Business Names and Trademarks

Nothing succeeds like a great name. People with great names are popular and get promoted. Businesses with great names attract clients and succeed. A good name practically markets itself.

A good name is hard to find. They are rare and valuable beyond belief. If you have one you better hang onto it. Hanging onto a name is an art. It doesn't matter who thought of it first. It doesn't matter who owns the domain name. It doesn't matter who incorporated the name. In name ownership only one thing that matters:

The name belongs to the holder of the trademark.

Most musicians are artists. Don Mclean, author of the song "Bye Bye Miss American Pie" is different. He is a businessman first and a musician second. His business training made him a fortune.

Don holds Bachelors degree in Business Administration from Iona College. As a businessman he had the presence of mind to trademark the term "American Pie" when his song became popular. Most musicians would have been thrilled with the success of a hit song. Not Don. He kept his eye on the ball. He made sure that he owned the name of his song by filing for a trademark.

Ten years later Universal Pictures decided to produce a movie called "American Pie." That's a great name for a movie but guess what? Don owned the name. Ordinarily big companies just run over little guys and let their lawyers handle any fallout. Not this time. Universal couldn't run over him. They had to get his approval to use the name. The terms were never disclosed but you can bet he negotiated a sweet, lifetime deal (after all, he IS a good businessman).

Like Don, we all need to attend to business. Filing for a trademark set him up for life even if he never sings another song or sells another record. Pay attention to the foundation. That's what the name is - the foundation upon which your business is built. You wouldn't build a house on land you don't own. Nor should you build a business on a name you don't own.