First, this tip has nothing to do with a customized footer with tons of links, etc... You will find that tip here. This new tip will show you how to customize the default content within your Ning Footer.

If you look at your Ning Footer you will see something like the image below.  I have captured the screen for two cases. Did you know that Network Creators and Administrators see the word "Help" with Ning's Help link, and Members and Visitors see "Report an Issue"? The "Report an Issue" link will take your Members and Visitors to a form, that will in turn be emailed to you.

In regards to the image below, don't freak. I choose to show "Powered by NING." This can be removed via:
My Network/Settings/Network Details
Go to bottom of page, and uncheck the following,

Back to the topic at hand - - to customize the copyright notice, created by, or to change the "Report an Issue", you will need to edit the default content via your Language Editor. The name of your network you entered in your "Network Details" is automatically added after the words "Created by". However, you can hard code this and change it to other simple content, of your choice.

To Edit the default content for © 2010 Created by YourNetwork, do the following:

1. Go to My Network/Settings/Language Editor, and select your language.
2. Be sure to give the page time to completely load, to ensure you select the correct language.
3. In the left column, to left of the word "Search", enter the following text - - exactly:
   © %1$s   Created by %2$s.

4. 

5. You will see a box in the right column that contains the search results and string you entered. See red arrow in image below. This is where you want to add your custom content.

6. 

7. Add your custom text. If you want the copyright year to update yearly, be sure to keep:
   © %1$s  
8. Click on Save.

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To Edit the default content for Report an Issue, please follow the instructions above and search for: Report an Issue

If you would like to change the link to Report an Issue, add a standard a href tag. I tried it on a test network, and it did take me to my new link, and not the built-in form for Report an Issue. Here's the content I used:
<a href="http://jensocial.com">Report an Issue</a>

Enjoy!
Jen

 Important Note: Test this on a test site first.