How to create a brand name legally [Expert Review]

Last updated : Sept 4, 2022

How do you legally start a brand?

There are three simple steps to building a brand identity; choosing a name, developing a slogan, and designing a logo or symbol.

How can I create my own brand name?

1. Research your target audience and your competitors.
2. Pick your focus and personality.
3. Choose your business name.
4. Write your slogan.
5. Choose the look of your brand (colors and font).
6. Design your brand logo.
7. Apply your branding across your business.

Can I trademark a name myself?

You can trademark your name if it has business or commercial value. Trademarking your name gives you an additional brand and keeps others from using your name. To trademark your name you must meet specific requirements with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Do I need to copyright my brand name?

Registering your business name for a trademark isn't required in order for you to have trademark rights. However, a registered trademark can provide greater protection for your brand while helping you build your brand and drive business growth.

What are the 4 steps of branding?

• Step 1: Brand Salience – In this step, it is crucial to establish your identity and ask yourself as the brand, “who are you?”
• Step 2: Performance and Imagery –
• Step 3: Judgement and Feelings –
• Step 4: Brand Resonance –

How do I patent a name for free?

You can not register a trademark for free. However, you can establish something known as a "common law trademark" for free, simply by opening for business. The benefit of relying on common law trademark rights is that it's free, and you don't need to do any specific work filling out forms, etc.

How much does it cost to start a brand?

Average Cost: $20,000 - $70,000+ If you're looking to get your branding done perfectly, look for agencies that offer the full branding package: brand strategy, messaging and visuals.

How long does a trademark last?

A federal trademark lasts 10 years from the date of registration, with 10-year renewal terms. Between the fifth and sixth year after the registration date, the registrant must file an affidavit to state that the mark is still in use.

What names can you not trademark?

• Proper names or likenesses without consent from the person.
• Generic terms, phrases, or the like.
• Government symbols or insignia.
• Vulgar or disparaging words or phrases.
• The likeness of a U.S. President, former or current.
• Immoral, deceptive, or scandalous words or symbols.
• Sounds or short motifs.

Can I patent my name?

No, It Isn't Possible to Patent a Name Patents are only issued for inventions, ornamental designs of goods, or plants, not names. To protect your brand name and logo, you will need to utilize the trademark registration service.

Should I get a trademark or LLC first?

4. Should you get an LLC first or trademark? Yes, you should get an LLC first before a trademark because the trademark application will need to identify the LLC as the trademark owner. You should create an LLC or business entity before you file a trademark application.

Which is better trademark or copyright?

Copyright protects original work, whereas a trademark protects items that distinguish or identify a particular business from another. Copyright is generated automatically upon the creation of original work, whereas a trademark is established through common use of a mark in the course of business.

What is difference between patent and trademark?

A patent protects new inventions, processes, or scientific creations, a trademark protects brands, logos, and slogans, and a copyright protects original works of authorship.

How long does it take to create a brand identity?

Because every business has diverse needs, the logo design and visual identity part of the branding process can take 4 to 6 weeks to complete. Websites can take several months to complete, so allocating 2 to 5 months for website design and development is common. Larger, more complex websites can take 5 to 8 months.

How a brand is built?

Some key areas to consider when creating a brand are consistency, differentiation, creativity, and establishing an emotional connection. Monitoring the brand is important to preserving its health.

What does a brand need?

• Logo. Every brand needs a logo.
• Color palette. Colors are another key ingredient in any brand identity.
• Shape. Shape is another part of an overall branding strategy.
• Tagline. “Eat fresh.”
• Tone of voice and vocabulary.
• Fonts.
• Imagery.
• Positioning.

How much does it cost to patent a brand name?

The basic cost to trademark a business name ranges from $225 to $600 per trademark class. This is the cost to submit your trademark application to the USPTO. The easiest and least expensive way to register your trademark is online, through the USPTO's Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS).

How do I trademark my brand for free?

Can you trademark your logo for free? You can not register a trademark for free. However, what you can do is establish something known as a "common law trademark" for free. You can do this by simply opening for business.

What should I charge for branding?

Most agencies charge anywhere from $150–$300 per hour for creative and strategic services. This should include ideation for your company name, tag line, brand positioning, brand story, and messaging. The range is typically $1,000 to $5,000 for these services.

What is brand fee?

Brand Fee means the annual fee for manufacturers and importers of branded prescription drugs payable by ENDO as a result of Section 9008 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 and any amendments thereto.

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there are an estimated 300 million companies in the world today that's 300 million brands some brands as big as apple and coca-cola others are small as a one-person business with so many brands in the world it's getting harder to create and find a unique name so how do you create a great brand name how can you play and win the name game you start with three steps first select what type of name you want there are seven different categories of names and pretty much every brand in the world falls within one of these seven categories eponymous names like disney and burberry work by embodying the vision and beliefs of their founders these names are okay if you're feeling lazy or just have a big ego adidas is more unique it's derived from addie dassler the company's founder and tesla wasn't created by nicola tesla he died in 1943 but the name is an homage to tesla's electrical engineering achievements descriptive names like american airlines and the home depot work by telling you exactly what the company does but these names can be a mouthful and are much harder to own and protect acronyms like ge and bp are just shorthand versions of descriptive names some acronyms are more strategic kentucky fried chicken switched to kfc because fried chicken didn't sound too healthy and the hong kong and shanghai bank changed to eight that changed to hsbc to help the bank expand globally real words like uber and slack are ripped right out of a dictionary and suggest attributes or benefits uber literally means an outstanding example so it works well for a company with big broad bold ambitions beyond ride hailing now real words might seem like good ideas but in a world of 300 million companies it's getting harder to find a name it's hard to find any real words left in a dictionary composite names like facebook and ray-ban are created by gluing two words together these names have a kind of one-two punch and can be really memorable because it's so hard to find real words companies like kleenex and pinterest have invented names by changing adding or removing letters for impact now invented names can be highly unique but if you're not careful they can start to sound like pharmaceutical drugs or worse the name of a sofa from ikea associative names work by reflecting imagery meaning back to their back to the brand the amazon in south america is the world's largest river therefore the earth's biggest selection of books clothes content and so on sirius is the brightest star therefore the radio channels where you can hear the brightest stars of music and entertainment and red bull associates to a drink with bull like qualities such as power and confidence some brands are derived from non-english languages like samsung which means three stars in korean lego means play well in danish zappos comes from the spanish word sapatos for shoes and hulu comes i bet you didn't know that hulu actually comes from a chinese proverb a hulu is a bowl used to store precious things finally the seventh type is abstract names names like rolex and kodak these names have no intrinsic meaning but instead rely on the power of phonetics to create really powerful brand names okay so once you've decided what type of name you you want you need to decide what you want the name to say and look of course it's tempting to create names that talk about who created them or what you do or where you operate but the best brand names don't don't describe they stand for a big idea ones that translates into emotional appeal nike is about winning gopros about heroism apple is about simplicity and usability and google comes from the math term that's a one with a hundred zeros after it so that really big number helps support the company's really big original vision to organize the world's information so as you think about your new brand think carefully and ask yourself what's your big idea the third step is to check the name isn't already taken you might have to create hundreds of names perhaps thousands before you find one that's even available and of course don't forget to check the name means doesn't mean anything negative in other languages or countries the last thing you want is an embarrassing naming fail like this brand of toilet paper from sweden finally a few words about alphabet the parent company of google and now one of the world's most valuable companies much has been said and written about the the business strategy but i'll say a few words about the name is alphabet a great name you bet first of all the name is an idea as we all know an alphabet is a set of letters that forms the basis of all language and communication second the name provides a playful link back to the companies underneath g for google c for calico n for nest x and so on third the name encourages wall street investors buy this stock and you're making an alpha bet one that will outperform others and last of all the name is a real dictionary word which is a rare find these days now there was only one issue with alphabet car company bmw owned the url alphabet.com but you know here's the thing owningthe.com doesn't matter as much these days now that we find stuff through google search and we connect with brands through social media and smartphone apps so alphabet the company forgot about alphabet.com and instead found a shorter and more unique web address abc.xyz thank you thank you jonathan

Thanks for your comment Delora Bake, have a nice day.
- Terry Nienow, Staff Member

trademark theft cost small businesses over 300 billion dollars a year I know so let me show you how to register your trademark step number one create unique words or a symbol as your trademark what can be trademarked any name symbol slogan design that is uniquely identified with your product or service people often use the word trademark to refer to both trademarks and service marks technically a trademark is for your goods whereas a service mark is for your commercial services why should you trademark two reasons it keeps customers who had good experiences with your product or service coming back for more it also helps them find your product by finding that logo or that name or that symbol that is trademarked and identifies your unique product or services in reality coke may be indistinguishable to your taste buds from other carbonated drinks however you always order a coke because you remember how good it tasted after you scored your first touchdown you also trademark to prevent others from taking your particular mark and then trying to use that mark to sell their own goods and services it's very likely that if Pepperidge Farms did not trademark its name someone would steal it and attempt to trick customers into buying their own crackers instead of Pepperidge Farms while some of us will create a unique design as our trademark that no one has ever thought of some of us want a trademark a word phrase that maybe someone has thought of and previously registered so it is really smart to research whether or not your word phrase if you have a word phrase has been used before and previously registered there are three different types of research to perform to determine whether or not the word phrase you on a trademark has been used before or as previously registered but before we get there here's when you may want to get an attorney involved in the trademark process attorneys have access to very sophisticated professional databases that provide very timely and accurate information about pending trademark applications so if you have the resources you make and are delegating the research process to them however if you're a do-it-yourselfer like me here's how to research whether or not pending trademark applications are in the computer system first it's really easy perform a Google search and determine whether or not the words you want a trademark appear in business anywhere else second go to who is ICANN org and do a search and find out whether or not the words you want a trademark appear in domain names in the world the last part of the research happens at the website for the US Patent and Trademark Office you use a system that they have it's free to use called tests trademark electronic search system you use the system determine out whether or not there are pending trademark applications in America for the words you want a trademark test is really easy to use simply go to the website for the USPTO gov hover over the trademarks tab click on searching trademarks scroll down to search trademark database you click there move down to basic word mark search and then you click there then you go into the search term field and you type in the words that you want to be trademarked I previously entered what a feeling because I was pretending like I was selling a online product like an online vitamin and I can see here that there's at least one application for this mark that is live in other words it's pending when it says dead then the mark has been abandoned and is available you use the basic word mark search when you're trying to trademark words however when you want a trademark a design you have to use the design mark search and I made a video about how to use that design word mark search and you can find the link to that video in the description section below if you do not see in this screen that the words that you want to use as your trademark has a live application pending then you're looking good for a trademark and you can move on to the next step but before we get there let's take a quick break we've been talking about a lot of complex subjects do you want to trademark a product or a service if you want to trademark a product then write trademark in the comments if you want to trademark a service then write service mark in the comments below okay let's get back to the steps step number three use your trademark to lock in your trademark you actually have to use the words in the symbol in your online business in America once a business starts to use a distinctive name or symbol immediately and automatically has the right to prevent others from using that distinctive name or symbol basically the rule is use it or lose it how do you use a trademark well first your trademark has to be used in your actual business second you have to display the mark so that it's physically associated with the particular product or service that you are going to sell so that could be like a label or a tag perhaps the trademark appears on your website step number four register your trademark once you have used your trademark your next step is to protect it under federal law by officially registering it where do you register it by going back to the USPTO gov website under the trademarks tab go to apply online click on initial application forms there's three different types of application forms I use the TE a s RF at this time of the video it costs $50 more than the cheapest application but I don't want to go through the goods and services listing and I really don't mind communicating with the USPTO through email and online correspondence when you get to the applications scroll down and check no an attorney is not filing this application then you click continue at the bottom here you fill up the applicant contact information remember applicant means the owner of the mark not the person filling out the form so if you want your business to own the mark you should enter in the business name as the applicant after you're done filling out the contact information click continue and you arrive at the mark information screen you click on standard characters and then you enter in the trademark phrase and maybe you get a preview it like I did here then you click continue next is the good service information screen click on add goods and services then type in the basic category for your product click on go then you get this listing of all these different types of related products in this example I'm seeking at trademark for cornbread and so I clicked the cornbread box and hit inserted checked entries then you just click on the bottom continue you don't need to identify the filing basis then it's continue again this takes you to the final screens of the trademark application you enter in your payment information and then you submit the trademark application form and there you have it you did it your trademark application is submitted step number five wait for official registration the next step in the process is actually waiting waiting for the notice of publication if you get that then you know your trademark application was properly prepared when you get the notice of publicatio

Thanks lygivitniw your participation is very much appreciated
- Terry Nienow

About the author

Terry Nienow

I've studied ethology at Rockford University in Rockford and I am an expert in comparative education. I usually feel stressed. My previous job was etchers and engravers I held this position for 9 years, I love talking about pressed flower craft and equestrianism. Huge fan of Anna Kendrick I practice equestrian: eventing and collect casino chips.