Can i trademark a fictitious name

Trademark vs. What Is a Trademark? Benefits of Having a Trademark A trademark can add value to your business. Offers brand protection. Prevents others from using the same company or product name, logo or tagline. Think of Budweiser's "King of Beers" catchphrase. That has a trademark! This helps protect your brand and reputation, especially when others are trying to take advantage of your success.

Ensures exclusive rights. The protection for a trademarked name is nationwide and begins as soon as the trademark takes effect. So even though your business is known only in Boston — for now — your trademark is protected in New York, Los Angeles and everywhere in between. Can be a major asset.

Many companies use their trademark to sell franchises. A successfully trademarked business can also attract potential buyers and help increase selling value. Promotes the business that you are in and the products that you are selling through name and logo recognition. A trademarked name and logo also helps represent what a business stands for. Use of registration mark. Shields against trademark infringemen t.

Having a trademark protects against others applying for a similar trademark. Publishing your statement is dead simple: Just take a copy of your completed statement to your publication of choice, which will have a standard format to present the required information.

The published notice must run for a certain frequency and duration, usually once a week for a month or so. After the FBN has been published for the required period, you'll usually need to submit an affidavit sometimes called Proof of Publication with the county clerk or state agency to show that publication has been completed. Check with your county clerk for the details and requirements of publishing the FBN notice. Your FBN registration will be good for a certain period of time, usually for five years or so, before it must be renewed.

If certain facts in your statement change, such as the number of owners or your business address, you may have to renew your FBN statement. Check with your county clerk or state agency to find out which types of changes trigger a renewal requirement.

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The attorney listings on this site are paid attorney advertising. In some states, the information on this website may be considered a lawyer referral service. Please reference the Terms of Use and the Supplemental Terms for specific information related to your state. Grow Your Legal Practice. Meet the Editors. Searching the County or State Database In many areas, you'll be instructed to search the county or state database of registered fictitious business names before submitting your statement to make sure no one else has already registered the name you want to use.

Completing and Submitting an FBN Statement If the name you've chosen is available both at the county level and with regard to trademark issues , simply fill out the FBN statement and submit it to your county clerk or other agency, depending on your state along with the appropriate fees.

In most cases, registering a trademark is a good idea whether or not you already have a DBA name. A DBA name registration alone cannot prevent others from using your business name, and it may even be possible for another person to trademark your DBA name, meaning you would lose out on intellectual property protections. If you want to make sure you have exclusive rights to your business's branding, including your name, you should be sure to file a trademark registration with the United States Patent and Trademark Office USPTO.

If you're interested in registering a trademark, you should first perform a trademark search to determine if your desired mark is available or if your mark is similar to a previously registered mark. In addition to searching the USPTO's trademark database, you should search for existing trademarks in:.

If your search doesn't reveal any similar marks, you can continue with the registration process. One of the requirements of trademark registration is that you prove that you are actually using your mark for the purposes of commerce. To maintain a federal trademark, you must file an affidavit after the first five to six years of first registration; then the trademark can be renewed indefinitely for additional year periods.

Matthew Schieltz has been a freelance web writer since August , and has experience writing a variety of informational articles, how-to guides, website and e-book content for organizations such as Demand Studios.

He plans to pursue graduate school in clinical psychology. DBA Vs. By Matthew Schieltz. Purpose Trademarks and DBA names serve two different purposes. Exclusivity A person who files a DBA name usually does not have exclusive rights to the name he has registered. Related Articles.