Protecting Your Brand: Trademarking Logos and Names
A strong brand takes time, creativity and investment to build. Once it begins to gain recognition, protecting it becomes increasingly important.
Last year, we successfully registered the Insignia Creative logo as a UK trademark. More recently, we have helped a client secure trademark protection for the Spinematik logo alongside two associated word marks.
This means the client now has greater protection over both the visual identity and the names connected with the brand.
What can be trademarked?
A trademark can protect a distinctive element used to identify your business, products or services. This may include:
- A business or product name
- A logo or symbol
- A strapline
- A particular word or phrase
- A combination of words and graphics
Logo marks and word marks provide different types of protection. Registering a logo protects the specific visual design while a word mark can protect the wording regardless of how it is styled.
Depending on the brand, registering both may offer more complete protection.
Why register a trademark?
Registering a business name at Companies House or purchasing a domain name does not automatically give you trademark protection.
A registered trademark can help you:
- Establish legal ownership of your brand identity
- Prevent competitors from using a confusingly similar name or logo
- Protect the value and reputation you have built
- Strengthen your position if someone copies your branding
- Create an intellectual property asset for your business
- Use the ® symbol once registration has been approved
Trademark protection can be particularly valuable when launching a new business, developing a product range or preparing a brand for wider growth.
How Insignia Creative can help
Trademark registration can appear complicated. Before applying, you need to consider what should be protected, whether similar trademarks already exist and which classes of goods or services the application should cover.
Insignia Creative can help guide you through the process, including:
- Reviewing the logo, name or wording you wish to protect
- Carrying out initial searches for similar existing trademarks
- Helping identify the relevant trademark classes
- Preparing the logo artwork in a suitable format
- Supporting the application and submission process
- Monitoring progress through to registration
We can also help businesses develop a distinctive name or visual identity before an application is made. For more complex applications or potential disputes, we can work alongside an appropriate trademark or intellectual property specialist.
Protecting the work behind the brand
A trademark is more than a registration certificate. It protects the thinking, creativity and commercial value behind a brand.
Having successfully registered our own identity and now completed multiple applications for a client, we can provide practical support to businesses looking to protect a logo, name, product or service.
If you have a brand identity you want to protect or you are preparing to launch something new, speak to Insignia Creative about trademark registration support.