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Use it or Lose it

A trademark is a powerful asset for any brand. However, this valuable protection comes with responsibilities, so that if you don’t use the mark in the way required by the law, you stand to lose it.

This is the approach of the law because the tradema...

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Can You Really Own a Common Word Like 'EASY'?

Naming is a surprisingly complicated thing to do so I’m not surprised there are so many disputes around names.

 

Some people believe you need to invent a new word to be able to trademark it – that ordinary dictionary words may not be monopolised by...

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Why Your Business Name Deserves Professional Trademark Registration

Should you register your trademark yourself?

I regularly meet businesses that have either registered their own trademark or who tell me they intend to do so.

While I tend not to comment individually the fact is, I’ve never come across a solid trade...

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Protecting Your Customer List

There’s a very simple action you should take to protect your customer list.

Judging by the list of steps I found on the search engines, the action I have in mind isn’t well known.

This is what the search engine suggested.

  1. Understand your obligat...
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Branding With Ex-McKinsey Consultant and Serial Entrepreneur

Today’s podcast interview is with Tom Gardner, a serial entrepreneur, who formerly worked at McKinsey.

During the interview, we discuss the various ways in which he tackled business design in several business ventures he’s initiated.

I found this e...

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Design For the Long Term

Visual identifiers are signs that ensure our brands are noticed, remembered, and bought. 

In a competitive market it is important to differentiate our business to stand out from competitors. However, I would argue that it’s not appropriate to materi...

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Names, Names, Names

Names that are distinctive in not describing the product or service are always the best choice from a legal perspective.

So, I wondered how a sandwich outlet like Subway managed to come up with such a distinctive name.

The business was founded in 1...

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