More on Trademarks and Brand Building
We posted an earlier blog post on trademarks on May 26th. We have some additional thoughts on the use of trademarks and servicemarks in helping to build effective FinTech brands. First of all, to be clear, a “servicemark is the same as a trademark except that it identifies and distinguishes the source of a service rather than a product. The terms ‘trademark’ and ‘mark’ are commonly used to refer to both trademarks and servicemarks,” (from the US Patent and Trademark’s website). So when we say trademark (™) it could be a SM as well.
Many companies fall short when thinking through the opportunities to distinguish themselves from competitors, especially when it comes to the use of trademarks and servivcemarks. If trademarks are pursued, they are usually restricted to company or product names. However, there are additional opportunities for creating distinct marks, including:
- Logos and taglines
- Product families or service lines
- Product features
- Customer groups, conferences or communications
We often see service companies in the mortgage and banking industry fall short of implementing an effective trademark strategy. When you think about it, how a company delivers its services is often times more important than what they actually deliver. Developing a highly defined process and set of systems for service delivery is critical for creating differentiation, especially against lower cost competitors. Developing marks for these processes and systems, especially when they contain proprietary elements, can go a long way towards establishing a premium position within your industry.
Few companies have the resources necessary to build multiple brands within the markets they serve. FinTech companies need to understand their resources and make wise investment decisions when it comes to developing trade names for products and services. Creating a unified and integrated set of trade and servicemarks that collectively reinforces the company’s overall brand is a strategy that yields the highest returns.
