Best Recommended Actions If Someone Copied Your Logo Design
Here are some recommended actions to do if someone copies your logo design!
A logo is the reputation of a business that can be recognized by consumers. It will be frustrating when you design your logo, only to have it stolen by your competitors. This doesn't matter if you have registered your logo as a trademark because there is a legal option that you can take.
You can take several legal channels to process the theft of your logo design. Moreover, the logo has been registered as a trademark. That is why it is very important to register a logo as a trademark because it can recognize it as your full right and process legal action for violators.
What is The Meaning of "Trademark"?
A trademark is a symbol used to distinguish one product from another or between different companies. Be it in one industry or different industries.
There are lots of examples, such as the tick logo owned by Nike, the apple on the Apple logo, and many more. Registering a trademark means that you will get the exclusive right to use the logo as needed.
If there are other parties from outside your company who use your logo without permission, it means a trademark infringement that can be processed legally.
You have to know that the legal process here also requires careful consideration and analysis. There is such a thing as substantially identical and deceptively similar. Then, what is the difference between the two?
1. Identical Substance
To determine the similarity of two identical signs, you must compare the two signs side by side. With the existing assessment, you can take into account the differences and similarities between the two.
2. Deceptively Similar
To determine this condition because it relates to the overall impression of your logo with the other trademarks in question. Some of the considerations include phonetics, conceptual similarity, and visual similarity.
If most consumers feel confused when comparing your logo with the other party's, then this can be said to be "deceptively similar."
What Is The Best Strategy To Combat Trademark Infringement?
If you want to determine that another company has violated your logo's trademark, then you must be able to provide evidence that you have registered the logo.
There are several strategies your attorney can choose from, taking into account the type of offense. Then, choose the right strategy recommendation as follows:
1. Sending A Cease and Desist Letter
As an intellectual property owner, you can send a Cease and Desist letter as a first step to admonishing your logo's trademark infringement. This step is classified as having a lower cost. By sending this letter, legal disputes can be avoided.
The content of a Cease and Desist letter should include details about your brand, the suggested infringement, and your business's solicitation for specific action against infringers.
2. Court Case
Your attorney may suggest taking logo theft issues to court. This process can be quite time-consuming and costly. There are several initial steps that you must take before taking the case to court.
Sending a letter of demand, which means you are trying to resolve the issue through mediation. This request letter is almost the same as a cease and desist letter. Its contents advise violators to stop committing their offenses.
With this step, you can resolve issues through methods such as mediation or formal negotiations, arbitration involving third parties, and expert determination, which will lead to the final decision.
If you want to take your case to court, you must be able to provide some evidence that the logo of another business bears a resemblance to your trademark.
Besides, you must also be able to prove that the logo is used by a company with a product or service similar to the one you registered in the trademark.
If you can complete all of these requirements, the courts can stop the businesses that are infringing the trademark and ask them to pay compensation.
What Does Logo Theft Look Like?
As mentioned earlier, your company needs to protect its trademark from others who want to use your logo without permission. There are several forms of trademark infringement, including the following:
- Others steal your logo for their benefit.
- Irresponsible parties who design their company logo use a design that is similar to your logo so that the public has difficulty distinguishing between your business and the competitors'.
- The party that puts your logo on other products by removing it from yours.
Counterfeiters who remove your logo and place it on another brand they have created themselves are dangerous. This not only harms you but also lowers the quality of your product. This theft is common in products in the form of accessories and clothing.
Theft of protected logos is a serious matter that can have certain consequences. Violators can receive penalties such as imprisonment, confiscation of all illegal products, and the imposition of fines and compensation.
You need to underline that the party you think stole the logo can get a defense against the accusation if the logo in question has become generic and does not represent a specific company, the logo is not a valid trademark, or the logo does not cause consumer confusion.
Why Does Intellectual Property Theft Happen?
This is the digital era, where everything can be done easily. Intellectual property theft has also become something that can happen easily, quickly, and cheaply, even making it profitable. That is why intellectual property theft, including logo theft, is prone to occur.
Thieves or irresponsible parties often commit these crimes for their benefit. They usually copy ideas, work, and violate the logos of other business products, and they don't even care about the consequences.
However, intellectual property theft is similar to other forms of theft that violate the rights of others. Some people think that works circulating on the internet can be stolen, even though it is a form of violation that can damage the reputation of the business concerned.
Logo theft is a serious legal problem. You must face it firmly so that your business does not suffer. Apart from the theft of the logo by other parties, you must create a business logo as well as possible. A logo is your business's identity and will be an indirect messenger to the audience.
That's why you should avoid some mistakes when creating a logo. Besides being able to produce a good design, your logo may also be protected from thieves.
What Mistakes Should You Avoid When Making A Logo?
A logo plays a big role in making your product or brand known. A good logo can be a magnet that follows the quality of your product, but a bad logo will make it difficult to attract customers' attention.
Logos take a lot of time, effort, and even money to produce unique and precise results. The logo must be able to represent your service as a whole for a successful branding process.
Designing a logo is not easy, so it seems unfair if another party suddenly steals your design. A logo shouldn't only be good and unique; it also must be able to communicate a message, service, work ethic, and success.
You know that a simple logo with just one color can take months because a logo must be carefully considered. To help you get the logo right, unique, and hard to steal, you should avoid a few mistakes. The following are mistakes a logo designer should avoid:
1. Unclear Design Logo
Complicated designs are not a professional thing. This can also be an opportunity for other parties or competitors to steal your idea. Let's say there are too many ideas popping into your mind, all of which make you want to pour them into a design.
The combination of colors, fonts, and icons that pop into your head is the inspiration that you should filter. Not everything can be included in a logo.
A successful logo does not have a complex and confusing design. Others may steal your idea and change parts of it to claim it as their own. An unclear logo seems ambiguous, and the public may be confused about recognizing your product through the logo.
Even when you register it as a trademark, you will not be able to gather sufficient evidence to sue the party you deem to be infringing the trademark rights.
To anticipate this issue, avoid using a logo design that is too complex. Keep things simple, even though there are lots of interesting ideas that come up. You have to be able to choose which one is the most suitable for the business you are working on.
2. Poor Color Choice
Poor color selection should also be one of the logo-making mistakes that you should avoid. You might imagine a stunningly colorful logo, but not all colors can be used. It's not about creating logo designs for kindergarten kids; business logo designs should represent the company's image.
Color is subjective, but imagine if you have a logo with a color that is too flashy and jarring, especially if the color is not related to your product. You better know your target market well to be able to determine what color they like the most.
The choice of colors must follow the type of business being run. For example, there is an agricultural and cosmetics shop business. Between the two businesses, will you use the same color? For sure, they are different. The cosmetic business is synonymous with pink, gold, or silver. On the other hand, farm supply stores go well with green or white.
Think about the meaning of the colors you will choose; this should be the important philosophy behind the creation of a logo.
3. Bad Typography
You must pay close attention to the type of font in a logo. As an important aspect, typography is a part that you should not ignore. The following are some common typography problems:
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Poor Font Choice: A great logo using the right font. There are some types of fonts that are bad and unreadable; please don't use them for your logo if you want to look professional. The public doesn't need too many complicated letters.
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Spacing Issues: However, you must properly space the logo so that it can be read at both small and large scales. Do not use excessive or insufficient spacing; it can damage the legibility of the logo. Choose fonts carefully and pay close attention to spacing.
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Too Many Fonts: Seriously, this is a vital design. You wouldn't let too many fonts scatter, would you? Check out some well-known brands and how careful they are in choosing fonts and applying them. You may be able to use more than one font, but you don't need more than two.
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Typical Typography: Well, do you want a unique look for your logo design? You might consider not using Arial or Times New Roman, both of which are very common and widely used fonts. Be sure to do some research on the market beforehand, as some competitors may already be using both fonts. Be different.
You need to be able to choose good, balanced typography to be read and used in a variety of media. Remember, your logo will be placed in various places, including letterhead, ID cards, products, brochures, billboards, and anything else. So, the writing must be legible.
4. Using Stock Images
This should be an important consideration when you want to design your logo. Designing your logo is an option for some companies to save even more, although you have to pay for the extra work because designing a logo is not easy.
If you want to design your logo without hiring a professional logo designer, make sure not to take pictures from stock images, let alone clip art. Both are allowed to be used by anyone, but you will not know who will use the logo.
Imagine you have a cake business. You are using a logo whose image is taken from a stock image. As time passed, your cake shop grew so well that many people knew of its existence. The public will probably realize one thing: You use a free or premium logo from the Stock platform.
What do they think? They may think that your store is unprofessional because it doesn't have a unique logo. Some parties may also use the same logo as you, making it seem generic and boring. It will look even more unwise if the image is used for another business logo in a different industry.
5. Using Exaggerated Design
Creating a logo should be simple and unique, but that doesn't mean you need to use some unnecessary symbols. A logo is an important part of a company's identity and must be arranged simply by reducing some unnecessary elements, especially if they seem redundant.
Adding unnecessary extra items will only distract from your logo. The public will probably focus on the design unnecessarily.
The essence of a successful logo is to have a simple and unique design. A simple but not generic design will give an elegant impression.
You can pay attention to several well-known logos whose branding is successful. Most use a simple but attractive design that can help the public remember the product well.
A logo design must be well thought out; it will take time and seriousness. Another important thing that you shouldn't miss is doing your research before creating a logo.
How Should A Logo be?
The simple design that you create should contain the message and character of the business, making the public aware that you are providing the products and services they want. As you know, creating a logo is not easy, even though the result is simple.
Many parties must be involved, especially if you use the services of a professional logo designer. You know that there are many sacrifices necessary to create an attractive logo. Thus, don't let your design be stolen by other parties that will harm your business.
You must protect your logo by registering it as a trademark. You will get legal protection to sue the party who stole your design. Apart from making the logo a trademark, another important thing is to keep your logo simple. Don't leave a gap for other parties who want to copy your logo.
Logo designs are usually dynamic and flexible; you can update them over time. However, the new logo should still have the same essence and icon as the old design.
Final Words
A logo is an important and valuable asset for a business. You should be able to protect your logo by registering it as a trademark. With a trademark, you have legal protection and the right to use the logo for various business purposes.
Other parties will not be able to carelessly use or plagiarize your logo because it is a violation of trademark rights. You can hire a lawyer if another business accidentally copies your trademarked logo.
Several steps may be taken, including sending a cease-and-desist letter or bringing the case to court at a fairly high cost.
A cease-and-desist letter cannot get you to seek compensation, whereas a court can ask the offending party to compensate you. However, you must be able to prove several things to bring intellectual property theft cases to court.
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