What’s the easiest path to trademark registration?
Most strategic business owners would love to display the registered trademark symbol ® as a sign that they have the exclusive rights to use their brand name. Like a scarecrow, it sends a strong signal to potential imitators that you are committed to investing in and defending your trademark.
Business owners often tell us, “I just want a trademark. How can I get one quickly and easily?”
Not every brand name can be registered as a trademark. For example, it can be extremely challenging to register generic or descriptive words as trademarks.
Without evidence of a reputation, it’s likely to be difficult to register brands like SUPERSOFT forabric softener, HI-GLOSS for paint products, or TOP CLASS SHOES for a shoe store. This is because other traders should be able to use those words to describe their products too.
So, what can you do if you have adopted a descriptive brand name? How do you overcome this dilemma?
Fortunately, there are some ways to work around this problem to achieve some level of protection for brands that aren’t very original or distinctive. Let’s examine the possible solutions.
What should you do to protect a brand name that is not registrable?
Apply for a logo
A possible option when you have a brand name that is generic or descriptiveis to apply for a logo version.
What is a strong trademark? Strong trademarks are those which are fanciful or distinctive. They may include words or images or a combination of both of these to make them original.
You can design a device that includes a logo with a stylised version of the words and possibly also an image, to create a mark that is more original and more distinctive than the words alone. Make an effort to choose a logo that is unlike any of your competitors and then apply to register a logo as a trademark.
The visual elements that you add will help to make the mark more distinctive – which should increase the chances of it being approved for registration.
To illustrate this, the brands APPEALING PAINTERS and 24 7 ELECTRICIANS are quite descriptive, but their owners have secured trademark registrations for their stylised logos, which include imagery:
Although registering your logo won’t necessarily prevent other traders from using the same words, it should still deter copycats as well as sending a loud and clear message that you consider brand protection to be an important part of your business strategy. Hopefully, it will scare them off and discourage them from copying your brand.
Add distinctive words
A second option to increase the chances of obtaining a trademark registration is to add unique words that will make it more distinctive.
For example, while it would be difficult to protect TOP CLASS SHOES, ZAAZA SHOES or ZAAZA’S TOP CLASS SHOES would be likely to set your shoe business apart from all other shoe traders. By adding a word that is uncommon, you increase the chance of your trademark being accepted for registration.
Our article 9 Tips for Choosing a Business Name gives more ideas for choosing highly registrable business names, so that you can more easily succeed in achieving a registered trademark to protect your brand and your business.