When trying to come up with your new brand name or trademark, you will probably start hitting your head against the proverbial wall. It’s not that easy to come up with a catchy, original name and just when you think you’ve nailed it, you find out someone else is using it already. You need not … Continue reading What ‘Things’ Can We Trademark?
Tag: trademark registration
Author: John A. Leonard Registration does not guarantee protection. Some marks are deemed “strong” while others are deemed “weak”. Strong marks are afforded the greatest protection. As a general rule, arbitrary and fanciful or suggestive marks are considered strong. Descriptive, geographic and personal name marks are considered weak. “Generic” marks are afforded no protection. Generic … Continue reading Strong trademarks vs weak trademarks
A trademark registration is only effective in the country in which you file the trademark. Regional protection can be applied for under the terms of the CTM (Community Trademark) system, to cover the countries of the European Union and under the Madrid Protocol to cover a series of countries across the world. South Africa intends … Continue reading What countries are covered by your trademark protection?
Registering your trade mark gives you the exclusive right to use your mark for the goods and/or services that it covers in the country where you file. If you have a registered trade mark you can put the ® symbol next to it to warn others against using it. However, using this symbol for a … Continue reading The benefits of trademark registration
So, you are scratching your head, trying to come up with an original, fresh design for your logo…Not so easy, huh? Have a look around at some of the famous brands like Nike’s swoosh, Adidas stripes, Microsoft’s wavy squares – what makes these logos great? Milton Glaser, the legendary graphic designer best known for the … Continue reading Add Bang! to your brand with a great logo
The small symbols that accompany logos, text, images and other material can be confusing to some people who are not familiar with what they mean or stand for. These symbols have different meanings and are used for different purposes. The copyright symbol is known as a small c which is circled. It is used in … Continue reading Trademark & Copyright Symbols
Starting up a small business in South Africa can be a costly exercise and there are always additional costs that creep in that one is not always aware of when starting a new company. Apart from the necessary assets one needs to acquire when starting a business, the second most important aspect of your new … Continue reading Trademark Infringement – what to do?
Designing a logo for a new company does not happen overnight. Large companies spend a great deal of money on market research in order to create a valuable new brand for their company. One of the most important things one needs to consider before either creating a logo yourself or contracting another company to create … Continue reading All about your company’s new logo
Naturally, some brands are more well-known than others. One may question what factors make one brand stand out from the crowd and be more popular than others. There are a number of factors that play an integral part in brand awareness, however without an excellent campaign and unique brand concept coupled with effective strategies for … Continue reading Building Brands
Starting a new business involves a great deal of research. You need to decide on which type of business you want to open, what the new company’s name will be and the core functions of the business must be decided upon. In South Africa all of the above can be done through the CIPC – … Continue reading Intellectual property and your logo
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