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Knowing how to select your trademark right is as important as knowing what a Trademark is.
So where should you start from?
First, remember that your trade name and your trademark are two different things and you cannot insist that your trademark be the same as your trade name even when you're building a brand.
What should be kept in mind when selecting or creating a trademark?
Selecting or creating an appropriate trademark is a critical step, as it is an important element of the marketing strategy of your business.
So what is an appropriate trademark for your product(s)?
Evidently, there are no hard and fast rules. But the following seven-point checklist may be useful.
Seven Point Checklist for Selecting Your Trademark
Check that your trademark of choice meets all the legal requirements for registration (see reasons for rejecting applications on previous post).
Make sure the trademark is easy to read, write, spell and remember,and is suitable to all types of advertising media.
Make sure the mark does not have any undesired connotations in your own language or in any of the languages of potential export markets. Check that the corresponding domain name (i.e. Internet address) is available for registration. (We will talk more on the relationship between trademarks and domain name in the near future).
While selecting one or more words as your trademark you should also take into consideration the implications of selecting certain types of words:
Coined or “fanciful” words: these are invented words without any intrinsic or real meaning. Coined words have the advantage of being easy to protect, as they are more likely to be considered inherently distinctive. On the negative side, however, they may be more difficult to remember for consumers, requiring greater effort to advertise the products. (An example is: Etisalat now 9mobile is a registered trademark of Emerging Markets Telecommunication Services (EMTS), trading as Etisalat Nigeria).
Arbitrary marks: these are words that have a meaning that has no relation to the product they advertise. While these types of marks will also be easy to protect, they may also require heavy advertising to create the association between the mark and the product in the minds of consumers.
Suggestive marks: these are marks that hint at one or some of the attributes of the product. The appeal of suggestive marks is that they act as a form of advertising. A slight risk, however, is that some countries may consider a suggestive mark to be too descriptive of the product. (An example is: the trademark CREAMI for marketing dairy products would hint at the fact that the product is creamy). In Nigeria, the Registrar of Trademarks, Patents and Designs, may find the mark too descriptive and thus may not register it.
Irrespective of the type of mark you choose, it is important to avoid imitating existing trademarks. A slightly altered competitor’s trademark or a misspell of a well-known or famous mark is unlikely to be registered.
Example: Honeywell is a registered trademark for HONEYWELL GROUP NIGERIA. It would be unwise to try to sell the same or similar products using the trademark HONIWELL, as it would probably be considered confusingly similar to the existing mark, and is unlikely to be registered.
There you have it, go through the bullet points as often as possible and let us know what you’ve settled on, we’d do a trademark search to make sure that it is not identical or confusingly similar to existing trademarks.
Yours Truly,
Legalipcoach
Disclaimer: The information contained in this guide in not meant as a substitute for professional legal advice. Its purpose is to provide basic information on the subject matter. Have more questions? Send me a mail at legalipcoach@gmail.com