names, contact information, nor any direct or indirect advertising are allowed in Member Profiles, including Signature Blocks, except those granted to paid advertisers under our Advertising Plan.
• Depending on their level of advertising, paid advertisers may be allowed their company logo as their avatar, a custom title, and one embedded link to their commercial website in their signature block.

Our Policy for Disciplinary Proceedings and the Resolution of Disputes.

This is a large forum with members from all around the world. We come from different cultures and different backgrounds. Disagreements, misunderstandings and disputes will happen. As will violations of our published forum rules.
It is our intent to treat our members as adults, and we have a responsibility to treat violations and disputes openly, honestly, and in as transparent a manner as possible.

Our Forum Moderators may take immediate action when dealing with matters that affect the welfare of the forum. In the case of an attack to our forum from a spammer or hacker, our Forum Moderators may remove any post, spam, picture, link or reference that they deem needs to be immediately removed from the open forum. This is also true for blatant pornography, profanity, or personal attacks against a member.

One of our Guiding Principals states;
“To keep this forum an enjoyable and informative place we rely on a Member Driven Moderation Policy”.
We have Moderators to oversee the forum but the Moderators do not serve as forum police. We rely on our members to determine for themselves what they want the forum to be. The forum software contains a 'Flag a Post' feature. We rely on our members to govern themselves by "raising a flag" on any post, thread, Personal Message(PM), or email that they feel needs to be brought to the attention of the staff.

Raising a Flag on a Post sends an alert notice to the Forum Moderators. The first Moderator on-line, will review the post or thread that has been flagged.

• If the Moderator deems that the post or thread needs to be moved off the open forum, it will be moved to our non public "Holding Cell" until such time as the other Moderators have had a chance to log-in, review, discuss and vote on the flagged post.
  
• If the Moderator feels that further posting to the thread may cause dissent, or further inflame the issue, they may move the thread to our "Cooling Off Section". While not locking the thread, moving it to the Cooling Off Section temporarily halts follow-on posts giving everyone involved some breathing time. It also allow the Moderators time to contact those involved.

The next action will be to open a line of communication with everyone involved. The person raising the flag and the Original Poster (OP) will be notified that the Moderators have received the flag using the Personal Message(PM) System. Everyone will be reminded that to come to a resolution of a dispute we need to have the input of all those involved. Everyone has a voice in the proceedings and we welcome any and all comments. The staff may ask questions or request clarification as our discussions progress.
The goal of the discussions is to resolve the dispute. We will try to do this quickly, fairly, and with as much understanding and compassion as possible.

If the flag is over an issue of a possible forum rules violation there will be a poll attached to the flag in the Moderators Forum. This poll, visible only to the staff, will be used for the Moderators to record their vote on the possible rule violation.
The Forum Moderators do not punish our members. They only make a determination if a violation of the forum's published rules has occurred.
The Forum Owner remains neutral and does not vote on rules infraction polls except in the case of a tie.

Deliberation on all flags, and voting on rules violations, will be time limited to a maximum of 72 hours. During this process, the communications between the flagging member, the Original Poster(OP), and the Forum Moderators will be kept open. After 72 hours the deliberations will end and any polls closed. The votes of the Moderators will be tallied. The member flagging the post and the Original Poster(OP) will be notified of the determination of the Forum Moderators. The determination of the Forum Moderators will be final.

• If it is determined that no violation of our rules has occurred, the post or thread will be returned to its original location.
  
• If it is determined that a violation of our rules has occurred the post or thread may be closed permanently.

The forum software includes a Rules Infraction Recording Feature
This feature is used to record and track the history of a members' actions on the forum. The Infractions are only visible to the staff. This feature includes a series of graduated levels of Yellow and Red "Cards" similar to the system used in Soccer and other sports. Some "Cards" are temporary and some permanent. Cards carry 'points' in much the same way some drivers licenses do. Red and Yellow Card 'points' are cumulative. They become a permanent part of the members non-public profile as a record of the members actions and can be referenced by the staff if needed.

1. For a first infraction the member will be issued a temporary "Yellow Card". A Yellow Card carries one 'point' which will expire after 90 days. A record of the issuance of the card will remain as a record in the members' non-public profile.
2. For a second infraction the member will be issued a permanent "Red Card". A Red Card also carries one 'point' but does not expire and becomes a permanent part of the members' non-public profile.
3. For any subsequent infraction the member will be issued an additional permanent "Red Card".

• Any time a member accumulates two 'points', (temporary and/or permanent) the member will be placed into a 'Needs Moderation' category. All posts by that member will go into a Moderation Queue, to be reviewed by the Forum Moderators, prior to being released to the open forum.
• Any time a member accumulates three 'points', (temporary and/or permanent) the member will be suspended from the forum for a period of 90 days.
• Any time a member accumulates four 'points', (temporary and/or permanent) the member will have their membership with this forum permanently revoked.

(There are three exceptions to this accumulated points policy.)

The new member exception
– This exception has two separate and distinct parts and applies only to those with "New Member" as a title.
( X Marks is a large forum. It can be daunting at first glance. The purpose of the "New Member" designation is to allow others to offer assistance, gentle guidance, and give ‘the benefit of doubt’ to our new members.)

• (Part 1) Sometimes a simple mistake can be made in innocence. Under the new member exception the Forum Moderators may decide to issue only a simple warning. This warning carries no points but would count as a first infraction.
• (Part 2) Some however, expect and prefer, the rough and tumble often seen on the internet today. A serious, blatant, particularly egregious, intentional breach of the Forum Rules, or of our standards of polite discourse, may result in the immediate revocation of a new membership.

The serious offense exception
– A flag of fraud, serious, blatant, particularly egregious, or intentional breach of the forum rules by a permanent member may be raised but will require exceptional procedures. A 2/3 majority of the voting Forum Moderators is required to ratify the flag. The penalty under the serious offence exception may be up to, and include, immediate revocation of a membership.

The revengeful flag exception
- It is natural for someone to be upset if a flag is raised against a post they made. Some people however seem to become exceptionally bitter and act in a vindictive manner or seek revenge. This usually takes the form of multiple flags being raised in retaliation. A Forum Moderator who feels that a raised flag may be revengeful may call for a vote under this exception. One Red Card may be issued for each revengeful flag raised.

To remain as honest, open and transparent in our dealings as possible, we will follow these guidelines when communicating with our members and to keep the members of this forum informed of our actions and decisions.

• This is a huge forum with members from different cultures and different backgrounds. In all dealings with our members the Staff will remember that they are dealing with human beings that have a right to be heard.
• No members' post will be edited without the permission of the author.
• No post or thread will be moved or deleted without a message being left explaining the reason for the move or deletion.
• Any thread found not to be a violation will be returned to its original location as quickly as possible after a determination by the Forum Moderators has been reached.
• If any member is suspended or has their membership revoked a notice will be placed in the members' public profile giving the reason, but not the details, for the action.
• Any action by the Forum Moderators will have as full an explanation as possible posted in the appropriate place to keep our membership informed of the action.
• Out of respect for our members the Staff will conclude their deliberations and notify those concerned in as timely a manner as possible.
• The discussions and votes on all issues will become a permanent part of the forum archives and available to the staff for review if necessary.
• If any member of this forum feels that a dispute has not been resolved by the proceedings, they have the right to request a review of the issue. Requests for review will be in the form of a Personal Message (PM) directly to the Forum Owner and will he handled similarly to another flag and given the same consideration.

Our policy on being a member of another forum.

Many of our members are also active on other forums. There are some really great forums out there. We have always encouraged and attempted to foster good relationships with other forums. We have always felt that it would be a good idea to officially recognize some of the other forums and perhaps have 'Sister Sites' of forums that share our love for this thing we call The Kilt but with perhaps a different slant or outlook.

However over the years there have been enough incidents of members from a few other on-line forums attempting to disrupt X Marks that we have had to institute this policy.

We do not care what people do on other sites. How the owners of those site run them is their business. Only when members of other sites come here, do not abide by our rules, or attempt to disrupt this site, does it concern us.

At times people who are upset with X Marks, or who have had their membership here revoked, have attempted to disrupt X Marks. They have done so in a variety of ways.

1. They have made posts with the sole intent of introducing controversial subjects hoping to create an argumentative atmosphere.
2. They have made posts which blatantly and publicly denigrate X Marks.
3. They have attempted to coerce and/or influence our members negatively.
4. They have attempted to use the membership roster of this forum to recruit members for the other sites.
5. And we have evidence that they have conspired on the other sites to take similar actions as a group.

As the owners of the other sites actively encourage these actions, and because some of these people are still attempting to disrupt X Marks, it is our policy that no mention of, link or referral to (including referral through a third party), advertisement or promotion of, or recruitment for, the forums known as “The Brotherhood of the Kilt” or it’s affiliated site, “Clan Ootland” will be allowed on X Marks.

The Guidelines for Public Representation of X Marks

All the members of this forum can be rightfully proud of what we have built. It is only natural that we would want to share our forum with others. Highland Games and other events are natural places where we would meet others who share our passion for the Kilt. These events become a great way for our members to talk about this forum. As most of us participate here using screen names it also presents the problem of how we recognize other members.

We would like to encourage our members to show their pride and inform others of our forum but in the past there have been some unfortunate and intentioned incidents. We are publishing this set of guidelines for our members to help prevent similar incidents in the future.

1) Identifying members of the forum.
There are several accepted symbols of our forum and acceptable ways for members to announce their membership on this forum and recognize other members.

1. The X Marks Tartan.
2. The Logo from the top left hand corner of this website.
3. The X Marks Cap Badge, Kilt Pin, and Embroidered Patch.
4. The Dandelion.

The display or wearing of any of these symbols of our forum are acceptable ways for our members to identify each other.

2) Business or Contact Cards.
A good way to give others the web site address of this forum is in the form of calling or contact cards. Cards may contain graphic representations of any of the accepted symbols of the forum. All cards must contain the full URL address of the forum. (www.xmarksthescot.com).
No solicitation for members, or enticement or incentive to join this forum may be offered or implied.

3) X Marks specific tents, booths or stalls.
X Marks members would not be attending an event for the same purpose as a Clan Society who sign up members and collect dues, nor would they be attending as a vendor who sells something. This means our members would have little reason or need for an X Marks-specific booth or stall.
For this reason no X Marks-specific tents, booths or stalls are authorized.
We do encourage ways for our members to know where to meet other members and to gather for photos.
To establish a meeting place, members may display a sign or banner within, or on, an existing tent, booth, or stall. An existing booth or stall could be, for example;

1. One where general information on Kilts, Tartan, Clan history, or any of the other topic covered on this forum are already the subject and reason for the tent or booth.
2. An existing tent or booth of a Clan Society, or vendor, where the person manning the tent or booth is also a member of this forum.

4) Signs and banners
Members who wish to establish a meeting place at Highland Games or other public events may use a sign and/or banner. Signs and banners are encouraged within the following guidelines

1. The proper name of this forum for use on signs or banners is "X Marks the Scot.com". No use of any name or phrase such as "Clan X Marks" or "The X Marks Clan" may be used.
2. Any of the accepted symbols of the forum may be used on signs and banners.
3. The phrase from our forum "A Community of Kiltwearers" is the accepted description of what and who we are.
4. Signs or banners may be displayed as long as they contain the full URL address of the site "www.xmarksthescot.com" plainly visible on the sign or banner. This is to ensure that it is clear that this is an on-line forum.
5. Signs or banners may contain a date and time for a meet-up or photo opportunity.

5) Referring to X Marks as a Clan.
X Marks is renowned around the world as a friendly community of kilt wearers. Our members gather here on-line for polite discussion and to share the sense of community and brotherhood which we have developed over the years.
While this may seem to be similar to the function of the Scottish Clans and Clan Societies, to avoid any confusion and prevent offense to members of accepted Scottish Clans;

1. Members of X Marks will not refer to this forum as Clan X Marks.
2. Members will not imply or suggest that this forum is a Clan.
3. No member of this forum will attempt to carry an X Marks banner or participate in a "Parade of the Clans" or other Clan function as a representative of the forum.

There are many unfortunate examples of social or commercial groups attempting to participate in Clan activities, such as "Parade of Tartan" events, and in so doing creating serious discontent. We wish to ensure that X Marks upholds its reputation of respect for Scottish and Clan tradition, and that we never become embroiled in such controversies.

6) Official Representation
We all participate here as individuals. To avoid legal issues no member of this forum is authorized to act or imply that they are an official representative of the forum.

We ask that any member inform the Staff or Owner of this forum anytime they wish to establish a meeting place, display or advertise this forum. This is a request out of simple courtesy and to keep us informed.