How to Trademark your Brand?

Introduction

Trademarking your brand is an essential step in the process of starting a business. It can also help protect your intellectual property and increase the value of your company or product. However, it is important to understand what a trademark actually is before you apply for one. This article will provide you with all the information you need to know about trademarks and how they work along with tips on how best to go about registering them correctly.

What is a Trademark?

In the United States, a trademark is a word, phrase, symbol or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of others. A trademark may be used in conjunction with other marks to indicate a brand name and product identification. Trademark rights may be used to prevent others from using a confusingly similar mark on dissimilar products or services. For example, if your business sells food products under your own brand name “Tasty Treats,” you could file an application for trademark registration with the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office).

Why Should You Trademark Your Brand?

The first and most important reason to trademark your brand is to protect it from being used by others without your permission. If someone else is using similar branding to yours, you might be able to stop them from doing so by sending a cease-and-desist letter. They may end up changing their brand entirely or even paying royalties for using your logo or name in their marketing materials.

If someone else gets a trademark on something similar enough to yours, they could sue you if they wanted—so it’s best not to let that happen! The last thing you need is some sort of legal battle over who has the rights over an image or tagline when both companies have been around for decades already with very different styles of packaging and marketing (not just in terms of colors).

If you have heavily invested time and money into building up an audience, then there’s no way anyone else should be able use those images without permission—or at least proper attribution if they use them as inspiration rather than straight theft (which would also fall under “misuse”)!

Different Types of Trademarks

Trademarks fall into two categories: word marks and logos. Word marks include words or phrases that are part of your brand, while logos are visual representations of a company’s name. The most common types of trademarks are word marks, logos, or slogans.

Their purpose is to differentiate one brand from another so that consumers can easily identify the origin and quality of goods or services offered by the mark owner. Trademarks may be registered for any type of goods or services; however, many businesses opt to register trademarks in connection with their primary products or services (e.g., Coca-Cola). Trademark law protects them from being used by others as well as prevents consumers from being confused about who manufactured a particular product or service—it gives you legal rights over your unique brand identity!

How Long Does it Take to Get Registered?

The process of trademarking a brand name or logo can take anywhere from 6-12 months. This is true regardless of whether you are an individual or a large corporation, and it’s also true regardless of where in the world you file your application. The reason for this is that there are many parties involved in the process and each has their own approval processes that need to be completed before moving on to the next step.

Trademark applications can also be expedited for an additional fee, which will shorten the time it takes for your application to be processed by about half (around 4-6 months). However, you should consider whether or not it makes sense for you to do so if there isn’t any urgency behind getting your trademark registered quickly—for example, if someone else has already started using your brand name without permission and they are gaining popularity at your expense! While we recommend contacting us as soon as possible once you decide on a name or logo design that you want protected by law; many times we have seen clients wait too long before starting this process because they didn’t know how much work was involved up front or how long it would take them overall – only after experiencing frustration with other brands similar but not identical did they realize what had happened!

Takeaway

To start the trademark registration process, you’ll need to pick a trademark. You can check out the USPTO trademark database for inspiration or use the following steps:

• Conduct a search of similar trademarks to make sure your idea hasn’t been taken.
• Pick three or four different alternatives and do another search just in case your first choice doesn’t work out.

Once you’ve decided on an option, it’s time determine what class would be best for your business. Classes are organized into groups based on their purpose and industry sector; each class has its own distinct set of requirements (e.g., how many words.) Once again, take some time browsing through existing trademarks before choosing a class; if someone else is using it already, it might not be available for your use.

If you are planning to launch a business, you must be aware of all the legal implications and requirements that should be considered before launching your brand. A trademark is one such thing. You might have heard about trademarks but may not know how to register for one or the benefits of having one.

It’s important to note that when it comes to registering trademarks, there are certain steps which must be taken by an individual in order for them to successfully register their trademark and receive protection from it throughout the world.

Conclusion

The trademark is a very important step in the process of starting your business. It can be the difference between success and failure, so it’s critical that you do everything possible to ensure that your trademark is protected. If you’re ready to start trademarking your brand, our experienced legal professionals are here for you. Contact us today for more information on how we can help.