Draft for review. This text has not yet been reviewed by a lawyer.
The NearRoots directory helps people find businesses connected with immigrant communities in the United States, Canada and Australia. This policy explains how listings are added, checked, claimed, corrected and removed.
1. What a listing shows
- Business name, category and a short factual description of what it offers.
- For a business with a storefront: street address, city, state or province, postal code and a map pin.
- For a business without one (home-based, mobile or by appointment): only the city and the area it serves. A home address is never shown.
- Optional details: business phone, website and opening hours.
- Owner community appears only when the owner reports it. It is always labeled "reported by the owner."
- A Verified badge appears only after our check (section 5).
We don't publish owners' personal phone numbers, home addresses or personal email addresses.
2. How listings are added
- By the business: an owner or authorized representative submits a listing.
- By a member's suggestion: members can suggest a business, based on public information.
- By NearRoots: we may add a business using public sources such as the business's own website, public maps, news articles and community directories. We use these sources as leads only. We check the facts and write our own short description.
Every listing is reviewed by a person before it appears. Listings added by NearRoots or suggested by members are marked as not yet claimed by the business. [Planned feature: an "Unclaimed" label.]
3. Community connection and ownership
- A listing's description refers to cuisine, products or language, such as "Balkan bakery" or "Turkish grocery." This says what the business offers, not who owns it. A restaurant serving Greek food is not described as Greek-owned.
- We describe a business as owned by a particular community only if the owner tells us, or the business says so publicly itself.
- Submitting false ownership or community claims breaks these rules, and the listing may be removed.
4. Professional and regulated services
For lawyers, accountants, health professionals, contractors and other regulated services, NearRoots does not check licences, qualifications or insurance. A listing does not mean the professional is licensed or recommended. Always check credentials with the relevant licensing body before hiring.
5. Claiming and verification
- An owner can claim a listing to manage it. We ask for reasonable proof of control, such as an email from the business's domain, a call to the listed phone, or a business document.
- Verified means only that we confirmed the business exists at the listed address. It is not an endorsement, and it doesn't confirm ownership, background, licences or quality.
6. Corrections
Anyone can tell us that a listing is wrong. Email contact@nearroots.com with the listing name and the correction. A "Report this listing" button is planned. We aim to review corrections within 30 days, and sooner when a correction affects safety, such as a wrong address or phone number.
7. Removal requests
- Owners of an unclaimed listing can ask us to remove it. We will remove it unless there is a strong reason to keep it, such as a public safety concern.
- Individuals named in a listing, such as a sole proprietor whose business uses their own name, can ask us to remove or change personal details.
- We confirm the requester's connection to the business before acting.
- We aim to act within 30 days, and sooner for personal safety concerns.
8. Content rules
Listings must be accurate and lawful. There must be no false or misleading claims, no prices or offers that don't exist, and no content that breaks the Community Guidelines. We may edit listings for clarity and consistency.
9. Our role
NearRoots is a directory. We don't recommend, endorse or guarantee any business, and we aren't part of any deal between you and a business.
10. Future paid features
NearRoots has no paid listings or advertising today. If we introduce promoted listings or business subscriptions:
- paid placements will be clearly labeled "Sponsored";
- paying will never buy a Verified badge or an ownership label;
- prices, renewal and cancellation terms will be shown before anyone signs up.
11. Contact
BridgeWell Strategies LLC · contact@nearroots.com · mailing address available on request at contact@nearroots.com