When starting a new business, business owners will want to get legal advice on securing their brand. This will involve asking your lawyer, if you need to trademark your business’s brand, the company’s design logos or both.
Most lawyers will advise that the safest option is to trademark both, your brand and company logo. However, trademarking both may not feasible for new businesses, due to budget constraints. Here are a few tips that will help to understand which area should be trademarked first.
Differences between design marks and word marks – When you trademark your company’s name, this is known as a “word mark”. This will only protect you from other companies using your company’s name. However, a “design mark” will cover you from other companies using a similar font, coloring, or other styling
Which type of mark should take priority – To understand which mark should be trademarked first, you should consider how unique your company’s name is. If your company’s name is unique, you should consider registration of the company name or its “word mark”. If your “design mark” includes your company’s name, then you should consider registering the company’s “design mark”, since this will prevent other businesses from using your company name, its design and anything similar.
To receive more details on trademarks in the US, visit the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office or its website for details and applications.