What is the Difference Between Brand Name and Trademark

The main difference between brand name and trademark is that brand name is a name (made of words and phrases) while trademark can be a name, logo, slogan or their combination.

Businesses and their products have unique brand names and trademarks that differentiate them from other similar businesses and products. Both help in building consumer awareness and fostering brand loyalty.

Key Areas Covered

1. What is a Brand Name
– Definition, Features, Examples
2. What is a Trademark
– Definition, Features, Examples
3. What is the Difference Between Brand Name and Trademark
– Comparison of Key Differences

Key Terms

Brand Name, Trademark

What is a Brand Name

A brand name is a name given by a manufacturer or company to a particular product or service. A brand name has two main functions: identification and verification. It differentiates a particular product from other similar products and authenticates that the product is genuine (not a fake). Sometimes a brand name can be simply the name of its founder; for example, Martha Stewart, Ford, Kellogg’s, Ralph Lauren, etc.

A good brand name should be unique and memorable, helping with consumer awareness and fostering brand loyalty. Some examples of famous brand names include Nike, Patagonia, Amazon, Kodak, Xerox, IBM, Puma, eBay, Google, etc.

Over time, with the popularity of the brand, the brand name might actually become part of the language. What happens here is that brand names become generic terms with many years of usage. For example, people use the word Kleenex instead of tissue – this is because the name Kleenex has become synonymous with tissues.

What is a Trademark

A trademark is a unique and recognizable word, phrase, symbol or design that represents a business or product. It highlights a specific product or business and legally differentiates it from other products and businesses of its kind. Trademark is actually a form of intellectual property. It can be a logo, slogan, brand or just the name of a product. For example, The Nike Swoosh®, McDonald’s double arches, and Apple’s Apple with a bite taken out are examples of designs that act trademarks. Meanwhile, slogans like Nike’s Just do it, and MacDonald’s I’m lovin’ it also act as trademarks.

Unlike patents, which is another form of intellectual property, trademarks can last forever as long as the company continues to use the mark to indicate the source of products and services. Moreover, it is not necessary to register a trademark to receive protection rights, but there are many legal benefits in registering the trademark. It can legally protect words and design elements that identify a particular trademark.

Difference Between Brand Name and Trademark

Definition

Nature

While a brand name is a name, a trademark can be a name, design, or slogan.

Legality

A brand name is a name that a business chooses for one of its products while a trademark is a mark that legally represents business and its goods and services.

Example

If we take Nike for example, Nike is the brand name while Nike swoosh is a registered trademark.

Conclusion

A brand name is a name given by a manufacturer or company to a particular product or service while a trademark is a unique and recognizable word, phrase, symbol or design that represents a business or product. The main difference between brand name and trademark is that brand name is a name (made of words and phrases) while trademark can be a name, logo, slogan or their combination.

Reference:

1. Tardi, Carla. “Behind Trademarks.” Investopedia, 5 Feb. 2020, Available here.
2. Nordquist, Richard. “What Is a Brand Name?” ThoughtCo, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Rugby Ralph Lauren Logo” By DomRushton – Own work (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “car-company-logos-main-image” By Siddhartha Thota (CC BY 2.0) via Flickr

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