Strategize & Secure: Three Tips To Protect Your Brand

So you’ve come up with an idea for a logo, brand name, or a business idea – what’s next? When getting the ground running on your new project, it is important to consider the guidelines from both a marketing and legal perspective! You want to ensure that your brand is thoroughly strategized on and secured, especially in this digital age. Here are three tips to consider on marketing and legal protection:

Be Original: Confirm Your Brand Name

Create a unique, comprehensive search through the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) to confirm the following things:
(1) there are no trademarks similar to your own, and (2) there are no competing trademarks used on related products/for related services.
Another idea: instead of checking through each social media app whether your brand name is available and unused for these platforms, visit NameCheckr to double check ever faster!

The Logo: Secure Wordmarks & Designmarks

Did you know that not only your physical logo should be protected through a designmark, but your brand name should be protected through a wordmark as well? Just because you created these marketing elements of your brand doesn’t mean they’re entirely yours! Tip: Get a trademark copyright assignment to ensure your logo is yours, especially if it was outsourced for and created by someone else for you.

Evaluate for Trademarking

Fun fact: you are allowed to trademark a brand that isn’t fully formed or exists yet! An intent to use is a part of the marketing strategy! Consider these five criteria of factors for moving forward with a trademark:

• How long have you been using your brand?
• How attached are you to your brand?
• Do you see a lot of competition (i.e. varying brand names) with your brand?
• What are the risks?
• Are you absolutely sold on your brand?

Interested in more tips and takeaways for your brand’s marketing strategy? Connect with Social-Me social media platforms for more like this!