You found support from friends, crowdfunding, or loans so that you could turn your vision into a reality. You have put countless hours into building up a reputation and a name for yourself. Everything is in motion for your business to be the perfect business you always dreamed of. Now, how do you protect it? You don’t want to lose that clever slogan or eye-catching logo to cheap copycats. Below are four steps you need to take to monitor and ensure your

brand protection

and identity. 

 

1.) Get it Trademarked!

This may seem like the most obvious step to take for any businessperson, but sometimes businesses fail to get it

all done in a legal fashion

and that won’t end well. You don’t want a nasty surprise later one when you find out that some other person has been using your name or logo or discover that you have been using the name of someone else’s

trademark

. That can get convoluted quickly, and if you’re not careful you could find yourself in court. Get a reliable lawyer that can look into your trademark and make sure that nobody else has the name, logo, or slogan that you plan to use. If it all checks out then you are good to go!

 

2.) Monitor Your Brand

Make sure to keep an eye on market trends and be on the lookout for similar products that pop up that may be rip offs of your product. Intentionally or not, they are still infringing on

your intellectual property

(Be sure they are first before you contact them, know exactly what you do and do not own). Contacting people such as these can often end issues before they begin. It may have been a mishap where they were not aware of your trademark, and if it does end up being an intentional infringement then you can take legal action.

 

3.) Register Domain Names

Getting a domain name is often one of the cheapest and easiest ways to secure your brand protection. If you

purchase multiple domain names

you can avoid messy situations later. If you have the .com site of your name, but not the .net site then that could cause confusion if someone takes that .net site. While they would most likely be violating your trademark, the confusion caused by the page could affect traffic to your correct site.

 

4.) Stay Social on Social Media

You know more about your brand than anyone else, show it! Make sure to use those various social media pages you have. Spread the word of your brand and reach out to your consumers. Your customers will appreciate being able to keep up with the

brands they do business with

. The more that you post and respond to your customers, the more visible your brand is to others and the more security you have over your brand.