Trademarks are the backbone of many businesses, and it’s critical for them to protect this type of intellectual property if they wish to protect their brand from reputational damage and to keep those who have had zero input in the development of said trademark from profiting illegally from it. However, if you believe you have a trademark that you want to protect, it’s not as simple as telling everyone not to use it because it begins with you; there is a very detailed set of procedures in place to file and register the trademark and to stop squatters from stealing it from under you.
Use A Dedicated Trademark Registration Service
Although it’s absolutely possible to perform all the actions in your life that ensure your trademark is registered and protected, it can be a tricky and drawn-out job. When you have other tasks to perform, such as creating a business that makes money, you might not have the resources to dedicate to this particular job. Fortunately, there are dedicated services that make the process of Digital Trademark Filing straightforward and can dramatically reduce the amount of work involved, making sure that you walk away feeling as though you’ve actually achieved something. These services include creating an account and choosing the tier of service that meets your needs. After this, you will follow the steps until fully completed and then wait until your trademark registration is accepted or rejected. If the latter, you should be able to see why it was so and make adjustments accordingly.
Assess If Your Brand Qualifies For Trademark Protection Before Filing
Following on from the precious possibility of having your claim rejected, trademark law is not as simple as it first seems. There are a plethora of reasons why your application may be denied, and knowing a few of them can help enormously by saving you time and money. Some of the primary reasons for rejection include (but might not be limited to):
- Likelihood of confusion: Most rejections involve this specific issue, whereby a trademark might cause the average person confusion with another brand. The concern is that consumers might be confused about the source of the products or services. For example, trying to trademark the brand Gooogle which will almost definitely be confused with Google.
- Descriptive or generic terms: Trademarks that merely describe the goods or services or use generic terms are usually rejected. A trademark must be distinctive. For example, “Crispy Chips” for potato chips is too descriptive and will never be approved.
- Deceptively misdescriptive: This looks far more complex than it actually is, and all it means is that if a term misleads consumers about the nature, quality, or characteristics of the goods or services, it can be rejected.
- Geographically descriptive: In most cases, any trademark that includes the name of an actual geographic location may be denied, especially if the product has nothing to do with that location (e.g., calling a product Hawaiian Pineapples when your pineapples are sourced from elsewhere).
- Primarily merely a surname: if the trademark is simply a surname, it’s often deemed too generic and won’t be granted.
- Ornamentation: Any name or term that doesn’t function as a source identifier is considered ornamentation.
- Prohibited or unauthorized marks: if your trademark includes any symbol or term that might be construed as prohibited, it will never pass muster. What this includes can vary, but in most cases, it will consist of offensive language or symbols designed to stir controversy.
- Lack of distinctiveness: A trademark must be able to distinguish the goods of one provider from another. If it lacks that ability, it will be rejected.
Research Existing Trademarks To Avoid Conflicts And Ensure Uniqueness
In order to avoid disappointment from spending a significant amount of time registering the trademark you’ve poured over for a long time, only to discover it’s rejected, you must perform your own search to ensure that nothing similar exists. You can do this using the service we mentored in the first paragraph or by leaving it to a trademark attorney, who will probably do this step on your behalf.
Gather The Necessary Information And Documents Needed For A Successful Trademark Application
When you’re applying for whatever permits and licenses your type of business might require, you won’t turn up to the government offices unprepared, and so, too, should you ensure that you have everything in order before applying for a trademark. The core information you need includes things like applicant information, trademark details, and the basis for filing. If you’ve noted everything down effectively, you will make the process go much smoother. There are other details you need to have and include:
- Evidence showing how the trademark is being used in connection with the goods or services.
- A Power of Attorney document is required if an attorney or trademark agent is representing the applicant.
- Written consent may be required if the trademark includes a person’s name or likeness.
- Payment of the required application fees
Once you have all the relevant documents and information in order, you can begin the procedure.
Understand The Costs Associated With Filing A Trademark Application
Understanding the costs of filing a trademark application will ensure effective budgeting and planning and, perhaps most importantly, make it less likely you’re going to pay for something that will end up rejected. Generally speaking, the main costs will include the USPTO filing fees, which vary by class of goods or services; each additional class incurs an extra fee. Electronic filing tends to be cheaper than paper filing as there are obviously fewer administrative processes for the patent office to deal with. Other fees may include attorney fees if you choose to go down that avenue, and while trademarks that you believe are most likely to get approved can probably be handled by yourself, for those you’re unsure about, it might be prudent to hire a lawyer to assist.
Applying for a trademark is one of those jobs that can be relatively straightforward or involve a lot of tooling and growing, depending on what you’re trying to trademark. By following the tips, you should be in a better position to understand the process, and therefore, make it easier to apply and succeed in your application.
