The beauty with entrepreneurs, especially those looking to get their small business up and running, is that they always dream big. It’s that dream which drives them to get through the day to day operations required to build a successful business.
With that said, it is a bit of a surprise when small business owners tend to neglect what will often prove to be their most valuable asset: intellectual property. More specifically, in this post I would like to address the importance of trademarks and how they apply to your business.
There’s no doubt you’ve spent countless hours coming up with that perfect name, designing a custom logo, picking a catchy slogan, and finding the best available domain name. You’ve spent lots of money on advertising and your business is picking up, but then it happens; you get a cease and desist letter in the mail for trademark infringement. All the hard work you have put into getting your business name out there seems to have been wasted. If your accuser does indeed have a valid claim to a trademark you are using, you may very well have to change your name, slogan, or whatever else you may be infringing on. Now what?
If you have bigger plans than simply maintaining a local startup, proper steps need to be taken from the very beginning to keep your mind at ease. It is true that the mere use of a name can establish certain trademark rights. These “common law rights,” however, are extremely limited as they can only be applied in the geographical area in which the trademark was actually being used and do not provide the same benefits as a registered trademark. In other words, if someone else comes in and starts using your trademark and successfully registers it with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, that person will be able to use the mark in any area but the geographical area that you have been using it, or were likely to be using it.
By registering your mark, you provide constructive notice to potential users on a national level. A subsequent user cannot assert a good faith use because he/she was unaware of the registered mark. If your registered mark is used continuously for five years following registration, you also obtain an “incontestable” status, which provides you additional protection against possible challengers of your mark. Additionally, registration gives you the potential to recover lost profits, a number of statutory damages, and the ability to receive treble damages from infringers.
The benefits of registration definitely outweigh the potential obstacles and every business should strongly consider registering its trademarks.
