By Tim Walden
Learn from 20 corporate VP's on corporate reputation best practice
New Filling in Japan Bio,Medicinel,Food,Chemistry,etc.
We register and protect IP rights in Lebanon and MENA region
There are a lot of factors that go into constructing a brand identity. From relationship building with both clients and other businesses, to designing and implementing marketing campaigns, it takes time and money to find your place in the market. It would make sense then to ensure that all this hard work in building a brand would come with a degree of protection. Here are five reasons why it is imperative that you register any trademarks used in the course of your business operations.
It Will Deter Competitive Use
Having a registered trademark means placing it on a public database, searchable by anyone looking to use their own branding. If you choose not to engage in some form of brand protection by completing the trademark registration process, other firms may not even be aware that you are using such a mark. However, the simple fact that it is up there for all to see will usually deter any competitors from using something substantially similar.
It Helps You Build a Brand Identity
Without brand protection it is difficult to build any sort of identity for your business. Registration is the difference between using a series of vague concepts you have no substantive legal rights to, and literally owning your brand. Ownership of your business in terms of the physical inputs is one thing, but a brand is something more nebulous. It can't be touched or felt; it is simply the collection of intangibles that make up how your company is perceived. Registering a trademark brings this into the realm of ownership, where you can assert rights to it as you would the land your business is built on.
Provides Certainty
Knowing that you have brand protection allows you to move forward confidently with any marketing campaigns you wish. For example, you may have invested a lot of time and money into designing a marketing campaign and producing various forms of advertising around an image that can be trademarked. If you have yet to register it, another firm may beat you to it, and come out with a similar campaign before you do, at a considerable loss to your firm. Brand protection offers certainty, and allows you to move forward confidently.
Avoid Future Legal Issues
The beauty of brand protection through trademark registration is that once you have registered something the legal process behind resolving any future conflicts is relatively straightforward. You simply need to show that the conflicting mark is substantially similar to yours so as to cause confusion. Once this is proven, the infringing party will have to cease using that mark.
Long Term Protection
Trademarks can essentially last forever, provided you renew them every ten years. Registration is the best way to secure the long term future of your brand. The only other thing you must consider is that the trademark cannot go unused for more than three years at a time, or it will lapse.
Recognising the potential of the internet for delivering a range of professional services, IPOL's aim is to assist people who want to file their own design and trademark applications in Australia to achieve a high quality result with minimal effort.
IPOL is concerned that intellectual property owners often file for trademark registration in Australia themselves with very little knowledge of the important issues and potential pitfalls.
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