How to Protect Your Brand with Trademarks

Understanding how trademarks work is so important for protecting your brand. Here's what you need to know:

1.    Choose a Strong Trademark:

Choose a trademark that’s distinct and unique to your area of business. If you want to be able to protect your mark, avoid using generic or descriptive terms that are difficult to protect. The stronger your trademark, the easier it will be to enforce your rights against infringers.

2.    Make Sure You Run a Comprehensive Trademark Search:

Before choosing a brand name, product name, logo, or tagline, hire an attorney to conduct a comprehensive search. That way, you can make sure any marks you want to use aren’t already in use by someone else in a similar field. You’ll need to search more than just the USPTO's trademark database, search engines, and domain names.

3.    Don’t Forget to Register Your Trademark:

Registering your trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) provides several benefits, including nationwide protection, legal presumption of ownership, and the ability to use the ® symbol. An experienced trademark attorney can help you with the application and registration process.

4.    Use Your Trademark Properly:

It’s important that you consistently use your trademark in connection with your goods or services to establish and maintain your rights. You’ll also need to monitor and enforce others’ usage to prevent the dilution or loss of your trademark rights.

5.    Protecting Your Trademark:

If you want to continue to protect your trademark rights, you’ll need to be vigilant in monitoring your trademark for unauthorized use and infringement. Act quickly if there are any instances of infringement with cease and desist letters, negotiations, or legal action if necessary. A trademark attorney can help you determine the best course of action.

6. Renewing and Maintaining Your Trademark:

You’ll need to regularly renew your trademark to maintain its validity and protection. Keep all renewal deadlines on your calendar and make sure you renew on time to avoid abandonment of your trademark.

Trademark law is complex, so having an experienced attorney who can provide valuable guidance on trademark selection, registration, enforcement, and maintenance is key to making sure your brand’s protected.

Not sure where to start with your trademarks? We’re here to help!