Copyright, Tourism, and the Way My Clients Eat

I care deeply about copyright because this is how my clients eat. I’m Michael Blevins, owner of Blevins Creative Group in Southwest Virginia. For nearly three decades, my team and I have created the original work that drives real business growth: photography, video, brand language, and social posts that move people to click, call, visit, and buy.

But I haven’t just made creative work—I’ve made a living licensing it. I’ve also served as an expert witness in copyright cases, helping courts understand how creative work is used, valued, and misused in the real world.

This work isn’t “just content.”
It’s property. It’s how small businesses survive.

And that’s why I’m writing this—especially to nonprofits, tourism offices, chambers, and destination marketing organizations.

The Problem: “We’re Promoting You!” (No, You’re Not.)

Across Southwest Virginia, I see a troubling pattern—especially with nonprofits, tourism groups, and Main Street organizations:

• They download a business’s photo from Facebook or Instagram.
• Then re-upload it to their own page.
• With no link, no tag, no credit—often not even a hashtag to the original business.

On the surface, it looks like support:
“Look at this great restaurant / shop / gallery in our region!”

In reality, it’s copyright infringement and bad destination marketing.

Instead of driving traffic to the business’s page—where customers can see hours, menus, booking links, or reviews—the attention stops cold on the nonprofit’s page. The business loses reach, loses engagement, and often doesn’t even know their image was used.

For many small businesses around here, Facebook is their only “website.”
So when you cut them out of their own photo, you’re not promoting them.
You’re quietly hurting them.

Let’s Be Clear: Pulling and Reposting Is Usually Illegal

Here’s the reality, in plain language:

• Copyright is automatic.
  The moment a photographer presses the shutter, or a writer publishes a caption, the creator owns the copyright. No special symbol or registration is required.
• Social media doesn’t make it “free.”
  Posting on Facebook or Instagram doesn’t put a work in the public domain. The platform has a license to display it—you don’t.
• “We gave you exposure” is not a defense.
  Good intentions don’t erase infringement. You can mean well and still break the law.
• Credit alone doesn’t fix it.
  Even if you tag or credit the business, downloading and re-uploading their image without permission can still be infringement. Credit is good manners; it’s not a license.

For years, I’ve seen these choices show up as evidence—as an expert witness in cases where businesses face copyright claims or seek damages. The pattern is always the same: “We thought it was okay” meets “Here’s the law and the invoice.”

In the U.S., copyright is governed by federal law. A business in Virginia whose images are misused could sue in federal court for copyright infringement. Depending on the circumstances, they might seek:

• Actual damages (lost licensing fees or harm caused), and/or
• Statutory damages, which can range from $750 to $30,000 per infringed work—and up to $150,000 per work for willful infringement, plus attorney’s fees.

I’m not a lawyer, and this isn’t legal advice, but the bottom line is simple:

When you lift images off someone’s social media and republish them as your own post, you’re taking a legal risk—and potentially exposing your nonprofit, tourism office, or destination brand to serious financial liability.

And for what? A “like” on a post that didn’t even help the business you claim to support?

What’s the Right Way to Share?

The good news:
It’s incredibly easy to support local businesses legally and effectively.

1. Use the Platform’s Built-In Sharing Tools

On Facebook:

• Hit “Share” on the business’s post.
• Add your own supportive caption.
• Don’t crop out logos, watermarks, or text.

This keeps:

• The original source visible.
• All likes, comments, and reach attached to the business’s post.
• A clear, clickable path back to the business.

On Instagram:

• Use the “Share to Story” feature or a proper repost app.
• Tag the business clearly in the Story.
• Encourage your audience to tap through to the original profile.

This is real destination marketing: you’re sending people to the business, not stealing the spotlight.

2. Ask for Permission in Writing

If you need to use an image in your own standalone post:

• Message or email the business or creator.
• Ask: “May we have your permission to use this photo on our page and website to promote your business and our region?”
• Save the response.
• In the post, add: “Photo: @businessname” or “Photo courtesy of [Business Name]”.

If the photographer is separate from the business, you need their permission too. Many commercial photographers license usage for specific purposes—“social media only,” “website only,” etc. That license rarely includes “anyone can take this and post it however they want.”

3. When in Doubt, Commission or Collaborate

If your nonprofit, tourism office, or DMO needs a steady stream of visuals:

• Hire a photographer or creative agency (yes, like mine, but there are many talented creatives in our region).
• Or form a content partnership with local businesses where you clearly outline:
  • Who owns the images.
  • Who can post them.
  • How credit and tagging will work.
  • Where the content can be used (social, web, print, etc.).

This protects everyone—and gives you better, on-brand, high-quality content that actually represents your place well.

Why This Matters in Southwest Virginia

In big cities, businesses often have full marketing stacks—websites, PR firms, digital teams.

Here in Southwest Virginia, many small businesses:

• Live and die by a single Facebook or Instagram page.
• Rely on their latest photo as their menu, storefront, booking system, and first impression.
• Don’t have spare money for lawyers when something goes wrong.

When you strip that photo away from their page and post it as your own, you’re:

• Stealing their intellectual property, and
• Stealing the chance for customers to discover, follow, and book with them.

If you truly care about local economic development, entrepreneurship, and Main Street revival, you can’t be casual about copyright.

Respecting creative ownership is economic development.
It’s how we keep dollars, attention, and opportunity flowing to the people actually taking the risk of running a small business.

This Is a Call-In, Not Just a Call-Out

My goal isn’t to shame anyone.

Most nonprofits and destination organizations doing this simply don’t know better. They assume “we’re helping” because the intent is promotion.

So here’s my invitation:

• If you manage a nonprofit, tourism, or destination page:
  Review your recent posts. If you see images that were downloaded from another business’s page and re-uploaded, reach out, apologize if needed, and start doing it the right way.
• Build a simple social media policy for your organization, such as:
  • “We only share posts via native share tools,” and/or
  • “We only re-use images with written permission and proper credit.”
• Educate your staff and volunteers.
  One “helpful” volunteer post can expose your organization to real legal risk.

I’m passionate about copyright laws because I’m passionate about people—the business owners, artists, and makers whose work tells the story of Southwest Virginia.

If we say we want to lift them up, then we need to respect the very work that makes our region look so good in the first place.

Don’t steal it.
Share it right.
And let’s actually help the businesses we claim to celebrate.