June 14, 2010
What is the meaning of signs such as ®, ©, TM, SM?
Symbols and signs are not new to us. We’ve used them since the beginning of time to represent a thought, object, process or abstract. What does this mean for business branding? By trademarking your company name or service, you give your customers a perception of quality. You also protect yourself and your brand from your competitors.
• Trademarks (TM) is an unregistered mark that is used by individuals or businesses to identify that the product, brand or service on which the mark appears distinguishes its products or services from other similar products or services. By definition, a trademark is a type of intellectual property. Most typically it can be a name, word, phrase, logo, symbol, design, image, color or a combination of these elements. This mark should appear while you are in the process of obtaining a registered trademark ®.
• Service Marks (SM) are different from a trademark. Service Marks are used to advertise a service such as transportation to distinguish its services from those of a competitors.
• Registered trademarks (®) are marks are protected by law through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Owners of registered marks are used solely by it’s owner.
• Copyright (©) is a form of intellectual property that gives the artist or author of an original work exclusive right for a certain time period in relation to that work, including its publication, distribution and adaptation, after which time the work is said to enter the public domain. The © is used for but not limited to artistic design and writing. A copyright has been internationally standardized and can last between 50 – 100 years from the author’s death. A shorter period of time for anonymous or corporate authorship.
So what isn’t protected? Any trademark that is similar to existing trademarks, generic terms, a mark that is not recognized as unique to a product, and titles for books, movies or music among others.
Now more than ever, it has become increasingly important to protect your assets. With the advent of the internet, many people feel that it’s their right to use an image or text that is used on a website. It’s not. Websites have the same protection as books, magazines and newspapers. You must first obtain permission to use any image or text from its author.
While it is not necessary to hire a lawyer who specializes in trademark or copyrights, it can be to your benefit to hire one. An attorney can make sure your trademark meets the proper qualifications, research your trademark and file the necessary papers. A lawyer has the resources to make filing easy.
For more information regarding trademark and copyrights, visit http://www.uspto.gov (US Patent and Trademark Office) and http://www.copyright.gov (US Copyright Office).
Contact the experts at Aloha Print and Copy for more information about print, copy, bind, design and mail fulfillment projects. Call us at (770) 642-1642 or email: alohaprintcopy@juno.com
June 7, 2010
Printing: Yesterday & Today
The Bible was the first book published with its initial printing letterpress by Johan Guttenberg in 1450. Prior to this, all books were handwritten by scribes. Color process work was initiated in the 1880’s just after web presses were introduced in the late 1870’s. From there, silk-screening, flexography and offset (1906) were also developed. It wasn’t until the mid 1970’s that the first use of computers in the pressroom for newsprint took place. This technology rapidly evolved significantly, changing typesetting and separations. Computers merged with printing in the prepress area for commercial printing and have driven desktop technology. Just as rapidly, digital technology has merged with commercial printing, driving the demand for print-on-demand service and hence, digital printing presses.
Today’s Digital Imaging, 5th Anniversary Addition published by Smart Papers.
June 1, 2010
Easy Marketing Communications II
In today’s economy, the competition for getting your product or services to the public has gotten stiffer. Get ahead of the game by calling Aloha Print and Copy to assist you with the following marketing ideas to brand yourself and your company:
• Get out of the office and meet your clients face-to-face. Be sure to give clients and prospects two business cards and two brochures – one to keep and one to pass along. Ask for referrals. And while you’re at it, “Pay it Forward” get their brochures and business cards and recommend them to others. (I know, we said it before but it really works.)
• Take advantage of voice mail. Change your message daily or weekly to reflect your business or any service or product information. Do this with both landlines and cell phones.
• Utilize your emails vacation responder for more than just vacations. When you receive an email from a client or prospect, your responder can automatically reply back with a message about your business or if you’re in sales, to let them know you’ve received their email and will respond back within a specific timeframe.
• Update your business card. Ordinary cards get lost in the shuffle. Make it stand out with higher quality paper and color. Be sure to take advantage of the backside. Add your products or services. Ask the experts at Aloha how to utilize the space on your business card.
• Send prospects a Thank You note. Let them know how much you appreciated them taking the time to meet and talk with you. Thank you notes increase the all important repeat business and strengths the client business relationship.
• Send a letter or note to let prospects and clients know that you have a personal interest in what they do. Here are some reasons to write people notes: anniversary, congratulate on a promotion or honor, a comment about them, their company or their family in the newspaper.
• Join Yahoo! Answers. You can find any question that pertains to your business industry right down to your local area. When someone asked a simple question, you answer it, add in your website and viola! You could find yourself up front in a Google search…for free.
• Do pro bono work for schools, charities or service organizations. Be sure you receive credit for everything you do.
• Become a member. Join a business association or a non-profit organization and put your expertise to work. Not only will you get business contacts, you will also foster new friendships.
• Publish online informational “How to” articles about your service, product or specialty. Within your articles, point the reader back to your website. There are many avenues to get your info published: ezinearticles.com, ehow.com, about.com to name a few. Best of all…it’s free!
Let us know if you have a easy marketing idea you’d like to share.
For more information about Aloha Print and Copy’s print, copy, design, bind and mail fulfillment services and product information, please call us at (770) 642-1642. Receive 10% off (up to $50.00 maximum discount) your next job when you mention this blog post. (Good for 30 days after posting date. Restrictions apply.)
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