Trademarkia Post Pubcon Trademark Highlights

Trademarkia Blog: Nintendo Files Trademark Application for It's On Like Donkey Kong
F the Facebook map pin?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Last week, I went to Pubcon 2010, a Las Vegas Internet Conference about Search, Social Media, Internet Marketing and Website Operation. This conference was the epitome of ironic. Let me explain...

• Flew on Virgin Airlines...for the first time...to a conference that I have never attended before.
• 10th year anniversary of a conference that originally met in a pub, I probably didn't even understand the concept of alcohol back then.
• Lost my name badge in Vegas...sober.
• I have business cards with my twitter handles on them, however I couldn't attend some of the tweetups because of Las Vegas age restrictions at clubs.

Okay okay, all chides at my age. Yes, I was probably the youngest person in attendance, and yes it was intimidating, but who doesn't get a little nervous at these kind of events? I was very thankful for the opportunity to represent www.Trademarkia.com and learn from all the wonderful speakers and attendees. The first and hopefully not the last Pubcon!

Monday

• Ran into Tony Wright (@tonynwright) and Shilpa Nicodemus (@shilpanicodemus) of Wright IMC on the first day "tweetup". Tony spoke and moderated six Pubcon sessions! 
• Informed a few individuals that they received Office Action letter's on their trademarks...don't they have lawyers that are supposed to tell them?
• Personal note: Ate YUM sushi and watched a Cirque du Soleil show. 

Tuesday

• Learned about Raven Tools and other exhibitors at the Exhibit hall.
• Spoke Russian with Tim Ash (@tim_ash), author of Landing Page Optimization.
• Alan K’necht (@aknecht) gave me a signed copy of his book The Last Original Idea.

Wednesday

• Matt Cutts (@mattcutts) "Trends: Mobile, Social, Local, Real-time, HTML5" [Funny quote "If spam falls in the forest and no one sees it, did the spam show up on Google search results?"]
• Bought Unmarketing a book by Scott Stratten (@unmarketing).
• SEO Meatball Dinner with Greg Boser (@gregboser) and David Snyder (@davesnyder) of BlueGlass Interactive LLC.  Attendees: Scott Cowley (@scottcowley) of SEO.com,  Barbara Boser (@barbaraboser), Danielle Culmone (@dculmone) of Searchmetrics.com, Donna Snow (@snowwrite), Mike Ramsey (@niftymarketing), Linda S. (@i80equipment09). 
• Rode in a limousine for the first time EVER. 

Thursday

• Because I am a Dummy, I bought Search Engine Optimization for Dummies :D
• Tim Mayer Keynote: "The future of search is prediction and suggestion" i.e. Google Instant
• Sean Jackson from Copyblogger Media (@seanthinks) quoted Theodore Roosevelt, "There is no effort without error and shortcomings".
• Learned about Blekko, the new slashtag search engine.
• Started editing Facebook custom tabs for Trademarkia fan page. Added Deals and Services tabs.

Quick Tips...

• Just because your not an expert, doesn't make you any less qualified to attend, we are all here to learn!
• If you are a women, don't pack heels, pack shoes you KNOW you will be comfortable in for 10 hours. And perhaps 1-2 extra pairs of stockings in case yours' rip from all the walking...
• If you have a one sided bag/purse, SWITCH SIDES or else you may get blisters on the feet that holds the most work.
• If you are a coworker (*ahem* Cliff *ahem*) don't forget your toothbrush and floss
• If you are a klutz like me, don't lose your name badge!
• Don't forget to follow the #pubcon twitter stream!

Food For Thought...

1. A few people suggested I change my title from "Publicity and Media Relations" to something else. I can easily do that when this batch of business cards runs out, however I wear a lot of "hats" and it's hard to classify or constrain what I do... I do social media monitoring/marketing, content writing (blog, newsletter, press releases..), public relations,....what title fits all of that?
2. Is it just me or do a lot of popular pubcon speakers have really short names? I have three syllabules just in my FIRST name! "Maria" is probably the most popular name EVER, and "Orlova" is surprisingly common as well. And if you search for me, Google will try and ask you "Did you mean: marina orlova"? Thank you Google, I understand our names are SUPER similar, but I am not an etymologist, nor am I Hotforwords.

More reading...

*Quick Tip* Scott Cowley (@scottcowley) has great recaps of the events. Also SearchEngineLand.com has a big recap.

-------------------------------------------------------
Facebook Pubcon 2010 photo album.
---------------------------------------------------------

PubCon 2010 Itinerary - Trademarkia.com

Monday November 8, 2010
5:30pm-8:00pm	PubCon Kickoff Classic and Networking Reception
Tuesday November 9, 2010
07:30am 08:45am	Continental Breakfast for Full Pass Attendees
08:45am 9:00am	Conference Introduction by Brett Tabke
09:00am 09:45am	Kickoff Keynote with David Pogue of New York Times
10:00am 11:15am	Reputation Management: Monitoring Your Brand Online
11:30am 12:45pm	Advanced Twitter: Apps, Services, and API Trends
12:30pm 1:30pm	Networking Lunch For All Gold Pass Attendees
1:30pm 2:45pm	Proactive Reputation Management
2:55pm 4:10pm	Twitter & Social Media from the PR Experts
4:15pm 5:30pm	Foursquare & Gowalla - Geo Location Marketing
Wednesday November 10, 2010
07:30am 08:45am	Continental Breakfast for Full Conference Attendees
08:45am 9:00am	Daily Introduction by Brett Tabke
09:00am 09:45am	Keynote Panel - Social Media Leading Edge
10:15am 11:30am	The Convergence of Social Media & Search
11:30am 12:45pm	Emerging Media and Technologies - Social Media and Affiliates
12:30pm 1:30pm	Networking Lunch For All Gold Pass Attendees
1:30pm 2:45pm	Facebook Marketing
3:15pm 4:20pm	Social Media, Press Relations, & Brand Management
04:20pm 05:30pm	Super Session : Search Engines and Webmasters - Bing - Google - Instant
Thursday November 11, 2010
08:00am-08:45	Continental Breakfast for Full Pass Conference Attendees
08:45am 9:00am	Daily Introduction by Brett Tabke
09:00am 09:45am	Morning Keynote by Tim Mayer
10:15am 11:30am	Convergence of Online Marketing and Analytics
11:30am 12:45pm	Instant Analytics Vendors and Package Implementation
12:30pm 1:30pm	Networking Lunch For All Gold Pass Attendees
1:30pm 2:45pm	Social Media Measurement and Signals
3:15pm 4:20pm	Legal Issues of Domain Names and Trademarks
04:20pm 05:30pm	Social Media Pay Day

Thursday Night Roundup: Edition 6 - Techmarkia.com launching November 1st

Read the latest Trademarkia Blog post : Grilled Cheesus! its a Trending Twitter Topic!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TechMarkia official launch November 1, 2010.

Welcome to TechMarkia.   We are planning on our official launch on November 1, 2010.   Until then, we are posting test articles and refining our blog.   What we are creating is a new online news publication that will cover the hottest Internet startups.  Our site will be different than TechCrunch and Mashable because we are going to cover the people who make the Internet progress from a human perspective.   In full disclosure to our readers, By way of background, we are a team of successful Internet entrepreneurs in Mountain View who created the website Trademarkia.com (http://www.trademarkia.com). Trademarkia is a search engine for trademarks that is refreshed daily with the latest trademarks of the hottest Internet companies. In our first year after launching Trademarkia in September 2009, more than 3000 news publications and websites have linked to us based on information of upcoming product changes gleaned from recent trademark filings of companies such as Google, Twitter, Apple, Facebook, and others published first on Trademarkia. We also now attract millions of page views each month and tens of thousands of readers each day. In addition, we have also become profitable with no venture funding through a unique revenue model providing advertising space to law firms.

What we now seek to do in TechMarkia (not to be confused with our primary company Trademarkia described in the previous paragraph) is to create our very own online news publication covering the most innovative and exciting Internet companies in Silicon Valley and around the world through original journalism and research. This new publication will be independent of our search engine, and should not rely on, or quote back Trademarkia as a primary source of news.  We are creating a new online news publication focused around hot Internet startups in Silicon Valley. TechMarkia will cover interesting startups in the categories centered around the Internet (social media, ecommerce, mobile apps, search engines etc). We want to develop a unique writing style, one that is funny, interesting, and sometimes controversial.

Particularly, in addition to covering latest innovative Internet startups, we want to cover the stories that other leading Internet blogs (e.g., TechCrunch, Mashable, VentureBeat) may not cover. For example, the cupcake stand next to Facebook headquarters, or the experience of an organic chef at the Googleplex, or the interview/success story on the impressive weight loss of the former CEO of LinkedIn, or the rationale of the liberal and conservative aspects of a founder of Paypal who is now a venture capitalist, or the perspectives of incoming freshman computer science students at Stanford on their vision of the future of the Internet. We want to remain neutral and objective and unlike ValleyWag, we don’t want to go out of our way to flame. We want to cover the Silicon Valley from a human perspective.

In other words, we want to focus on the people, the cult, soul, heart, and personality that is Silicon Valley through original, on the ground, grassroots journalism.  Thank you for reading us early, and tell your friends..   Raj, Liz, Maria, and Bill. The Founding TechMarkia team.

Did you know? USPTO status "Non-Final Action - Mailed"

What does "Non-Final Action -  Mailed" mean?

A Non-Final Office Action is a Letter prepared by an Examining Attorney of the United States Trademark Office after reviewing the application for the first time. A time limit to respond to the Office Action is usually within 6 months from the mailing date noted on the Office Action unless otherwise mentioned.

In other words, The United States Patent and Trademark Office cannot at this time register the trademark application. [Please note, this is not a an outright rejection] They are requesting further information, evidence and/or proof in order to move forward with the trademark registration process. 

Popular Misconception:

1.  "This isn't a big deal..." Yes it is! Look below!!

Is this Status update important, do I have to follow up with anything?

Yes, this status update is VERY important. If you do not respond to the USPTO within the 6 month deadline period, your trademark application will become abandoned!


Why Trademarks Go Abandoned because of an Office Action Letter:

1. Top Reason They simply miss the letter...unfortunately the USPTO doesn't send you friendly reminders :(
2. The trademark applicant does not know what an Office Action Letter is...or what to do with it. So they let the trademark application go expired.  
3. A trademark applicant reads the letter, gets confused by the legal formalities, and think the USPTO rejected their application, so they do not bother to even try responding to the letter.

If this happens to you, please consult an expert trademark attorney to assist you!

Click here, to go back to the menu and find other explanations of common USPTO status's.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Read the latest Trademarkia Blog Posts here:

International House of Pancakes vs. Prayer IHO(Pancakes) vs. IHO(Prayer)

National Trademark Expo 2010

Did you know? USPTO status "New Application: Record Initialized Not Assigned to an Examiner"

What does "New Application: Record Initialized Not Assigned to an Examiner" mean?

The United States Patent and Trademark Office, may take about a year to fully register a trademark, during which time the trademark application goes through a series of steps, and this status informs the applicant of the first step.

Popular Misconceptions:

1.  "I have a Serial Number so that means I have a registered trademark!" Not exactly.  An assigned Serial Number indicates that you have initiated an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. All properly submitted trademark applications begin with having a "record initialized" with the USPTO. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that they will receive U.S. federal registration in the end, the USPTO is simplyacknowledging the existence of the trademark application. 
• *Note* A trademark with this status, is not 'done' becoming registered with the USPTO.
• *Note* Only a "Registered" status means that you have a registered U.S. federal trademark with the USPTO.
2. "Not assigned to an Examiner?? When will they start reviewing it?!" Don't worry and don't fret, the USPTO must first log the trademark application into their system before they can assign it to a trademark examiner for review. That is normally the next step.
• *Note* If you use the paper filing method, it may take 2 weeks to receive a serial number.

Is this Status update important, do I have to follow up with anything?

Yes, this status is meaningful in the sense that it informs the trademark applicant that the USPTO has received their trademark application and assigned a serial number. However, it is simply a notice to you, and does not require any follow up at the time.

• You can use the ™ symbol to stand for your brand name in commerce. 

Click here, to go back to the menu and find other explanations of common USPTO status 

(See latest filed trademarks with the US. Patent and Trademark Office directly on the Trademarkia homepage!)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Read the latest Trademarkia Blog Post here: How the West was won USC vs. USC

See the Trademarkia Team in Washington, DC for the 2010 International Trademark Association Admin Conference!

USPTO Status's Explained

Look out for a blog posts this week about common USPTO status updates, what they are, and why they may or may not be important to you.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a menu post to find all of the individual blog posts hyperlinked to each other:
(No link, means that it has not been posted yet, but will be)

New Application - Record Initialized Not Assigned to Examiner

Non-Final Action - Mailed

(See latest filed trademarks with the US. Patent and Trademark Office directly on the Trademarkia homepage!)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Read the latest Trademarkia Blog Post's here:
Apple Needs a Lesson in Deja Vu
Is the USPTO an "enemy" for Facebook?
Trademarkia attends TechCrunch Discrupt 2010
Twitter Won't Let You Fly Away With It's Bird

Updated Disclaimer at the bottom of the blog site.

Please take some time to read the updated disclaimer at the bottom of the site.

As of 10/4/2010, this is what it reads: (subject to change)

The information provided in the content of this blog is not legal advice, but publicly available information, provided in an easier to understand format. Opinions expressed in these articles are those of the authors (be they the blog owner or a guest writer) and not necessarily that of Trademarkia, or it's representatives. The blog owner is not an intellectual property attorney, or a legal professional of any practice and thus blog content should only be interpreted as self-help advice, not legal advice. Trademarkia.com is not a substitute for an attorney or law firm. Users are encouraged to discuss legal concerns with attorneys with whom they have a prior relationship. Blog content is subject to change at any time.

Thursday Night Roundup: Edition 5 - Tweets that made us Twink

Read the latest Trademarkia Blog post here: Will Apple’s “RETINA” get any “FACETIME”?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tweets That Made Us Twink:

From @MariaOrlovaTM

1. Snooki drops her "trademark" poof http://bit.ly/aWcko5 She also tried to trademark "Snooki" See all her tm's here: http://bit.ly/9WLtJe
2. Will Apple’s “RETINA” get any “FACETIME”? http://bit.ly/avQOSy Similar to Microsoft trademark loophole http://bit.ly/cqO9YL 
3. 100+ Upcoming Social Media & Tech Events mashable.com/2010/09/20/100… via @mashsocialmedia @mashable
4. New Devil May Cry Game? | Trademarkia http://bit.ly/d4C3Uf #DMC #Trademark
5. http://bit.ly/caFTmj Apple Files Trademark for Home Button Design
6. goo.gl/3gbp You gotta get with the times and step up your game! @googleresearch is constantly better, SEO must catch up
7. Trademarkia Web 2.0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAOgraHE9Fk
8. Check this video out -- How to Build a Successful eCommerce Internet Company - Trademarkia.com CEO youtube.com/watch?v=9CbvWZ… via @youtube

From @Mashable:

1. Twitter Mouseover Security Flaw Affecting Thousands of Users [WARNING] - http://mash.to/2HoSA 
2. Top 3 Stories in Social Media and Business This Morning http://t.co/Np4bIxe
3. Facebook Engineer Explains "Worst Outage in Over Four Years" http://t.co/2wiUHGA
4. Social Media: The New Battleground for Politics http://bit.ly/aRadTH
5. How Social Good Has Revolutionized Philanthropy http://bit.ly/dlITYF
6. Why Social Media is a Game-Changer for Non-Profits http://bit.ly/ax95S1
7. HOW TO: Gracefully Promote Yourself Online htttp://budurl.com/p47u

From @TechCrunch:

1. Facebook Down, Like Buttons Vanish, Internet Implodes http://tcrn.ch/cTifZf 
2. Internet Control Issues: It’s Not Just China http://t.co/8q2nJhB
3. Finger-Pointing, Emails, Deleted Tweets, Rage. AngelGate Is Far From Over http://t.co/yEY37vD
4. YouTubeSocial Lets You Simultaneously Watch Videos With Friends http://t.co/KXueqoZ
5. Google Apps Now Used By 30 Million Employees http://t.co/Cq2l0wk  
6. Cuil Goes Down, And We Hear It’s Down For Good http://t.co/cE0nTYx

From @Wired:

1. Apple, Startup Go to Trial Over Pod Trademark http://bit.ly/bvsMMX
2. How T9 Predictive Text Input Changed Mobile Phones http://t.co/9579Hco
3. Community’s ‘Twittersode’ Just Might Work http://t.co/rQI2Oef
4. Facebook Goes Down, Gallows Humor Ensues on Twitter http://t.co/VIUMbex

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Trademarkia Team launches a new site design! Check it out!

Thursday Night Roundup - Edition 4: THE TRADEMARKIA TELEGRAPH Anniversary Special

September 15^th– Starting today, Trademarkia will post a monthly company newsletter on the Trademarkia Blog with top Trademarkia news and information.

TOP STORY : September 13^th - Trademarkia’s Legal Notice Publication Service for Common Law Rights Launches Today
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA–(Marketwire - September 13, 2010) - Trademarkia.com (www.trademarkia.com) announces a legal notice publication service for common law rights. The service enables attorneys and businesses to publish legal notices of business names, logos, and slogans directly on the Trademarkia website.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRADEMARKIA – September 15th

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY TRADEMARKIA! LET THE NEXT YEAR BE AS SWEET AS THE LAST!
TechCrunch – Trademarkia first launches at TechCrunch50 2009 one year ago.

Are You a Success Story? – August 25^th
Official Trademarkia Blog - This is a wonderful opportunity to provide inspiration and education to others who are looking to make a success of their brand. There are so many ways to achieve your business dreams. Your story could benefit similar people who are looking to make their goals a reality.
Join the discussion on Facebook!

Did you know? Common Trademark Mistakes and Myths – September 9th
The Insider’s Guide: Do you really think you understand trademark law?

Warmest Regards,
The Trademarkia Team

Trademarkia's Legal Notice Publication Service for Common Law Rights Launches Today

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA--(Marketwire - September 13, 2010) -  Trademarkia.com (http://www.trademarkia.com) announces a legal notice publication service for common law rights. The service enables attorneys and businesses to publish legal notices of business names, logos, and slogans directly on the Trademarkia website.

Typically, common law searches have relied on searches in phone directories, yellow pages, industrial directories, or state trademark registers. Now, businesses, large and small, can go a step further and proactively publish their common law rights on Trademarkia.com.

Trademarkia.com is one of the largest law related websites on the Internet, receiving more than 1,500,000 page views per month, and approximately one new visitor every 5 seconds of the day from more than 150 countries around the world each day. In addition, common law rights published on Trademarkia often appear on the world's largest search engines, such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo.

In the United States, "Federal registration is not required to establish rights in a trademark," according to the USPTO's website. "Common law rights arise from actual use of a mark. Generally, the first to either use a mark in commerce or file an intent to use application with the Patent and Trademark Office has the ultimate right to use and registration." By publishing a legal notice of common law rights through Trademarkia, common law rights will be searchable and published on Trademarkia next to registered U.S. and foreign marks.

Attorneys and businesses will find Trademarkia's new service to be an important tool in establishing control over their names, logos and slogans. By publishing on Trademarkia.com, businesses and attorneys can place a large number of potential infringers on constructive notice that their trademarks are already being used in commerce and are not available.

About Trademarkia
Trademarkia is the largest, free visual search engine of trademarks in the world. For more information on Trademarkia's publication service for common law rights, see: http://www.trademarkia.com/trademark/trademark-publication.aspx.

Media Contacts:
Maria Orlova
Email Contact

[Distributed by MarketWire]

Did you know? Common Trademark Mistakes and Myths

Do you really think you understand Trademark law?

By Maria Orlova

Few know the true advantage of registering a trademark. Most believe it unnecessary, exclaiming “I have a unique name no one else has!” Orville Wright once said, “If we worked on the assumption that what is accepted as true really is true, then there would be little hope for advance”. Mr. Wright, is right, too many times have I heard stories of people losing their business because someone has taken their trademark name. Whether you are a huge corporation, or a small mom-and-pop store, a trademark is important towards your protecting your brand.

If you have an established business, then you have common law trademark rights. The ™ symbol can be used to stand for your brand name in commerce. However, a U.S. federal trademark registration does hold more benefits, like potential damages if someone infringes on your trademark rights. Many businesses globalize they're product or company, in this case it is especially important to register with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) because registering a trademark in the U.S. can be used as a basis for obtaining registration in foreign countries. With a trademark or legal notice, the public is put on notice, of the ownerships rights to a name, logo and/or slogan in the classification of goods & services they filed under.

One can be in violation of trademark infringement for a number of reasons. The most common incidence is when an individual uses a brand name in commerce identical or similarly confusing to a trademark owned by another party. "But were totally different!" Be honest.Take a perspective from the consumers point of view, if a name sounds, looks, then it may confuse the customer of the origin of the product or service. The USPTO would send an Office Action letter to a trademark applicant if the new application posed a likelihood of confusion to the consumer.

Okay, perhaps you do not have the funds for a U.S. federal trademark ($325 per application, per classification; plus third party preparation costs) Do not be ignorant of existing trademarks, do your research.  Many times, trademark infringement occurs innocently, where someone was simply not aware that they were in violation of another party’s trademark. At least check to see if you are infringing on anyone else's trademark rights! Trademarkia.com allows users to freely search the U.S. federal trademark database directly on the homepage.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Maria Orlova is the Publicity and Media Relations Specialist for Trademarkia (www.trademarkia.com). She also contributes to the Trademarkia Blog (http://blog.trademarkia.com/) and Twitter (@Trademarkia). 

http://sincere.ly/yours/mariaorlovatm/

Thursday Night RoundUp: Edition 3 - Trademarkia Top News

Read the latest Trademarkia blog posts here: http://blog.trademarkia.com/
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Did you know? Common Trademark Mistakes and Myths

 

Apple: Ping = Facebook + Twitter for Music

Facebook “Targets” pay-to-play gift cards

Apple’s New Social Networking Website!

How to Begin Creating Your Company's Online Presence by Shane Russell

You may have already owned your company for many years, or are just beginning the journey. Regardless, you are very aware the Internet is creating wealth like never before. However, you don't have a clue how to market yourself online, nor do you know where to begin. Never worry, here are some basic fundamentals.

Step 1: Blogging, Email/eZine Marketing, and eBooking.
Just imagine. About 10-15 years ago, none of these words existed, however, they have become a few of the most important words in today's world to guide you towards your path to success. You no longer can be successful by cold-calling. Today's successful business owners write "Value Messages" to their clients. These value messages include items which will help individuals, or build value in their lives, but will remain directly related to your business.
Great Ideas for eZine articles. Here are a few "teach tips" to get your team to the next level...

• Teach EVERYONE that attitude is the foundation of success, both personal and business
• Teach EVERYONE the importance of friendliness
• Teach EVERYONE that speed of response is not an option
• Teach EVERYONE how to respond to customer complaints
• Teach EVERYONE that service is as important as sales
• Teach EVERYONE to ask for more business
• Teach EVERYONE to suggest more
• Teach EVERYONE to thank the customer for their business

Other topics to write about: The following are just some ideas you may use to write value messages to your customers. Please, feel free to use or alter them in any way you see fit.
1. How and why you decided to start your business "X" years ago.
2. The struggles you went through in the beginning stages.
3. The success you experienced over the years.
4. How you initially obtained clients.
5. What you did to keep the clients coming back.
6. How long it took you to become profitable.
7. What you would do different if you had to do it all over again.
8. Why new and existing customers choose you over the competition.
9. What is unique about your product and/or service.
10. Your short-term and long-term goals.
11. How you could help a business owner build their business by purchasing your product or service.

Step 2: Partnering with other companies
Once you re-program your mind to focus on helping other people, you will quickly begin to see the rewards come back ten-fold.
The search engines rank your website/business based off the relativity and quality of content, and even the popularity of your page. Your primary goal is to get to the top of the search engine when a potential customer/client is searching for information. The higher your ranking, the more traffic your site will receive.
One great way to do this is to research for companies you could partner up with to send each other referrals. For example, if you own a printing company, find another company who could refer business to you and vice versa.
I am recommending you contact and build partnerships with such companies in the industries closely related to your business. Once you have built the relationships/partnerships, offer to put a link to their website on yours and once it's completed, ask for the same in return.

Step 3: Never stop learning
The moment you stop improving yourself and/or growing your business will be the moment your company begins to decline in success. It may take five or ten years, but eventually the competition will surpass you. Don't ever get comfortable. Don't ever get content. Company B is always working just as hard, if not harder than you, to become Company A.
Step 4: Using the tools available
There are many great services available to help you build your online presence at little or no cost. Every one of the following sources are imperative to your success so please, make sure to create an account for each of them.
Don't forget to put all the accounts in your business name. This is very important to increase your web presence. No one will know who you are unless you tell them.
Due to editorial guidelines, we are going to list the accounts types based off the most popular search engines and other social and media sites out there: Email, Business Solutions, Site Analytics, Site Pay-Per-Click for Search Engine Optimization, Blogs, Social Networking, Forums, Video Upload Sites, and any other related site out there.

I am the Author, Creator, and President of CloakA.com. I am an entrepreneur and a visionary as well as a motivator and mentor. I will teach you how to build your own successful online business. My 1st book, Money Does Grow on Trees, is a motivational and inspirational book and my 2nd book, How Money Grows on Tress, teaches the nuts and bolts of how to grow your business along side my step-by-step coaching program.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shane Russell is the President of  CloakA Communications (www.cloakaco.com) His weekly CloakAzine is designed to take situations you deal with on a daily basis and relate them to business as well as improving your life. Twitter: @CloakAdotcom
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily that of Trademarkia or it's representatives. Read the latest Trademarka Blog post here.

Thursday Night Roundup: Edition 2

Read the latest Trademarkia Blog Post here: http://blog.trademarkia.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Topics That Got the Internet Interested in the Past Week:

Facebook attempts to sue "Book" and own "Face" from TrademarkiaFacebook Trademark Lawsuit Aims to Limit Use of “Book” by Others from Mashable


Protecting Your Name from Online Impersonators by Kate E. Hutchinson from Ud.com


The Second Coming of Twitter from TrademarkiaTwitter Makes Another Run For “Tweet”, “Twitter” Trademarks from TechCrunch
Twitter is a Twademark. Tweet: Not Yet, Maybe Never from Mashable


Apple’s ‘Ping’ Social Network Is Already Too Big to Fail from WiredApple Introduces “Ping” Music Social Network and iTunes 10 from MashableApple Strikes Trademark Agreement With Golf Equipment Company PING from TechCrunch

Protecting Your Name From Online Impersonators By Kate E. Hutchinson

The first step in establishing your company’s online reputation is defensive registration. Defensive registration of your name or brand across multiple domain types (.com, .net, etc.) helps to prevent cybersquatters from capitalizing on your reputation, or even smearing your name. This tactic works best when you not only register your name as a domain, but also related variations; don’t just register “yourname”.com but also “yournamecompany”.com.

While the rules for combating domain squatters are fairly settled, using the Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP) enforced by ICANN, dealing with social media squatters can be far more complicated. For one thing, social media is a vague term in itself, and social networks and sites have no governing body. For another, the social media industry is constantly in flux, evolving and changing, and refusing to stay in one place. So even though there are legal precedents that handed over specific domain names to trademark owners, there is no similar protection for social media usernames on sites like Twitter or Facebook.

Facebook released a feature giving profiles and pages the option for a vanity URL (i.e. facebook.com/name) in 2009, creating a virtual “land grab” for names on the world’s largest social network. And so, while computer maker Dell was able to handily register the vanity URL facebook.com/dell, Jeremy Fancher was able to register facebook.com/dellcomputer, even though he had no affiliation with the company. Like domain squatters, Fancher’s motive was to sell the vanity URL, whether to Dell or a competitor.

The most famous example of social media impersonation is probably the recent spoofing of BP. After the BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill occurred, a Twitter account under the name BPGlobalPRbegan posting facetious tweets related the oil spill—but none of them actually came from BP’s PR office.  What unfolded was a public relations nightmare for the oil company, as the fake account accumulated thousands of followers, far outstripping the presence of BP’s actual Twitter account, BP_America. 


If you are facing the issue of someone using (or misusing) your trademarked name, there is no single course of action to take; each site has its own policy about imposters. However, Jacob Share has published a reference guide to the impersonation policies of the major social networks, including Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. 


Here are my recommendations for dealing with imposters:

1. Let your network know about the impersonator: this can be done with an email to your distribution list, a post on your official Facebook Page, a tweet from your official Twitter account, or any other social media medium you use, like a company blog. This establishes that you know about the problem and spreads the word not to trust any information that comes from the false account. It also alerts your network that they shouldn’t share any information with the imposter.
2. Alert the site that an imposter is using your name: Contact the customer service center to let them know that someone else is using your name. There may be a procedure to follow, depending on the site’s policies, but it’s important to alert the proper authorities.
3. Send a message to the imposter: Handle this with diplomacy—send a polite note to the imposter, letting them know that your name has been trademarked and that you would like them to stop using your name. Because imposters often have a self-serving agenda, treat them with kid gloves. If possible, consult with counsel to make sure that you are legally protected. Keep copies of all correspondence with the imposter, and leave a paper trail in case you need to take further action.

Kate Hutchinson is the Marketing/Social Media Manager for United Domains, Inc. She blogs at the UD.com Namecheck blog. You can find her on Twitter at @UD_Namecheck.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily that of Trademarkia.
Read the latest Trademarka Blog post here.

Thursday Night Roundup: Edition 1

Read the latest Trademarkia Blog Post here: Are You a Success Story?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Articles That Got the Internet Interested in the Past Week:

HOW TO: Get the Most Out of Your Business Facebook Page

Teachbook Vows Facebook Trademark Suit Fight

4 Things to Consider When Creating a Business Logo

LucasFilm sues firm over 'Jedi Mind' trademark

Apple attempts to patent kill switch that roots out unauthorized users, detects jailbreaks

Snooki and Snooky: Reality TV Star and Cartoon Cat

Thursday Night Roundup

Read the latest Trademarkia Blog post here: Google Refines "Speed Reading"
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Starting tomorrow Thursday, August 26th, 2010; I will compile a list of five-ten interesting stories in the past week and consolidating them all here.

*Sneak Peak*

LucasFilm sues firm over 'Jedi Mind' trademark

Teachbook Vows Facebook Trademark Suit Fight

Snooki and Snooky: Reality TV Star and Cartoon Cat

Unavailable August 10th-20th.

Hi you! First of all, thanks for visiting my blog! Unfortunately, I will be unavailable August 10th through August 20th. However you can email me at maria@trademarkia.com and I will get back to you as soon as possible.


If you need assistance regarding Trademarkia's website, or have questions about trademarking, feel free to contact us at our toll free number at 1 (877) 794 - 9511 and one of our friendly customer service representatives would be glad to assist you.


Read through the latest Trademarkia Blog (http://blog.trademarkia.com/) posts, follow me on Twitter (http://twitter.com/MariaOrlovaTM) add me on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001397028919) , and FriendFeed (http://friendfeed.com/mariaorlovatm). Let me know which other social media sites I should join so I can follow/add/subscribe to you!

Follow me!

Twitter

Linkedin

Facebook

FriendFeed

Digg

*Any other social media sites I should join? Let me know and I'll add you!!*

I also contribute to the Trademarkia Blog!

How to Use Social Media to get a Job

Read Trademarkia's latest blog post here.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Many internet start-ups and small businesses advertise their hiring positions on sites likes Craigslist, Twitter, Linkedin, even Trademarkia! For example, we are currently looking for a Superstar Interaction Designer.

The Search Engine Journal recently posted an article on How to Use Social Media to get a Job.

Some helpful tips and highlights of the article mention having a complete profile: picture, full name, links to your social network profiles, and even your blog (if it is relevant). However, make sure you act professional and separate work from play on your social media accounts. For example, it is a good idea to have separate twitter accounts for your personal opinions (i.e. I just ate a YUMMY sandwich) and your work (i.e. relevant links to news articles, blogs, people, etc...). Twitter utilizes a useful keyword search that may help you find a job! I learned today that Mashable is hiring a Community Assistant via a retweet by @benparr from @ckanel.

Make sure to request recommendations from former employers on Linkedin. You can also link your blog and twitter to automatically update on a news feed, as well as use many of the useful profile applications Linkedin has.

Be aware though, keep your personal social media profiles private, or fix up your Facebook. According to onrec: the global online recruitment resource, there is list of no-no's that employers are turned away from:

1. References to drug abuse
2. Extremist / intolerant views, including racism, sexism
3. Criminal activity
4. Evidence of excessive alcohol consumption
5. Inappropriate pictures, including nudity
6. Foul language
7. Links to unsuitable websites
8. Lewd jokes
9. Silly email addresses
10. Membership of pointless / silly groups

Did you know? Facebook Intellectual Property

Did you know that you can stop someone from using your trademark on facebook? For example if an individual were to try and take the username "JoeysClothing", if that name is trademarked then the trademark owner may file a notice of intellectual property infringement form on Facebook.

Taken from the Facebook Copyright Policy page:

How to Report Claims of Intellectual Property Infringement

Facebook is committed to protecting the intellectual property of third parties. On this page, rights holders will find information regarding how to report copyright and other intellectual property infringements by users posting content on our website, and answers to some frequently asked questions regarding our policies.

If you are a user concerned about the removal of your content, you may file a counter-notice. You can do so through the email notification you received, or in the warning at the top of your home page.

If you are a user concerned about the security of your account, please visit our Security Help Page.

How to report claims of copyright infringement by users

To report a copyright infringement by a Facebook user, all you need to do is fill out our automated DMCA form. This form is the fastest way to report a copyright infringement. Although we will review reports in all languages, it will speed our review if you can submit your report in English.

If you prefer, you can also send a DMCA notice to our designated agent (information below).

How to report other claims of intellectual property infringement by users

If you wish to report other claims of intellectual property infringement (i.e. non-copyright) by a Facebook user, all you need to do is fill out ourautomated IP infringement form. We appreciate your cooperation in providing an English translation of your report, when possible.

Facebook © 2010

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Trademarkia is currently in the process of creating a social media user name check for you to search over 500+ popular social media sites on the availability of your user name. The ♫ upcoming social media feature on Trademarkia is in beta mode, test it out and let us know your feedback. See: http://www.trademarkia.com/social-media-namecheck.aspx.

Guest Blogger?

Hey wouldn't you love to exchange guest articles? If you believe we share a common interest in trademark news and other subjects, feel free to email me at maria@trademarkia.com . I can reply back with a draft of a blog post which you would be welcome to edit. I would enjoy mentioning your work on Trademarkia’s Blog (http://blog.trademarkia.com/) if you want to submit a guest article too.


 Don't forget to add me on Twitter!
(anyone other social networks you would like for me to add? Let me know and I'll be on it in a jiffy!)

Did you know? Trademark Infringement

One can be in violation of trademark infringement for a number of reasons. The most common incidence is when an individual uses a brand name in commerce identical or similarly confusing to a trademark owned by another party. The United States Patent and Trademark Office would send an Office Action letter to a trademark applicant if the new application posed a likelihood of confusion to the consumer.

However, many times, trademark infringement occurs innocently, where the infringer was simply not aware that they were in violation of another party’s trademark. The infringer must comply with a Cease & Desist notice or face legal proceedings.

Over the weekend, two men from Mississippi were in violation of trademark law when they attempted to sell wood as Toshiba brand laptops. More on the story here: http://blog.trademarkia.com/2010/08/02/men-arrested-for-trademark-infringement-for-selling-wood-as-toshiba-laptops/

Trademark Basics

If your not an intellectual property attorney, you probably don't know much about trademarks. Do you know the difference between copyrights, trademarks and patents? If you were to invent the flying car, you would patent the invention. A trademark is used to protect names, logos and slogans; so for example, the company name, brand name and tagline. A copyright is used to protect literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works; in this example, the manual to the flying car can be copyrighted.

Frequently asked questions about Trademarks:

• What is a trademark or a service mark?
• Who can apply for a trademark?
• Do I have to register my trademark?
• What are common law trademark rights?
• Can I obtain a U.S. federal trademark registration for anything?
• Can trademark rights be assigned or transferred from one person to another?
• Will registration protect my mark overseas?
• Will I receive a registration if I don't use the mark at all?
• What are Trademark classes?
• What constitutes interstate commerce?
• When can I use ™ or ®?

About Me

Hey! My name is Maria Orlova and I am Publicity and Media Relations at Trademarkia. This blogger is going to journal my personal interests in the field of intellectual property, marketing, public relations and business.

About Trademarkia

Trademarkia is the largest, most accurate, free visual search engine for more than 6 million trademarked logos, names, and slogans on the Internet. Trademarkia offers up to the minute contextual information about current use of trademarks filed since the year 1870. The integration of services and content enables brands to monitor marks and new brands to design and register new marks or select from among expired marks. Trademarkia allows small businesses to protect their brand names using software and technology tools that help facilitate, simplify and automate trademark processes. Trademarkia is headquartered in Mountain View, California. For more information about Trademarkia, please go to our About Us page.

Follow me:
Twitter
Linkedin
Facebook
FriendFeed

*Any other social media sites I should join? Let me know and I'll add you!!*

I also contribute to the Trademarkia Blog!