High school dropout goes from being $100k in debt to making $18 million in a year. Sounds like a fairytale, right? Thanks to Amazon, many entrepreneurs are transforming their lives by becoming online sellers.
Before you start dreaming of what you’ll do with all of your profits, there are a few hurdles you’ll need to overcome. One of the most basic is protecting your company. You can do this by registering your trademark.
Find out why obtaining a trademark is so crucial to your success on Amazon.
Protect Your Brand
The primary purpose of registering a trademark is to protect your brand. Online reputation is everything these days. You will have to make sure buyers trust your business.
Don’t jeopardize your hard work by not trademarking and leaving the door open for your competitor to “borrow” your logo and company name.
If you fail to file for a trademark, you risk somebody else filing for your name or something similar. This will block you from filing, and they can effectively prevent you from doing business under your name once they obtain registration.
You will receive a cease and desist letter from your competitor out of the blue one day. You will then have to dedicate valuable financial resources to hiring a lawyer and fighting for your trademark.
Having a trademark will make your company more valuable as you grow. If you plan to sell the business one day, this will be vital to showing security and stability to your future buyer.
Amazon Requires Trademark Registration
There was a time when all you needed was an e-commerce website and some other validating elements to register and show ownership successfully. However, this changed when Amazon rolled out its updated Brand Registry Amazon program in May 2017.
Now you need to have a fully registered trademark when you apply. There are several benefits to the brand registry. For starters, you will have detailed control over the pages that list products that are under your brand.
Other benefits include:
- Enhanced brand content
- Amazon Storefront
- Brand ads
- Report a violation tool
If you intend to sell on Amazon under a brand label, it is in your company’s best interest to register under Amazon’s Brand Registry. To do this, you need to have a registered trademark with the USPTO.
Tips for Registering Your Trademark
There are a few things you can do to make your trademark application process smoother. This way, you can protect your trademark and register on Amazon sooner.
Start by making sure that you are the rightful owner of the brand. You cannot register a trademark if you are a reseller or a third party seller.
The actual filing of your application won’t take long. However, it will take around nine months for the USPTO to review your application. If there are problems with your application, it can take even longer. To avoid unnecessary delay, consult with an IP lawyer to assist you with filing your application.
Trademarks are for interstate commerce. This means you’ll need to sell your goods in another state before you qualify for registration.
Do not try to register your trademark for all types of goods. You need to identify the specific goods you plan to market.
Register Your Brand and Acquire a Trademark
If you plan to or currently sell goods on Amazon, then you need to register your brand’s trademark. This will protect you from other unsavory companies from ruining your hard earned reputation. It will also allow you to register with the Amazon Brand Registry.
The first step in protecting your brand is to consult with a knowledgeable intellectual property lawyer. We can advise you on what can and cannot be trademarked. Then we assist in filing the application to ensure a smooth registration process.
Contact us today and let us help you trademark your brand so you can be a part of the Amazon Brand Registry.
