I've watched it happen more times than I can count. A founder picks a name in the shower, buys the domain that afternoon, pays a designer for a logo, prints a pallet of labels, and only then asks a lawyer whether they can use it. Sometimes the answer is yes. When it's no, they've paid for the design, the printing, the legal advice and the heartbreak, all for a name they now have to walk away from.
I've named brands for clients and for myself, including Vuka, MiDr1v3 and The Surf Sherpa, and registered the trademarks too. This is the process I use.
1. Know what makes a name strong in the eyes of the law
Trademark law likes names that are distinctive. Roughly, names sit on a scale:
- Made-up words like Kodak or Kasasa. The strongest and easiest to protect, though you'll have to teach people what they mean.
- Real words used in an unexpected way, like Apple for computers. Also very strong.
- Suggestive names that hint at a benefit without describing it, like Vuka, which means "wake up" in Zulu. Usually protectable, and they do some marketing for you.
- Descriptive names like "Best Coffee Co." Hard to register, because nobody gets to own ordinary words that describe a product.
- Generic names like "Coffee" for coffee. Not protectable. Ever.
The sweet spot for most small brands is suggestive or arbitrary. Memorable, meaningful and defensible.
2. Make a long list. Then make it longer.
Twenty names is a good start. Thirty is better. Most of them won't survive screening, and that's the point. If you start with three favorites, you'll be tempted to fight for one that can't win.
3. Screen everything before you fall in love
This is where my GUNS Score comes in. Every name on the list goes through four checks:
- Google. Is anyone already selling something similar under this name, or something close enough to confuse your customers?
- USPTO. Is there a live or pending federal trademark for the same or a similar name in a related category?
- Network. Can you get the .com, or a sensible alternative? Is the one you want parked or for sale?
- Social. Can you get matching handles on the platforms your customers actually use?
Each name comes back green, yellow or red. Green means clear on all four. Yellow means workable with a tweak. Red means walk away now, while it's cheap.
4. Understand "likelihood of confusion"
The question isn't whether someone has the exact same name. It's whether customers might confuse your brand with theirs. Similar sound, look or meaning, in a related category, can be enough to block you. A dog treat called Moonbeam probably doesn't conflict with a Moonbeam software company. A Moonbeam cold brew might well conflict with a Moonbeam energy drink.
5. Pick your trademark classes carefully
Trademarks are registered by category, called classes, and the government fees are charged per class. File in the classes you actually sell in today and the ones you'll realistically grow into. More isn't always better, and it isn't free.
6. Bring in an attorney for the finalists only
A trademark attorney's full clearance search is worth every cent, on your two or three finalists. Paying for that on every idea on the whiteboard is how naming budgets disappear. Screening first means you spend your legal budget where it counts.
7. Then file, before you launch
Once you've chosen, file the application before you print, post or launch. I register trademarks for my clients as part of a naming project, and I'll tell you honestly when a mark is tricky enough to need an attorney instead.
This is general guidance, not legal advice. Every name and category is different.