Trademark applications - Snoozefest #2.
Okay, so here’s another red-taper to check the box on. Intellectual property and the creation of any logos and names HAVE to be protected. It would be a real downer to come up with an original name, lock it down with the state, and create a unique logo only to have it poached by some rando company that decides it likes your stuff on instagram and is going to make it theirs too.
Nope, not happening to me. But DANG, the trademark application is not in even kind of in the same lane as filing for an LLC. And, if you read enough online, you’ll start to realize that almost everyone or every blog post will point you to the use of a trademark attorney. The process is complicated they say, and even a slight mess up to the documents will set you back they say (The latter I know to be a fact). As someone who reviews contractor proposals for Gov’t contracts, I know that the Gov’t loves nothing better than to hang a rejection hat on pieces of missing information or inconsistent responses.
But as one of those red-tape people, I also know that the Gov’t has to disclose and publicize A LOT of information in order to promote fair competition. They also have to give citizens a chance to comment on public policy that would affect their business livelihood. If you do enough digging on the USTPO website you can find a list of every trademark application ever filed (Whether it was awarded, is currently live, or is no longer active) and ALL of the associated documentation that was filled relative to the trademark. AND…this was clutch for me.
I knew several companies that had similar products to mine (These are not small companies BTW, and ALL used trademark attorneys) that filed both generic and descriptive trademark applications (Think name and logo). These were files that were all prepared by attorneys (And that were awarded a protected trademark status) and were online. Just sitting there and waiting for me to use them as a template. In my head I was like - No point reinventing the wheel here…LOL! I had my document templates.
With a little bit of adjustment and verbiage tweaks, I submitted two different trademark applications - one for the name 29 and 11 and one for my logo based on the colon. Each application set me back a one time fee of $350, but that is a STEAL compared to the $1500 price tag most attorneys wanted on top of the application fee to submit.
So the application is submitted in December of 2022, and now I wait. Like a LONG time. Still waiting…
