I’m Talking to You, Moon Unit! Why Your Brand Name Could be MORE Important than Your Kid’s Name!

Creating a GREAT Brand Name for your product or service is MORE Important Than Naming Your Kid!

Indeed, naming your children is important! (Perhaps that’s why people with names like Rocket Flare, Binge McDingleton, and Felonious Dorcus are legally changing their names at a record rate with as little as “$50 and a few clicks” in the UK!)

Even Americans are jumping on board to get the name they want and getting rid of the name they were given.  

Listen, if you ended up with a name like Moon Unit or Cocaine Spider, you can at least right your parent’s wrong by picking out a fantastic brand name for your product or service!

Of course, the pain of change is just one of several reasons you’ll want to select a strong trademark for your product or services at the outset. If you’ve already gone down the road of trademark creation, and encountered some problem areas (e.g., a cease and desist letter or a merely descriptive refusal with the USPTO), take what you’ve learned from that experience, and focus on creating a strong, viable trademark that will benefit your business for the long term going forward.

What it boils down to is the fact that consumers’ purchasing decisions are influenced by trademarks. There is no way around this. If you end up spending weeks on selecting your products, you’ll need to spend weeks on creating your trademark. Please do not gloss over the oh-so important trademark creation process. 

Trademark selection is just as important as product selection, especially if you intend to stick around for a while.

{Fly-by-night fidget spinner factory or fad-of-the-month club? If you’re just looking to make a quick buck, you can stop reading now.}

 Your brand is your reputation. Your trademark sings your reputation.

Are you ready for some tough love? Here are three reasons why your brand name is more important than your kid’s name:

#1: Your Trademark Can Increase in Value

Unlike your children, who might decide to become “Magic Powers” or “Steve Smith” once they are adults, it’s essential to your business that your trademark withstands the test of time. Yes…well beyond the lives of Magic Powers or Steve Smith.

Bunn, Coca Cola, Stella Artois ~ these are beautiful brand names that have increased in value over time, and long outlived their owners’ founders. You can do this, too, but probably not with a name like “Super Smashy Garlic Press.” {Actually, that one’s not too bad…} 

If you’re savvy, your trademark will be worked into every aspect of your product and brand. Additionally, as long as you keep using it, and as long as you maintain the registration properly, you can expect that trademark to long outlive the life of any of your tangible products.

A good trademark can be passed down through generations, as it is an asset.

Think “Kellogg’s” — at one point, that was just someone’s last name! Oh my. Cereal and packaging have evolved. The first generation those products were marketing to now likely have youngsters or grandchildren of their own.

But guess what?

That brand name has grown in value over time.

And you, too, should create a brand name that has the potential to grow in equity over time. Do you really think that “Super Smashy Garlic Press” for garlic presses will be a trademark that grows in value? Mmm, probably not.

You are reading this information because you want to learn, and you want to learn how to make more money for your business. Your trademark can grow in value, and it’s an asset that can be sold or licensed.

Think outside the box when it comes to monetizing your trademark. And just stick around with me for a while, you’ll ultimately learn how.

If you suddenly realize that your trademark isn’t going to cut it for the long haul, for whatever reason, you will most likely have to go through the whole process of creating a new brand name and filing a new trademark application. Not the end of the world, and you might end up with an even better trademark. 

{Make sure you listen to Episode 11 of my Podcast Trademarks Made Easy if you think you might have to go through a name change. I keep it real!}

However, having to go through a name change will not be an overnight task. Remember, even if there are no hangups in the trademark application process with the USPTO, you should expect it to take about six to eight months to obtain a new trademark.  

Don’t be afraid of selecting a new trademark if you must. Be afraid ~ much more afraid ~ of the Sunk Cost Fallacy:

“The sunk cost effect is the general tendency for people to continue an endeavor, or continue consuming or pursuing an option, if they’ve invested time or money or some resource in it,” says Christopher Olivola, an assistant professor of marketing at Carnegie Mellon’s Tepper School of Business. “That effect becomes a fallacy if it’s pushing you to do things that are making you unhappy or worse off.”

Simply put, decisions can be tainted by the accumulation of monetary and emotional investments, and the more you invest in something the harder it becomes to abandon it.

All decisions face uncertainty about the future. And when you lose something permanently, it hurts. The drive to mitigate this negative emotion leads to strange behaviors. For example, continuing to market under a brand name that you know you cannot really build value in because the trademark is actually descriptive, and weak.

Please do not become a victim of the Sunk Cost Fallacy. If you need a new trademark, take this challenge as an opportunity to engage and communicate with your customers. Make sure they know your brand name is evolving and only getting better, and that you’ll still have the same amazing quality products. Perhaps you could even involve people in a naming contest or poll to increase engagement.

Hopefully, your business and your brand-spankin’ new trademark will both be around much longer than they have been already. And you will likely have far more customers in the future than you have had in the past. If you end up having to change that brand name, do it sooner rather than later.  

#2: Trademarks are Valuable (Ahem, $$$$)

Okay, whether or not your business is more valuable than your child remains open for debate. However, your trademark itself, that little nugget that sings your brand, is more valuable than your kid’s name. (Unless, of course, your kid’s name is Blue Ivey Carter.)

A primary reason that choosing a strong trademark when starting your business is so important is that your brand name itself holds value.

In fact, the right trademark matched with products or services that fit well into a market can make a fortune for your business.

And remember what I said earlier…don’t forget about possible monetization of your trademark!

The leading valuable brands — not the company value, but just the value of the brand — are worth billions of dollars. To give some examples: Amazon is valued at $150.8 billion, Apple at $146.3 billion, Google at $120.9 billion, Samsung at $92.3 billion, and Facebook at $89.7 billion. Those numbers make my head spin.

Understanding the value of your trademark has a lot to do with your interactions with consumers and creating what is considered “goodwill.” The goodwill generated by your company appreciates with time as the positive reputation of your business grows, also making your trademark more valuable along the way.

Why is that? Consumers are more willing to pay a premium for a product (like a wetsuit by the company Quiksilver) than they are for the exact same product (like a wetsuit without the Quiksilver trademark) because they trust the brand Quicksilver. Plus their logo is really cute.

By not choosing the right trademark from the start, you’re setting yourself up to lose a lot of value down the line, either through unrealized growth or from cutting losses and starting over with your brand.

#3: Trademarks Tell Consumers WhassUp

Your trademark, your brand name, communicates what your company brand is all about to consumers. 

It tells the consumers if you’re a wild, adrenaline-rush of a brand that thinks doing five backflips on a pogo stick off a cliff and landing it is worthwhile (hello, Red Bull).

Or, it can communicate if you’re a sophisticated brand for those moments in life where elegance, power, luxury, and history are essential (think Tiffany & Co). These are both so different, but so so great in their own unique way!

What is communicated, when done right, can go beyond your initial product. John Deere is basically a tractor company, but they also have branded themselves as a farmers’ lifestyle company. The brand represents more than tractors; it represents a dream of what America was, is, and can be. Because of that, people wear John Deere hats, shirts, and buy other products with the iconic yellow and green John Deere logos on them to communicate their alliance with these brand traits. {Are you not imagining a waving American flag, in front of a wheat field and a green tractor rolling by, with God Bless The USA in the background?}

Grab my Trademark Quickstart Bundle for a fun exercise!

Choosing the right trademark can give you the ability to grow beyond your original product and represent more than just a really pretty piece of jewelry.

Final Thoughts: Top 3 Reasons Your Brand Name is More Important than Your Kid’s Name

The bottom line is that you have to take the time to get your trademark right. And it’s better to get it right the first time if you can. If you messed up, it’s okay. I can help you. Avoid the Sunk Cost Fallacy and stop digging yourself deeper. Remember, it’s more expensive to have to be reactive than proactive.

The value of your trademark and its ability to communicate your brand in the market is essential for you to grow your brand presence and maximize your profits. Additionally, the costs of either struggling forward with a lousy trademark or switching your trademark, later on, can hurt you in the long-term.

If you think you’ve glossed over this all-too-often overlooked step, go back to the drawing board sooner rather than later. You don’t want to put this off.

Ready to create your own trademark for your business or service? Check out the Trademark Trailblazer: The Brand Name Creation Blueprint. 

Rather us do it for you? Apply to work with us today!

You got this, Abcde, but we can help!