A step-by-step guide to protecting a business name in California

Irrespective of the size of the business, whether it is small or big; the business name plays a crucial role. If you have a great name for your business, it is as important to ensure that the specific name is not used by anyone else. As well, it is essential that you protect it and ensure it is yours. Since a good name can get your business the desired reputation, it is imperative that you protect the business name and avoid it from being claimed by others.

Protecting your business name

One of the most significant steps that probably stand before you when choosing a business name is to ensure that it is available and not used by anyone else. It requires a set of procedures to be followed

If you are just starting things and ready to move forward with a clever business name, the next step is protecting the business name. You should spend sufficient time registering the name and need to do so by law. By registering the business name you make sure that the business name is not already taken and nobody else claims your unique business name.

Choose your unique business name

If you have chosen any names for your business, now is the time to get assured that your desired name is not in use already. A federal trademark search often can be the initial step that you start in protecting the business name. Begin your process by initiating a trademark search. This helps in determining whether there are any existing business names that you have considered on the federal register.

And if your desired business name exists within your industry, you can get the alert.

Apply for the trademark

If you are going to carry the business under a certain name, then registering such a name is a legal requirement. However, merely registering it doesn’t help in claiming the rights over such a name. So, the best way to protect it is to trademark it. This becomes very important for large size businesses. By trademarking your business name you protect it and it becomes an offense when someone else tries to use your business name. Trademarking is different from just registration and if anyone misuses your business name, they can be penalized.

Registration

Once you have completed the step of searching the federal state search and made sure that there are no similar trademarks, then you can go for registering it as a trademark. As mentioned above, this trademarking gives you the most important rights to your business name. Since most state filing agencies don’t allow registering identical or similar business names, registering the business name serves as an efficient approach to defending your business name.

Domain

Your domain name is the unique electronic address for your business. You build your business website on this address and this caters to your need for an online platform for your digital presence. Finding and registering your business name as a domain helps in establishing a direct line to sell your products and services to your customers.

Like all other business decisions, protecting your business name is also a critical step. So make sure to do it wisely.

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