Marq Brand Protection

"I searched and nothing came up."

The search most people run answers one question: is this exact name already registered federally? Useful. Also the narrowest slice of the actual risk.

Applications get refused far more often for similarity than for identity — similar sound, similar meaning, related goods. And common-law users who never registered anything can still have priority over you in their market.

That gap is what the clearance search at Marq is built to close.

marqtrademarks.com

Four trademark myths we hear every week — swipe for what's actually true.

Better to know now than defend it later: run a free federal trademark search at marqtrademarks.com.

Before the domain. Before the packaging. Before the sign goes up.

A clearance search from Marq covers the federal register, all fifty state registers, and unregistered common-law use — then assesses the close calls the way an examining attorney would, rather than handing you a list and wishing you luck.

It's the cheapest step in the entire process, and it's the only one that can save you from every step after it.

marqtrademarks.com

Not every trademark search sees the same things.

The free federal search at marqtrademarks.com is a smart first screen, and it takes seconds. When the name really matters, a full clearance also checks state registries, businesses already using the name, domains, and social handles.

Your U.S. registration is exactly that: U.S. Cross a border and it does nothing.

That surprises people who sell online, because the internet doesn't feel like it has borders. Trademark law does. Some countries are first-to-file, meaning whoever files there first gets the rights — whether or not they've ever sold anything under the name.

The Madrid Protocol lets you extend a U.S. application into many member countries through one filing, which is usually cheaper than filing in each separately. Not every country is a member, and each one still examines it under its own law.

If you're shipping internationally, this is worth mapping before it's urgent.

marqtrademarks.com

Nobody copies a name that isn't worth stealing. Which is exactly why the good ones get registered.

Start with a free federal trademark search at marqtrademarks.com — results in seconds.

One of the most common reasons a self-filed application stalls: the specimen.

A specimen is your evidence that the mark is actually in use in commerce. For goods, that means the mark on the product, its packaging, or its tags — as they really exist. For services, it means advertising or a page where the service is offered.

What doesn't work: a rendering, a printer's proof, a design mock-up, a logo file on its own, or a website that isn't actually selling anything yet.

The USPTO has gotten stricter about this, not looser. If you're not selling yet, file intent-to-use instead and submit the specimen when you launch.

marqtrademarks.com

Great minds think alike. So do business names.

Two shops, one name — only one of them registered it. Worth a quick check before the sign goes up: a free federal trademark search at marqtrademarks.com takes seconds.

Trademark applications are filed by class of goods and services. There are 45 of them: 1 through 34 for goods, 35 through 45 for services.

This is where most cost surprises come from. A company that sells a physical product AND offers a service is usually looking at two classes, and the USPTO charges per class — not per application.

It's also where DIY filings quietly fail. Picking a class that sounds close but isn't gives you a registration that doesn't cover what you actually sell, and you won't find out until you try to enforce it.

marqtrademarks.com