Last year, while working on branding my second business, I
decided to get a registered trademark for the business name. Why would a micro
business want or need a trademark? Well, this business operates virtually and at
times, internationally - well outside the jurisdiction of a county DBA
certificate. The long term plan is to grow the business into a team of
independent professionals working in as-needed project clusters. So, my
rationale was a combination of protection, branding, and admittedly, a desire to
stomp on the world and say, "I'm still here!"
There are three types of intellectual property protection:
patents, trademarks, and copyrights. A patent is what an inventor gets to
protect their invention idea. A copyright protects a work of authorship, such as
music or a book, for 70 years. And a trademark, or service mark, is what you
would need to protect your business name and logo from being used by anyone
else.
Traditionally, registering a trademark is time consuming process
involving lawyers, money, tricky forms, and patience. By researching it and
using the US
Patent and Trademark Office's web site, I did it myself. This was a gamble -
the $335 filing fee is non refundable if the application is incomplete, the
research is not done properly, or the name unavailable. So while I can't advise
another business to do it independently of a legal professional, understanding
the process might save your small business money or headaches in the future.
The USPTO web site provides everything business needs to
register a trademark, assuming you are willing to wade through all the
information and take the gamble. In fact, the entire database of registered
trademarks is online so you can research the availability of a name before you
even begin branding. This is a good idea because the last thing you need is to
build a business and find out someone else actually had registered that name and
wants to sue you.
Before even deciding on a business name, I had done a search in
Google to see if anyone else had that name. To do an exact search, you simply
put the phrase inside quotes. I also tried some variations to be sure there was
not anything close to it.
Then I went to the USPTO.gov web site and started digging
through TESS (Trademark Electronic Search System), the free online database of
all registered (and pending) trademarks. It was straightforward to research the
name - the tricky part was the logo. I had to be sure that no one was using a
logo with a turtle anything like mine, in an industry anywhere near mine. That
required a simple search for the word "turtle" - and then visually verifying the
resulting hundreds of logos which had a turtle somewhere in their descriptive
entry. If your logo is unique in that no one else is using that mark, you can
trademark. If it is similar to another logo, then you have to make sure it is
not in use or pending within an industry near the one you work in.
Once I was certain that neither the name nor the service mark
(logo) was in use by another business, I started preparing the online
application. An application can be for words only, or words plus design. If you
are trade marking a design, it must be included as a JPG image in black and
white (one more reason to be sure your logo is designed properly!) The complete
tutorial is online
here.
After your application is sent, the USPTO conducts its own
search, and rules on the availability of the name. This is why research is
important - you could have your trademark application rejected at this phase,
and lose the money, if your research was not sufficient. You will get a letter
notifying you that it has moved on to the next step - publication. This means
that your trademark will be published by the USPTO where people who are
protecting the trademarks of their clients can challenge your application if it
conflicts with registered trademark.
Be aware that there are "parasite" companies which get
information from the USPTO publications throughout the process, and attempt to
sell you things. One company sends out letters in very convincing "official"
envelopes, offering to "protect" your trademark for an additional $350 per year.
The second one actually shows up just days before the USPTO mail arrives telling
you that the trademark is approved - offering to sell you a plaque with your
trademarked name on it for a couple hundred dollars.
At any time, you can check online to see the status of your
pending application. The entire process from filing until approval takes about a
year, and when it is over, you will get a document from the United States
government with a gold seal telling you that your business name is now protected
for 10 years. Only then will you have earned the right to affix an ® to your
business name!
Eileen 'Turtle' Parzek is a veteran marketing designer and
online communications consultant who has been working from home and virtually
since 1995. Her business, SOHO It Goes! (www.soho-it-goes.com)
specializes in providing technology driven design, marketing and communication
services to small businesses and organizations.
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