CXO Matters | How to Register Trademark or a Brand Name
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How to Register Trademark or a Brand Name

How to Register Trademark or a Brand Name
How to Register Trademark or a Brand Name
Image Courtesy: Unsplash
Written by Melwin Joy

Launching a business and taking it to the peak of success is the dream of every entrepreneur, but the way to success is full of hurdles.  One of the main hurdles you will face is to register trademark for your brand.

Registering your company’s trademark is the biggest step that helps you protect your brand identity from misuse of theft or copy. Registering a trademark is a fairly easy process that you can complete in a few easy steps. 

Here in the blog, we will discuss the steps needed to register and trade your brand name.

Steps Cover to Register Trademark of Your Company Name

“Trademark” consists of a design, a word, a phrase, and a symbol that identifies the sources of goods and services distinguished from another party. 

Trademarking is much more important and it’s not a simple step in filing for an LLC and may take more time than you imagine.

Step 1: Search

The first step is to search for the name for which you want to register the trademark. If the trademark is already registered then you can’t apply for the same. 

Another important thing here is if a trademark is similar to the name in the same industry you want to register for your brand trademark then also can’t apply for that. 

For instance, Neha Boutique and Neha’s Boutique are too similar in the same class. Therefore, it is too straightforward that if a registered trademark is similar to your trademark or sounds exactly in the same class or the meanings are similar can’t be authorized.

Step 2: Apply

Once you have selected the name you want to trademark as your brand name, it’s time to prepare for your trademark application. You can use a name that you are already using commercially or want to use in the future. 

The trademark applications have the following fill-ups

  • The name and address of the applicant
  • The citizenship and legal entity of the applicant
  • A name and address for future correspondence or office
  • A drawing of the desired mark/ logo
  • A thorough description of the mark/logo
  • A specific list of goods or services covered in the trademark application
  • Goods and services class
  • Sample of mark/logo in use as well as the date it was first used
  • A dated signature from you or an authorized representative
  • Application for the type and number of classes used in the application

Step 3: File

Once you have completed filling the application, you have to fill in options: TEAS Plus and TEAS Standard. Here the plus option is not much expensive and more streamlined, and most important it has a lower rate of rejections. 

Whereas, if you want to create a custom description of your products or services that are not available in the pre-set list plus the risk associated with the Standard option may be more beneficial for your situation.

Once you have filled your application you will receive a confirmation receipt from up to and a serial number that you can use to check the status of your application in the Trademark Status & Document Retrieval (TSDR) portal.

Who Should Register for a Trademark?

Registering a business name should be done at the state level and doesn’t need federal protection. If you are going to provide service and goods within the state then you don’t need to apply for trademark registration. 

Unless you are going to provide goods and services out of the state or you need federal protection for the name and brand of your business, though, you would need to register for a trademark.