Blogging used to be a fun way to share photos or your daily life with people online. Running a blog is now the first step towards running a successful business – as long as you choose the right blog name.
Top bloggers can earn over $100,000 a month from their blogs. That’s not to mention the free products, affiliate discounts, and other perks from partner companies.
If you can run a blog as a business, then it’s worth trademarking your blog name. Read on to discover why.
Not All Blogs Need a Trademark
Is writing for your blog a hobby? Or is your blog a place to entertain readers with snippets from your life? Then you don’t need to trademark your blog name.
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You might change that name if you switch direction in future. You might give up blogging entirely.
But if you’re using your blog for business purposes? Definitely consider registering a trademark.
Make sure you’ve chosen the perfect niche for your blog when you start so you don’t need to change things down the line.
You’re Building a Brand with Your Blog
Be aware that having a domain name and holding a trademark are not the same things. If someone else registers the trademark they can make you give up your domain name.
Your domain is a huge part of your brand so you don’t want to lose it.
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Having a trademark shows you’re serious about your business. Alongside your high-quality content, you can show your credibility and authority by displaying the (R) trademark symbol.
Your blog becomes synonymous with valuable content. Imitators can’t copy your content to use on their own blogs. They can’t use it at all without permission from you.
Be the Legal Owner Of Your Blog Name
Holding the trademark gives you legal ownership of the mark. That gives you the ability to take legal action if anyone infringes your copyright.
That could include anything from re-posting your content on a different blog. Or it could be deliberately creating a brand that would be easily confused with yours.
Applying for a trademark also forces you to streamline your own brand. You won’t be able to secure your trademark if your brand is too similar to existing ones.
Having a genuinely unique brand will help you to reach more of your ideal readers. They’ll be able to recognize – and connect with – your content.
It Stops People From Using Your Brand for Themselves
The trademark also lets visitors to your site know what rights you hold as the content creator. People can’t apply your brand to their goods.
Say you’re a makeup blogger with a good following under your blog name and a recognized brand. A cheap makeup brand can’t apply your name to their products to sell them.
Holding a US trademark makes it easier to access rights associated with international trademarks.
Follow this link to learn more about trademark registration in the United States.
Turn Your Blog Into a Business
Holding that trademark will help you move from a good blogger to the owner of a successful business. You and your brand can reach – and help – more people, while the trademark protects what you’ve built.
If you know other bloggers who want to know about trademarks, hit the share buttons below! Or check out our other posts about blogging to learn all you need to know to succeed.