The Difference Between a Business Name and a Trademark

Sometimes new business owners can be confused about the difference between filing a trademark and registering a business name with the state. We’ll break down the differences for you!

As a business owner, you know how important it is to protect your business name. If another business opened with your same business name, you could lose potential sales to them. When you set up your advertising strategy so that customers can find you by name, you need to make sure that your brand is protected and nobody else is advertising themselves with your business name.

Registering your business name with the state

When you set up your new business as a corporation or LLC you need to register your business name with the secretary of state. They check every application to make sure that there aren’t other companies in your state that are already using your proposed business name.

Every state is different and laws vary on how much difference there has to be between names. Some states allow simple spelling variations to distinguish different businesses while other states would reject them for being too similar.

Once your application is approved, your business name will be protected in your state and no other business can set up an LLC or corporation with the same name in your state. (Sole proprietors and partnerships are still allowed to use your business name in the same state but aren’t able to register as an LLC or corporation using it.)

Filing for a federal trademark

“A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol, and/or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of others.” Trademarks are granted at the federal level by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

When you own a trademark you are protected at the state and federal level and have exclusive rights to your name, logo or slogan.

When you apply for a trademark it can take six to 12 months for the USPTO to process your application. It is typically more involved and expensive than registering a business name, but will give you exclusive rights in all 50 states.

If you have a business name you’d like to protect, we can help! Fill out the form on our Get Started page and we can take it from there!