Let’s talk about protection. The legal protection of your brand that is.
You’ve taken the training wheels off of your business, you’re ready to launch and speed down the hill of success. But, just like riding solo for the first time, it’s important to put some knee and elbow pads on your business to make sure that it’s fully protected on the market.
A registered trademark is arguably one of the most important aspects of protecting your new or established brand on the market. But, what exactly is a trademark?
Registered Trademarks Protect IP
A registered trademark is an intellectual property (IP), such as a color, a sound (i.e. a theme song or jingle), slogan, logo, etc, that belongs to a business by legal right. Let’s delve a little deeper and take a really common brand, for example, McDonald’s.
The official brand colors for McDonald’s are red, yellow, and black. The catchy “I’m Lovin’ It” paired with the iconic “bah-da-bah-bah-bah” (bonus points if you sang along) are all part of the McDonald's brand.
These elements are highly protected by trademarks, meaning, if you’re thinking about starting a rival burger joint, you might want to choose all aspects of your brand, like colors, slogan, logo, etc, very carefully, so as to not violate the trademark rights of the endless burger companies fighting to volley with the big dogs such as McDonald’s and Burger King.
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Trademarks, however, aren’t indefinite legal tape for your brand. When registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (known as USPTO), a company’s trademark is protected for 10 years. But, a trademark can be indefinitely renewed with the USPTO, meaning the Coca-Cola and McDonald’s brands will continue to be protected for many years to come.
Why exactly does your business need a trademark?
Simple, for legal protection from your competition. In the sea of ideas, trademarks are protecting your ideas and your business’s brand from the competition sharks.
Check out the video below for a more in-depth explanation of trademarks as explained by our CEO, Dr. D’vorah Graeser!
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