Brand registration benefits pursue any startup founder to register a trademark. This article tries to address the most important advantages of registering a trademark by exploring its various aspects. However, besides advantages, there are some drawbacks that need to be discussed. Follow us to the end of this article.
Why Register a Trademark
A trademark creates an image of your business in your customer’s mind, which can include luxury, quality, a sense of security, after-sales service, and so on. Therefore, your brand is the value you instil in the customer. Brand registration provides numerous benefits include the following:
Identity and Reputation
Brand registration helps your startup to develop a unique identity and become famous over time. A trademark for your startup works precisely like an identity for individuals. People are known by their identity, so are businesses.
Take the Apple brand, for example. This brand is a symbol of quality, luxury, reputation and high price.
Marketing
Having a trademark helps you in marketing. In other words, selling your product without a brand may not be very successful. When you introduce your product or service to the customer and explain its benefits, having a trademark helps people to meet your product’s identity.
Differentiation
The brand makes customers understand the difference between your products and competitors and build a unique attitude toward your business. In other words, the trademark is your distinguishing characteristic from competitors and helps customers quickly identify your products and services.
For example, many companies make smartphones, including Apple, Samsung, and LG. The distinct brands of these products distinguish them from each other and help customers easily identify the characteristics of the products of each group.
Legal Protection
According to the provisions of the Patent Law, the exclusive right to use a trademark belongs to the person who has registered it in accordance with the provisions of this law.
The owner of a registered trademark can also file a lawsuit against any person who uses the trademark without his consent or a person who commits an act that would typically lead to infringement of the rights arising from the trademark registration. These rights include using a trademark that resembles a registered trademark, and its use for similar goods or services is misleading to the public.
In this way, after registering the brand, you will be recognized as the legal owner of the brand. If other people use the brand, you can sue the wrongdoers.
Earning Money
Your brand is your investment. You can give over your brand to others for a fee commensurate with its reputation. Other start-ups can also build their reputation by using your brand name (under license).
Your brand can be a part of your assets. Due to their popularity and credibility, some brands have a book value called “goodwill” in a company’s accounts.
For example, a company like Philips is a well-known brand in its field. If shareholders want to sell it one day, they can also make money from selling the brand.
DeputizIng
To grow your business, you need to have reputable agencies in different geographical areas; Therefore, a single and valid name that is legally registered and recognized is required.
One of the advantages of brand registration is that third parties can use it. Through the brand, you can grow your business and achieve a high income and reputation without spending money.
Chain stores and restaurants are among these.
Officiality
After registering your trademark, you can get a loan from banks or institutions. Also, investors can reach your startup through your brand. In fact, people recognize your startup by your business’s trademark, and you gain credit for obtaining loans, capital, etc.
Learn more: Negotiation Strategies with Investors, Raise Capital Like a Pro
Building Trust
Registering a trademark helps you attract the customers and investors’ trust. As mentioned above, the brand makes you look unique to the customer view. Clients have a better mindset and confidence in companies with well-known and reputable brands.
Brand Functions
Customer Guide
The brand is one of the main competitive advantages of businesses in today’s world. On the other hand, companies can show their commitment to the customer through their trademark. A brand is a good tool to diagnose good from the bad. Like signposts, they help customers choose products tailored to their needs when shopping.
Brands actually exhibit a particular classification of products. Sometimes they make customers feel dependent. Through brands, companies can influence people’s emotions and help them recall their good memories.
Market Segmentation
Market segmentation is another benefit of building a trademark. Many reputable companies around the world use multiple brands simultaneously for different segments of society. These companies create a brand portfolio and use it according to the conditions.
Building Trust
Sometimes customers are hesitant to buy a new product as they are not sure of its quality. However, after seeing the familiar brand on the product, they change their mind and trust it willingly.
This is exactly what the brand does: build trust in selling your new products.
Disadvantages of Trademark Registration
Now that you are somewhat familiar with branding advantages, let’s get aware of its drawbacks as well. However, the benefits of branding outweigh the disadvantages.
A Name with Different Meanings
As mentioned before, it is not possible to register a brand if anything about it is against the law. In multilingual countries, a nice name may be an insulting word in another language. That is why there are strict rules for choosing brand names. If you live in such countries, first get sure of your chosen word’s meaning.
Repeated Renewals
Each brand is only valid for ten years. You have to pay a fee to the government every 10 years to maintain your brand. Failure to pay will result in your brand being unregistered.
Marketing Cost
Having a successful brand requires promoting it, and that it can be painfully costly.
