Obtaining Trademark Registration For A Company Logo
A single image can sometimes convey a message more effectively than written words can. Many corporate logos are instantly recognizable and serve to reinforce a certain mental image held by consumers. Entrepreneurs with plans to expand their business are at the ideal stage to officially transform their company logo into a trademark.
As a company expands into new territories, it needs to distinguish itself from business competitors. A distinctive logo helps potential customers quickly differentiate between a new company and existing alternatives. The design of a logo is a creative endeavor, but the registration of a trademark is mostly a legal process.
A trademark can include text, images, or a combination of both. Many trademarked names consist of invented words or fanciful phrases that are memorable for consumers. Unless you already have a unique name developed for your product or service, your first trademark objective is likely to be the registration of a distinctive logo.
Search for conflicting trademarks
As your business expands, so does the level of competition. There might be another company elsewhere that has already laid claim to your design concept. For that reason, the first step in trademark registration is to perform a comprehensive search of existing trademarks.
Trademarks are issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). A searchable database containing registered trademarks is maintained by the USPTO. Due to the complexity of the USPTO proceedings, many business owners turn the process over to a legal adviser once the logo design phase is complete.
Create the application image
The USPTO requires the submission of a JPG computer file containing an image of your proposed trademark. You can use any one of the many editing programs to create the file on your computer, or you can draw the logo and scan it. Either way, the JPG file must meet USPTO specifications.
The finished JPG image should be at least 250 pixels in height and 250 pixels in width. The height and width should each be less than 944 pixels. The JPG file must be under 5 megabytes in size. If you scan a drawing before editing it, the paper should be scanned at a setting of 300 to 350 dots per inch.
The JPG image should contain a minimum amount of white space between the trademark itself and the edge of the image. Submitting a color image is not necessarily required to obtain trademark protection. Contact a trademark and patent attorney at a law firm like Mohajerian A Professional Law Corporation for more information about securing a trademark for your company brand.
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