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Whether you’re marketing, branding, or advertising in Charlotte, NC or Dongguan, China, it’s important that you protect your company’s distinctive brand elements like a logo or a tagline.

A trademark is any phrase or symbol that functions as a brand, that is, it tells the public that there is a particular source or manufacturer for products or services (e.g., “Mattel” is a trademark for the toy company; the Apple logo is a trademark for the computer company). The scope of what can be a trademark is very broad — words, images, sounds and colors can all function as trademarks. Even packaging and promotional concepts for products or services can be protected as “trade dress,” which is another form of trademark rights (e.g., Apple’s iPod ads).

So North Carolina advertising agencies take note, trademarks must be distinctive, which means consumers recognize the mark as a designation of source, rather than just a phrase or decoration. Unfortunately, what makes a mark “strong” from a legal standpoint may be the opposite of what Charlotte graphic designers and their clients might think of as a strong mark. Under trademark law, marks that describe or suggest some feature of the goods or services are “weak.” For example, “Apple” would be a weak mark for a bakery that sells apple pies. Other food businesses would be able to use Apple marks without infringing the bakery’s trademark rights.

The strongest trademarks are made-up marks, or words or images that don’t suggest the goods or services. Xerox is a classic example of a made-up mark. Apple and the Apple logo for computers are also strong marks.