How to Determine the Strength of Your Trademark (Part A)

Before you register a trademark in New York, you should assess the strength of your trademark by taking several factors into consideration. These include communication, recognition and the uniqueness of your mark.

An experienced New York trademark attorney will help you evaluate the strength of a trademark in New York, and register a trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Determining the Strength of a Trademark in New York

In determining the strength of a trademark in New York, you must consider the message you want to send to consumers. You want the trademark to identify your brand.

When determining the strength of your trademark in New York, you should ask yourself:

• What message does my trademark send, and does it convey it effectively?
• Is my trademark unique and easily recognizable?
• Will my trademark be suitable for expansion into other goods or services, as well as geographic areas?

In addition to these questions, you must find out whether your trademark in New York is legally available. If your mark conflicts with another mark that is already in existence, your registration may be denied. So before you register a trademark in New York, you should conduct a thorough search of federally registered trademarks.

You can view the federally registered trademarks in the USPTO database, but you need to use specific search terms, and be completely thorough. If a mark is currently in the registration process, it may not show up in your search.

To conduct a thorough search of federally registered trademarks, you can get the help of a New York trademark attorney. A New York trademark attorney can help you answer the questions mentioned above, as well as register a trademark. In addition, if you hire a New York trademark attorney at the onset of your search, you may save yourself from the time-consuming "trial and error" process of searching through the USPTO database.

Continue to Next Page >>

Practice Areas