Blog Trademarks Explained with Berkley Sweetapple

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Protecting your brand as a blogger is such an important step in building a sustainable and successful blogging business. In this episode of The Ultimate Blog Podcast, we’re thrilled to welcome back attorney Berkley Sweetapple for a chat about blog trademarks explained. Whether you’re a veteran blogger or just starting out, understanding trademarks can save you from headaches and set you up for success.

Meet Berkley Sweetapple

Berkley Sweetapple helps female entrepreneurs protect their business and avoid expensive legal mistakes. She specializes in helping coaches, creatives, and course creators with trademarks and contracts. 

Trademarks Explained: What Is a Trademark?

A trademark is a word, phrase, or design that identifies the source of your goods or services. For bloggers, it’s probably going to be the name of your blog, any slogans you use, course names, and logos.

Trademarks are essential because they grant you the exclusive right to use your brand name or logo in your industry. Without a trademark, your LLC name, domain name, or Instagram handle does not protect your brand ownership. A federal trademark means that you can stop others from copying you and avoid the risk of rebranding if someone else trademarks your name first.

Trademarks Explained: When Should Bloggers Consider Trademarking?

Berkley advises that the best time to trademark is when you have a name you love and plan to keep. This can help you know you’re not infringing on someone else’s trademark, which could cost you.

How to Check if Your Name Is Available

Start by searching the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) database for conflicts. However, Berkley says sometimes this isn’t a foolproof method. For example, slight variations in spelling or foreign translations may not show up, which can give you a false sense of security. Your best bet is to hire an attorney to do a comprehensive search, which can identify similar-sounding names that could cause issues.

Why You Shouldn’t DIY Your Trademark

While it might seem like a good idea to DIY your trademark and save some money, trademarks are not an area to cut corners. Berkley says that mistakes during the application process can lead to delays or denials. Attorneys have the expertise to guide you through the process, like identifying high-risk names and responding to office actions from the USPTO.

The Trademarking Process

Trademarking is not a quick process. Berkley says that from the time you file to the time you’re fully registered, it can take anywhere from 13 months to two years. The filing date gives you priority, but full rights are granted only upon registration. Usually, you can expect some bumps along the way like proving your trademark’s use or arguing its distinctiveness.

Lessons Learned When We Trademarked

We shared our own trademark journey with The Ultimate Blog Bootcamp. After learning that the name couldn’t be trademarked, we used it as an opportunity to rebrand. The course evolved into The Ultimate Blog Roadmap, which better aligned with our goals and serves our audience more effectively.

If you’re really attached to your name, trademarking is something to consider to protect what you’ve built. While the process is an investment, it’s one that safeguards your brand identity.

What Happens After You Trademark?

Obtaining a trademark is just the beginning. Berkley explains that you’re in charge of policing your trademark. This means monitoring for people using your trademark and taking action, such as sending cease-and-desist letters. 

Trademarks Explained: Why Trademarking is Worth It

If you’re a blogger who is just starting out, the cost of trademarking can be intimidating. Berkley estimates that it’s around $2,500 plus filing fees (so around $3,000 total), which might seem like a big investment. 

But Berkley says not trademarking can be worse. You might have to rebrand, which could lead to:

• Loss of audience recognition: Your audience may not recognize your new name, leading to lost profits.
• Design expenses: A new logo and branding can be expensive.
• Emotional stress: Losing a name you love and built your business with is stressful.

For many bloggers, the investment in trademarking is about security and peace of mind.

How to Know If It’s Time to Trademark

If you’ve come up with a blog name that feels like a name you love and can’t imagine letting go of, that’s a sign it’s time to trademark. Amy experienced that with her blog name, Love Your Body Well. After brainstorming and feeling deeply connected to the name, she knew it was worth trademarking.

The Trademark Process Made Simple

We recommend working with Berkley Sweetapple for your blog trademark. The process usually takes 2-3 weeks, and looks like this:

• You’ll provide basic information about your business and the name you want to trademark
• Berkley’s team makes sure your name is unique and can be trademarked
• They handle the filing process, including narrowing down classes and communicating with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

Trademarks Explained: Protecting Your Website

In addition to trademarking, bloggers should also consider protecting their websites with legal documents like privacy policies and terms of use. Berkley offers website templates, linked below. Be sure to use code SPARK20 for 20% off. 

In this episode, we covered: 

• What a trademark is
• Why bloggers should consider trademarking
• How to check if your name is available
• Why you shouldn’t DIY your trademark
• What the trademarking process looks like
• Lessons we learned from trademarking 
• Why trademarking is worth the investment
• How to know it’s time to trademark

Links and resources mentioned in this episode:

• Connect with Berkley Sweetapple on her Instagram, template website, and law firm website  
• Grab Berkley’s Website Templates All Access Pass and use code SPARK20 for 20% off
• Join The Ultimate Blog Roadmap
• Sign up for our newsletter
• Check out last week’s episode

We hope you loved this episode with Berkley Sweetapple for this conversation on trademarks explained! What did you think of this episode? Please leave us a comment and let us know your biggest takeaway from this episode!