Trademark Basics: They Count
Most people know the importance of trademarks to huge, mega-corporations who have many products and enormous profits to protect. Fewer are convinced that it’s worth it for their small or emerging business to file trademark applications. In many cases, however, a protected trademark is as important, if not more so, to smaller businesses who are just penetrating their markets – Particularly when it’s time to grow a valuable trademark or brand. Here are a few of the benefits and basics of getting a trademark to protect your name, logo or business slogan.
File Federal, Instead of Local
Your first geographical concentration of business may simply be your city or state, and in fact, each state does allow you to file a trademark application with their respective offices. However, the protection may very well only extend to the designated state. Therefore, well informed patent and trademark lawyers will advise filing a federal trademark application, which gives you trademark protection nation-wide. A successful application means that even if your business is centered in remote California, you effectively preclude anyone else throughout the entire country from using your name and/or slogan for their own purposes. This is a critical and powerful form of IP protection indeed.
Two Main Trademark Purposes
Trademarks have many uses, but the two most beneficial to both businesses and consumers alike are identification and branding. A good logo or slogan helps consumers and others tell the difference between one manufacturers product and that of another. However, beyond simply distinguishing a company from others, it solidifies a a company’s brand identity. A single glance at a swoop on the side of a shoe, for instance, is enough for most to immediately identify the shoe as a product of the Nike brand, and provides a wealth of other information as well.
Obtaining Federal Trademark Protection
Federal Trademark protection allows the individual to begin using the name, slogan or logo that is that is set to be trademarked in a commercial manner and then file the application later. Or, if you do not plan to immediately begin using the mark, you can file for the trademark protection first. The filing process is one you can complete yourself but, as with many things, using a qualified trademark or patent attorney can save you quite a lot of time, money and frustration down the road.
Contact your Patent Attorney to learn more.
