Trademark Protection 101
What is a brand? It depends on who you ask. Most consumers think of names of products or services, logos, taglines and similar commercial signs. Business people think a brand is an item that causes an emotional response in a company’s customers, and hopefully makes those customers feel the need to buy from the company again or tell others about their experience. Lawyers talk about “trademarks,” which is a source identifier that tells the consumer who made the goods or offers the service. These aspects are all interconnected in the world of Trademark Protection.
Protect Your Brand With a Trademark
Most solopreneurs and small business owners have no idea that the law can impact the ability to use a brand. These business owners mistakenly believe that their brand is protected and are shocked when their rights are challenged. Just because they completed a google search and did not come up with any hits for businesses of the same name doesn’t mean they are safe. Registering your business with a DBA (doing businesses as) or creating a domain name does not protect the brand either. It is important for small business owners to do their due diligence and protect their brand from the start. It may seem expensive to commit to this process, but in the end it is worthwhile. Legal fees from an infringement lawsuit from a big company will be significantly more expensive in the long run. Circumstances like copyright and trademark infringement are a death sentence for small businesses.
4 Steps to Protect Your Brand; Doesn’t Sound Too Bad, Right?
At Initiating Protection, our sole purpose is to help small and mid-sized businesses protect their brands. This includes not only taking our clients through the four steps of Brand Protection, but also helping non-clients become aware of the Warning Signs that their brand is at risk. Building your brand is your business. Helping clients secure their rights in their brand is our business. We translate a brand into a legally protectable trademark and take the lead as the brand achieves the level of legal protection it deserves.
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