Is trademarking your brand or business name the right move for your company? Registering a trademark is kind of a big deal, but a trademark is an important tool to help you protect your brand identity from theft or misrepresentation.
Obtaining a trademark registration is a fairly straightforward process, although one that can be streamlined with the help of a trademark lawyer. First, decide whether your business needs a registered trademark, then make sure your trademark idea hasn’t already been taken. If you want to register a trademark, prepare and file an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Resolve any legal problems the USPTO’s patent lawyers find with your application. Then it’s just a matter of waiting for the publication period to be over.
Does Your Business Need a Trademark?
You might think that you need to register your trademark before you begin doing business, but in fact the opposite is often true. While it is possible to apply for trademarks on an intent-to-use basis, the normal trademark application actually requires examples of the image or words to be trademarked in commercial use. That means sending screenshots of the mark on your website, photos of the mark on your product packaging, and other evidence that you’re already using the mark in association with your products and services.
If you only operate within your local area, you don’t need to register a trademark in order to have trademark protection for your logo or brand name. You can establish a common-law trademark for your logo, product name, symbol, or other marks or words.
If you’re operating in multiple states, however, it’s worth the federal protection that registering a trademark with the USPTO provides. You’ll also have the option to register your trademark with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, so that they’ll be on the lookout for companies trying to import goods that infringe on your trademark.
Make Sure Your Idea Isn’t Taken
The first step in how to trademark a name is to make sure someone else hasn’t already registered your trademark. Search the Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) with your brand name or other words, or with your logo, symbol, or other image you want to trademark. You’re not just looking to make sure that no one has trademarked the exact logo or words you want to use, but to make sure that there are no similar registered trademarks either. Your application won’t be approved if your proposed trademark is too similar to an existing trademark, even if the other business does something completely different.
Prepare and File Your Application
You might want to get the help of a trademark lawyer to help you prepare and file your application, but you’re not required to use one if you live and do business in the United States. Foreign businesses can apply for United States trademarks, but they must use a trademark lawyer. Even if you don’t need a trademark lawyer, using one can make it more likely that you’ll get your trademark application approved.
A trademark application requires a lot of information, including your name and address, citizenship status, business name, and descriptions of the proposed trademark. Make sure you’ve filled out your application completely and included images as well as description of your proposed trademark.
Resolve Any Issues
Once the USPTO receives your application, they’ll give you a confirmation and assign you a serial number that you can use to keep tabs on the status of your application. Once a USPTO employee has had time to review your application, you could receive an office action outlining legal issues with your trademark or with your application. You’ll need to resolve these issues, possibly with the help of a lawyer, in order to get your application approved.
Wait for Registration
Once any issues have been resolved and your application is approved, you will have to wait for the publication period to end to receive trademark registration. The USPTO will publish your trademark in the Official Gazette, its weekly publication. Members of the general public will have 30 days from the day of publication to oppose your trademark application, or request an extension of the window for opposition. If no one opposes your trademark application, you’ll be notified of your trademark within a few months of publication in the Official Gazette.
Trademarking a brand name is a fairly straightforward process, and it can do a lot for your business. Whether you’re hoping to protect your brand name and logo from misuse, or worried about someone trying to undercut your business, a trademark gives you the power to protect your name and logo.
