Basic rules for selecting a mark
A brand identity should clearly support business goals and objectives. Are there any basic rules to build a new brand? While selecting or creating a new mark one has to consider a wide range of issues that may be linked to factors such as the relevant languages, culturally determined meaning of colors, technical requirements for printing or digitizing a mark, and, of course, all the legal requirement that arise out of the relevant trademark law(s) and practice(s) in the relevant territory or territories.
If a trademark is to be used internationally, it may be a major practical challenge to create or select a mark that has no meaning or does not have a negative meaning or connotation in any of the relevant languages. To prevent loss of time or money this challenge must be resolved much before advertising the product. In fact, given the fairly long time taken to ‘clear a proposed mark’ and to register it as a trademark, this process is normally begun at an early
stage of the product development process.
While there are no hard and fast rules for creating or selecting a word to be used as a mark, the following five‐point checklist is a useful way to start.
1. Legal Requirements
Verify whether the proposed mark meets all the absolute grounds or legal requirements for registration as a mark.
2. Language requirements
Make sure a proposed word mark is easy to read, spell, remember, retrieve, and is suitable for all types of advertising media. It should not be generic, laudatory or descriptive of the product in relation to which it is to be used.
3. Trademark search
Do a trademark search to make sure that it is not identical or confusingly similar to existing marks in the relevant category of products. It is generally advisable to do this for at least three different proposed marks. This includes searching all the relevant trademark databases; searching dictionaries for similar looking or sounding words in all the relevant languages; and looking at marks in use in the relevant markets, including well‐known marks.
4. Connotation
Make sure the proposed marks do not have any undesirable or negative connotations in any of the relevant languages in the domestic or export markets.
5. Domain name
Confirm the availability of the corresponding domain name (i.e., Internet address).
More Reference: Easily accepted words marks
a. Coined and arbitrary words
(i) Coined words
The most usual choice of words registered as marks are meaningless, invented words, or so‐called coined words, A famous example is KODAK.
(ii) Arbitrary (or fanciful) words
Like a coined word, an arbitrary word used as a mark does not describe or hint at any attribute of the product in question. For example, ELEPHANT for marketing mobile phones, RAINBOW for a travel agency, or CHAOS for a washing machine.
On the other hand, using a coined or arbitrary word as a mark generally requires high initial advertising investment to create consumer awareness about the link between the product and the mark.
b. Suggestive words
A suggestive word, when used as a mark, hints at the product or at some attribute(s) of the product. This makes it easy to use it in any form of advertising. Also consumers more easily remember a suggestive word than a coined or arbitrary word. Airbus, Nescafe and SWATCH (Swiss Watch) are examples of suggestive marks.
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