In a world where branding and brand representation can significantly impact your business growth, getting a trademark should not be overlooked. Even though you can start a business without a trademark, it poses a great risk for its long-term feasibility if you plan on pursuing global or even national expansion.
A trademark is a symbol by which your business is identified. It includes major features such as its name, logo, product or service, catchphrase, design, and less obvious elements such as brand color combinations.
Not only do trademarks help consumers identify your business, but they also help distinguish your business from competitors while protecting it from infringers. Many small-town businesses do not envision exponential growth, but they often find themselves becoming more ambitious and broadening their business goals.
It can be easy to dismiss the need to trademark a business in its early days, but there is no better time to employ the services of a trademark lawyer Atlanta has to offer than during the start of a business.
Let’s explore why trademarks are crucial for your business.
Table of Contents
1. Trademarks protect your business identity
As your business’ products and services begin to gather momentum, your business becomes more vulnerable to theft. To guard against such instances, it’s important to prevent future infringement by filing a trademark application.
Getting your business registered also protects you from infringing upon another business’ identity. For instance, you might choose a name and symbol for your business, but upon filing for a trademark, you discover that it is already in use or is awaiting approval. This saves you resources and time that would have been spent building a brand you can’t keep in the long run.
2. Trademarks help build brand trust
As mentioned earlier, trademarks are your identity as a business. This means that customers can recognize your business through its trademarked features.
Usually, competitors in the same industry have brands with similar infrastructure, and it might be confusing for customers to spot them and tell them apart. But by trademarking the unique elements of your business, you make it easier for customers to find and recognize you among your teeming competitors in the marketplace.
Also, with a trademark, you can begin to build a brand reputation that customers can relate to, contributing to an improvement in your business visibility. A visible and recognizable trademark lets customers know that with your product or service, they are getting quality. This, most times, influences the buying decision of customers.
3. Trademarks confer exclusive rights
A lot of businesses now have online stores, or at least have an online presence. They are continuously launching digital marketing strategies to position them as the best options among competitors.
However, this digital presence will be impeded if another business is operating in the domain you have chosen for your business. If you do not have a trademark registered, you cannot file for that domain to be shut down.
This is because you have no proof, and therefore, no exclusive rights with which to lay claims to the domain. Such circumstances can affect your ability to utilize the boundless reach of the internet to get more traffic and consequently, generate more revenue and profits for your business.
4. Trademarks are communication tools
Trademarks are how you communicate your business goals and visions to both your current and potential customers.
Using trademarks as a communication tool does not necessarily have to include words. Designs, symbols, and images can communicate your business ideals and your company’s value.
5. Trademarks are assets
Similar to real estate investments, trademarks are valuable assets. They can be transferred, inherited, bought, and sold. They can even be used as collateral to secure business loans from financial institutions.
The bigger the business brand, the more valuable its trademark is. And just like most assets, registered trademarks also appreciate over time.
If you want to sell your business, for instance, the potential buyers will value your business at a higher rate if it has a registered trademark. These buyers feel more secure with such purchases knowing they will not be caught in litigious battles for infringement.
It is not an uncommon practice for businesses with recognizable trademarks that can no longer stay operational to sell their trademarks. They sell them to the buyers, who become the new owners to continue its operation by assuming their name and general identity.
Beyond buying and selling, trademarks are important when your business wants to start another line of products or services. It makes it easier to start up under the same name that has already built a positive reputation for itself rather than building another brand from scratch.
6. Trademarks ease the hiring process
Hiring is not an easy stage of business building. But it is necessary for growth, as you will need more hands on deck to expand your business.
Therefore, you’ll want to hire employees who have the right motivation to help you meet your business goals and maintain brand consistency. But how do you ensure that you hire this kind of employee?
Most job seekers do not want to work with brands that have a bad reputation or are relatively unknown since it will not improve their resumes and will have little to no impact on their chances of nabbing future opportunities.
Trademarks can serve as motivation to get people to work with your company. Furthermore, when you do not have a recognizable trademark, it can be difficult to instill in your employees the values and culture of your business.
Final thoughts
The steps to getting a business up and running can be convoluted. It is even more challenging to trudge through the mire of processes required to avoid legal consequences if your business is not set up right.
One of the ways to ensure you are not sinking resources and time into a business model that isn’t feasible is to apply for a trademark through the aid of a competent trademark lawyer. In the process, you will be exposed to a lot of elements that will stabilize, protect, and grow your business.
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