How to Retain Control Over the Use of Names as Brands

People renowned in the world of art or sports, as well as personal brands on social networks are not always aware of the importance of registering their names as a trademark in relation to goods and various collaborations. How to ensure adequate protection for TM in Europe or other regions in such cases? Today we will provide a brief overview of the main aspects of registering a personal brand in the EU, which should be considered if you intend to use your name as a trademark to receive financial benefits from this.

Definitions

Who are influencers? These are people who regularly publish posts on social networks and have earned credibility in a particular topic and whose expert opinion is listened to by a significant number of people. The number of subscribers is not so important (maybe a thousand, or maybe a million)/ The most important is the audience coverage, and the level of its trust to the influencer (this can be measured using special metrics), and his ability to motivate the followers to act. As a result, companies registered in Europe are ready to pay such people for positive reviews about their products, in fact, using them as a channel for promoting goods and services. This type of promotion has recently gained unprecedented popularity and influencers make good money by concluding so-called “sponsorship contracts” with companies. The method of such promotion is called influencer marketing.

Brand protection

Branding in business is a common occurrence, but recently it has acquired special importance on a personal level. The “brand” of the influencer is his/her name or nickname used in publications on social networks. One way to protect this valuable asset is to register a trademark in the EU, Asia or the USA (depending on the scope and geography of the prevalence of a person’s popularity).

In order to prevent unauthorized persons from using the name of an influential person in their interests, care must be taken to register a European trademark.

Registration of a personal brand in Europe

An influencer often does not have his/her own assortment of goods or services, and this can become an obstacle when applying for trademark registration. The fact is that the registration of TM in the EU is possible only in relation to certain goods or services. But do not worry. You can manage it by including in the application the specific services you provide, namely the promotion of goods and services of others or advertising.

Conclusion

It is worth noting that today, marketing is one of the industries most affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Companies reduce marketing costs in the first place, and the launch of advertising campaigns is canceled until better times. In this regard, many influencers are idle without work, travel bloggers and those whose income depends on the publication of sponsored images from exotic places are particularly affected, as travel becomes impossible.

At the same time, the current situation gives influencers more opportunities to interact with the audience, since people spend significantly more time on social networks. That is why a personal brand should not be neglected and steps should be taken to protect the trademark in the EU and beyond.