So, you’ve spent weeks, months or even years building your brand, growing a loyal customer base and developing your products or services, and you’re starting to see success.
Your small business means the world to you, but with SMEs accounting for 99.9% of the UK’s business population, there’s competition around every corner. It’s time to protect your enterprise.
Whilst you may have registered as a business with Companies House or as a sole trader, this does not protect your brand identity.
That’s why registering a trade mark (TM) is a key step for any founder. Though it’s not a legal requirement, it is a legal symbol protecting your brand identity. From your brand colours and logo to slogans and designs, a mark is there to help customers associate your products with your company, whilst preventing other businesses from copying your TM.
Most trade marks take a minimum of five months to approve, so it’s important to define what you want to cover, how much it will cost and what the process entails well in advance.
If you’re ready to register but are unsure on where to begin, here is the complete guide for how to register a trade mark in the UK.
With the amount of new businesses growing every day, this preliminary research can feel overwhelming – so why not start by researching your niche?
By narrowing your search and focusing on your sector of expertise, it’s likely you’ll find your competitors' marks more easily. Search the trade mark register to ensure you aren’t treading on anyone's toes.
If you do find that a design, word or logo has been claimed by another company, don’t panic. Here’s what you can do:
“I would avoid trade marking a name when someone else has the same name registered as a Ltd company.
You may find that what you end up changing was an improvement to what you used before.
UKBF founder Ozzy explains: “Without a trade mark it only depends on how it is being used. If they are using it in a way that could lead to confusion then you can issue a C&D, but if it's just in a way to compare them to you in a fair and reasonable way then you cannot really stop it. It's like comparison tables on websites comparing prices against competition or feature comparisons - all perfectly fine.”
Be sure to make yourself aware of what competitors can and can’t do when you register to avoid confusion and potential conflict in the future.
It’s also important to consider what will be approved when you apply for a TM. Note that no matter what you’re trade marking, it has to be wholly distinctive to your brand.
You also need to be aware of the limitations. The below are just some examples of what cannot be marked in the UK:
Use this tool on gov.uk to find where your brand fits amongst many industry options to ensure you apply for the correct category or categories (you can apply for more than two if you operate in multiple industries).
In this forum discussing trade marks, UKBF member DontAsk explains that you shouldn’t be disheartened right away if you find your brand name in one of the classification categories:
“Identical trade marks can exist in different classes – so maybe cleaning coffee makers is catering but cleaning test tubes is laboratory supplies, for example. The devil is in the detail.”
Take the time to find the classification that works for you, and if you know there are similar marks out there for an entirely different brand, it may be worth the risk to apply anyway.
It’s important you know everything there is to know about your branding to ensure you can answer any questions during the application process.
You’ll also need to pay a minimum of £170 to register, but this can increase depending on the amount of products or services you would like to cover.
After you have addressed any appeals or concerns, it may take a further four months to be officially granted your TM and issued a certificate of registration.
The IPO will stipulate your renewal fees and when they are due depending on your application – so be sure to read the documents you receive carefully to ensure your mark isn’t revoked or used elsewhere.
In this discussion, UKBF member percolated explains why they want to register before highlighting the benefit of starting a discussion:
“I have a great brand which is currently unheard of, it doesn't show up in Google and if I gave up every time there was a hurdle I wouldn't do what I do. Plus I wanted a quick sanity check before I paid for legal advice.”
However, MOIC goes on to emphasise the benefit of forking out for legal advice after gaining experience-based advice in forums;
“Taking legal advice is what you should always do for these matters, but IP lawyers don't come cheap. People on forums give their advice and opinions, often based on similar experiences.”
Despite the extra cost, you may view legal advice as providing that extra peace of mind before you take the TM plunge. And this level of reassurance shouldn’t stop there.
After dedicating countless hours to building your brand’s reputation, you want to be protected against all possible risks of being an entrepreneur – but like any founder, spending time looking for cover often falls to the bottom of the priority list.
Your small business means the world to you, but with SMEs accounting for 99.9% of the UK’s business population, there’s competition around every corner. It’s time to protect your enterprise.
Whilst you may have registered as a business with Companies House or as a sole trader, this does not protect your brand identity.
That’s why registering a trade mark (TM) is a key step for any founder. Though it’s not a legal requirement, it is a legal symbol protecting your brand identity. From your brand colours and logo to slogans and designs, a mark is there to help customers associate your products with your company, whilst preventing other businesses from copying your TM.
Most trade marks take a minimum of five months to approve, so it’s important to define what you want to cover, how much it will cost and what the process entails well in advance.
If you’re ready to register but are unsure on where to begin, here is the complete guide for how to register a trade mark in the UK.
Do your research
If you’re fairly new to the world of business, but you’re eager to lock your logo or brand name in and register – do your research first. There are thousands of businesses out there that have applied for the same reason as you. Prior to filling out an application, you need to know that the design, logo, slogan or other isn’t already being used by another company.With the amount of new businesses growing every day, this preliminary research can feel overwhelming – so why not start by researching your niche?
By narrowing your search and focusing on your sector of expertise, it’s likely you’ll find your competitors' marks more easily. Search the trade mark register to ensure you aren’t treading on anyone's toes.
If you do find that a design, word or logo has been claimed by another company, don’t panic. Here’s what you can do:
Check the expiry date
There is a chance that the TM is no longer in use – check the expiry and appeal to claim it as your own if the expiry date permits. Keep in mind that marks have to be renewed every ten years, but can be removed if they have not been consistently used for more than five years.Purchase the existing trade mark
You might find that a brand is still using the mark, but that it has been inactive for some time. If this is the case, try contacting the owner to ask if they would consider selling it to you.Make changes
If the TM is still in use, use this as an opportunity to assess your branding – are there small tweaks you can make to the design? Perhaps a brand name change is what you need, as explored by HFE signs in this forum;“I would avoid trade marking a name when someone else has the same name registered as a Ltd company.
- You're competing with someone who is already established
- Your customers may be accidentally lost to them
- You are really going to pee them off by trade marking a brand that they will see as theirs
- Customers may see your brand as ripping off someone else's
You may find that what you end up changing was an improvement to what you used before.
Get your facts straight
In this discussion surrounding a competitor using another brand’s name as marketing material, the forum highlights how a TM can protect against intellectual property theft, and when use of a competitor’s name for marketing purposes might be okay.UKBF founder Ozzy explains: “Without a trade mark it only depends on how it is being used. If they are using it in a way that could lead to confusion then you can issue a C&D, but if it's just in a way to compare them to you in a fair and reasonable way then you cannot really stop it. It's like comparison tables on websites comparing prices against competition or feature comparisons - all perfectly fine.”
Be sure to make yourself aware of what competitors can and can’t do when you register to avoid confusion and potential conflict in the future.
Decide on your trademark
Before beginning the application process, you need to know exactly what you want to trade mark. Typically, brands will trade mark the product or design that is most identifiably theirs – for example, Nike’s swoosh logo was trade marked in 1971 and is known worldwide.It’s also important to consider what will be approved when you apply for a TM. Note that no matter what you’re trade marking, it has to be wholly distinctive to your brand.
You also need to be aware of the limitations. The below are just some examples of what cannot be marked in the UK:
- A description of the goods or service you offer e.g ‘notebook’ cannot be trade marked for a notebook manufacturer
- Any offensive language
- A common phrase not specific to your brand
- Any misleading information e.g declaring a product is vegan when it isn’t
- A similar TM to another business in your industry
Find your trade mark classification
Next, you’ll need to find your classification. This is the class of products or services you offer under your brand.Use this tool on gov.uk to find where your brand fits amongst many industry options to ensure you apply for the correct category or categories (you can apply for more than two if you operate in multiple industries).
In this forum discussing trade marks, UKBF member DontAsk explains that you shouldn’t be disheartened right away if you find your brand name in one of the classification categories:
“Identical trade marks can exist in different classes – so maybe cleaning coffee makers is catering but cleaning test tubes is laboratory supplies, for example. The devil is in the detail.”
Take the time to find the classification that works for you, and if you know there are similar marks out there for an entirely different brand, it may be worth the risk to apply anyway.
Filing and fees
Once you have found the correct classification for your brand, it’s time to file your application online or by post.It’s important you know everything there is to know about your branding to ensure you can answer any questions during the application process.
You’ll also need to pay a minimum of £170 to register, but this can increase depending on the amount of products or services you would like to cover.
Face the feedback
Your application will be considered by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO). If there are no objections to your application, it will be published in the trade marks journal to give others a chance to appeal against it and for you to make amendments within a specific time frame.After you have addressed any appeals or concerns, it may take a further four months to be officially granted your TM and issued a certificate of registration.
Registering overseas
If you’re eager to take your brand global, but want it to have the same protection as it does in the UK, bear in mind that there are different procedures depending on where you are in the world. Head to gov.uk to understand what you’ll need to register a trade mark overseas.Renew your trade mark
Once you’ve been through the process and got the seal of approval, it can be easy to forget about renewing your mark.The IPO will stipulate your renewal fees and when they are due depending on your application – so be sure to read the documents you receive carefully to ensure your mark isn’t revoked or used elsewhere.
Get legal advice
When you’re making a decision as big as protecting your intellectual property, you may want to start a discussion on one of our forums before getting legal advice to be sure that you’re making the right decision for your brand.In this discussion, UKBF member percolated explains why they want to register before highlighting the benefit of starting a discussion:
“I have a great brand which is currently unheard of, it doesn't show up in Google and if I gave up every time there was a hurdle I wouldn't do what I do. Plus I wanted a quick sanity check before I paid for legal advice.”
However, MOIC goes on to emphasise the benefit of forking out for legal advice after gaining experience-based advice in forums;
“Taking legal advice is what you should always do for these matters, but IP lawyers don't come cheap. People on forums give their advice and opinions, often based on similar experiences.”
Despite the extra cost, you may view legal advice as providing that extra peace of mind before you take the TM plunge. And this level of reassurance shouldn’t stop there.
After dedicating countless hours to building your brand’s reputation, you want to be protected against all possible risks of being an entrepreneur – but like any founder, spending time looking for cover often falls to the bottom of the priority list.
