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Trademark Search: How to Know If Your Trademark Is Already Being Used
from:Deb St. George, on Patents and Trademarks in your Patent and Trademark Guide From Agritrax.com
There are a lot of different kinds of new businesses opening today. This also means that there will be a lot of different business names and business trademarks popping up in the market. This is why you have to consider that starting your own business isn’t just about having enough capital as well as making a great business plan. You have to know that there is also a business name and trademark registration that you have to consider when you are starting a new kind of business.
First of all, a trademark is what companies use to mark their products in order to be identified easily by consumers. It can be in a form of a name, or it can be a logo or a sign. For example, if you are looking for a particular brand of shirt, you will see that the particular product has a unique logo to distinguish them from other shirts made by other companies. As you can see, having your own trademark for your products is very important.
You may just want to copy other trademarks but you should know that it is illegal to do so. You should consider that you should make up your own trademark. Your trademark should be unique and should bear no similarities with other kinds of trademark to prevent confusion among the consumers. You should also know that you are required to register your trademark in order for you to legally use it in your product and also claim that the trademark is yours and no one else can copy it.
Unfortunately, there are now a lot of different trademarks registered in the PTO or the Patent and Trademark Office. Because of this, it will be hard for you to come up with a unique trademark and the chances for the trademark to be rejected by the PTO on the grounds of bearing similarities to registered trademark is quite high. This is why you should first know whether your trademark design is already being used or even your business name. To do this, you can try and do trademarks search where it can narrow down to different kinds of trademark registered with the PTO that bears similarities with your trademark logo. You should do this before you actually go to the PTO and apply for a trademark registration.
This is because registration for trademark is a lengthy and costly process. This means that by getting rejected, you will start all over again and redesign your trademark. It is recommended that when you want to conduct a trademark search that bears similarities to your trademark design, you should hire a lawyer to do this. A patent and trademark lawyer is recommended for this kind of job as they know how to search for trademarks and you can be sure that they will find different kinds of trademark similar to your design. They will also advice you whether your trademark will be acceptable with the PTO or not.
By doing this, you will save a lot of time and money in the registration process of your trademark. The patent and trademark lawyer you hire will also have comprehensive knowledge about the intellectual property law and also about the different step-by-step procedure when getting a trademark registered. Although it can cost you quite an amount of money if you hire a patent and trademark lawyer, you can be sure that you can get things done a lot more quickly than you can imagine by doing it yourself.
The lawyer will also be the ones who can represent you when defending a trademark that has been refused by the PTO. However, you should make sure that you hire a reputable and well-experienced trademark lawyer. It is not recommended that you should look for a trademark lawyer in referral services as the referral services does not disclose the experience and the reputation of the trademark lawyer. They will refer lawyers who are just paying their monthly dues with the referral services and not because of their experience.
These are the things you should remember about trademark registration. By searching for trademarks first before you apply for trademark registration with the PTO, you can be sure that there is a high chance that your trademark will be approved in the least possible time and start selling your products with your very own trademark logo.
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