2021_ADN_V6_No1_web

MODERN
DETAILING
The Name
Game
Why trademarking your
business name is a
smart and important move.
By Rob Schruefer
rob@onspotdetailing.com
If you have the ambition to grow your
business into a brand, there are a few
things that you must think about from the
very beginning. The most important being
what will your business be called. A
misstep here could result in legal action
and losing the rights to your name years
after you have established your business.
Few people think about what their
business might be in 5 or 10 or 20 years
down the road when they are in the early
stages of establishing a company. The
thought of having to enforce your business
name or having someone enforce
their rights on you, might seem unrealistically
far away. The reality is that if
you have poorly chosen a name, you are
not alone as it happens more often, and
sooner than you think. If the owner of
a trademark discovers someone using the
same business name in the same industry,
they are obligated to notify the offender
and protect the mark. Failure to do so
could cause them to forfeit the mark, so
expect they will do something about it immediately.
Personally, I have sent countless “Cease
and Desist” letters to companies using the
On The Spot name. It is not because I
want to be a jerk about it, it is because I
have to do it. Quite often I discover these
other companies when a disgruntled customer
calls us to complain about the other
company thinking we are the same. One
of the qualifying factors for enforcement
is whether someone can be confused as to
who they are dealing with. A business in
the same industry using the same name
meets that qualification. As my business
expands into new areas, we also come
across established detailing companies using
the same name. With the trademark,
I have the right to use the name over
them, no matter how long they have been
using it. Unfortunately they will be forced
to stop using the name and rebrand or
face legal and financial consequences.
To avoid this hassle, you should start
by identifying any potential problems
from the start. The easiest way to accomplish
this is to hire an Intellectual Property
Lawyer and have them set you up legally.
If that is not financially possible, there are
three places I would suggest checking prior
to naming your business:
1. Locally: Do a Google search in
your area to find out if anyone
else is operating under the name
that you wish to use. If there is
someone that is established and
still in business, you should try
thinking of another name.
2. State: If you cannot find someone
on an Internet search locally, that
does not mean the name is not
registered with the state already.
Each state has a place on their
.gov site where business names
can be checked for conflicts.
The state will not prevent you
from using the same name with
variances, especially if there is a
DBA (Doing Business As) in the
listing. For example, my business
legally might be called Rob’s
Detailing LLC, D/B/A On The
Spot Detailing. Being registered
with the state does not protect
the name of the business or from
trademark infringement.
3. Federally: The most surefire way
to avoid a potential problem is to
check on the Federal Trademark
Registry for your business name.
This can be found at www.uspto.
gov/trademarks.search. If you
find the name here, stop and
go back to the drawing board.
Finding the name on a federal
trademark search means that
someone took the time and
money to federally protect their
name and/or logo, and are more
than likely to enforce it through
legal means.
Once you have found the name that
works for you, and no one else is using it,
you should protect it. This means you will
have the rights to the name, and no one
can prevent you from using it. This will cost
a few thousand dollars with an Intellectual
Property Lawyer, but after a few years it
will become incontestable, meaning that
no one can challenge your right to the
name. You must continue to use the trademark
symbol, and keep up with the filing.
I remember when I first started out, I was
unable to obtain my trademark because
another company had it registered. They
were a tire company that did car washes
somewhere in the Midwest, but they were
not still in business. I had to wait for their
rights to expire before I could move in and
get it for myself.
No matter if you dream of being a national
company, or a local one, you should
protect yourself and your rights. Having
someone force you to stop using the name
of your business will cause customers to be
unable to find you, force you to rebrand all
of your marketing materials, cost a fortune
in legal fees, and have long-term effects on
your ability to operate. While the chances
of this are low if you remain small and
off the radar, why limit yourself from the
start? A little investment and forethought
will save you an immeasurable amount of
time and money down the road.
Rob Schruefer is the owner of On The
Spot Detailing out of Columbia, Maryland.
He proudly serves on the board
of the International Detailing Association
and works tirelessly to ensure
that detailing business owners receive
business development support to help
them achieve their goals.
4 | AUTO DETAILING NEWS | VOL. 6, NO. 1 • SPRING 2021