Marketing Without Getting Sued – Tips Every Small Business Must Know

Be careful with how you advertise, or you could violate copyright or trademark laws. Learn to avoid that.

That Name or Logo You’re Using? It May Be Trademark Infringement!

Imagine spending thousands on branding and marketing, only to get a cease-and-desist letter because your business name, logo, slogan, or other piece of brand identity is too close to someone else’s.
That’s called trademark infringement, and it can shut you down and cost you a bundle. Let’s make sure that doesn’t happen to you.

Are You Stealing Without Knowing It? Copyright Risks in Marketing

🚨 Did you know that using the wrong image, song, or video clip in your marketing could land you in a lawsuit? 🚨
Copyright infringement doesn’t just happen to big corporations—it’s a major risk for small businesses too. I’ll walk you through how to stay safe.
This applies if you create your own marketing content or if you have your internal marketing department or hire a marketing service to do it for you. If you use the wrong thing, YOU’RE going to be the one in trouble.

Do You REALLY Own Your Business Name?

You put a great deal of effort into choosing the perfect name for your business. You registered the business with the Secretary of State in every state in which you operate. That’s all you need to own your business name, right? Wrong.

Riffs of Risk: Are you using a “personal” account for your business on social media?

The pitfalls of using music on your personal account to promote your business, and how to avoid them.

Petrifying Patents – Creepy Candy Carriers

The lighter side of Halloween-themed patents, explored through patents for pumpkin-shaped candy carriers. You’ll never look at trick-or-treating the same way again! Mwahahahaha!

Petrifying Patents – Devilish Design Patents

I’m just going to talk about design patents a bit and show some Halloween and horror-related design patents, which are just for how things look.

Can You Copyright or Trademark a Logo Designed by AI?

The legal world is buzzing about AI and its use for all kinds of things, including generating logos, text, and other things people would normally want to register for copyright or trademark protection. I’m particularly nerding out over these issues, because my master’s degree project involved training of artificial intelligence systems.

There’s no doubt AI is incredibly useful for things like this, though there is still no substitute for a real human author or artist. But what rights do you have to what it create for you? Keep in mind the generators are trained on existing material, including things that are protected by copyright, trademark registration, and patents. There haven’t been a lot of court decisions on this precise topic yet, so the law is not completely settled, but there are some certainties and principles of law that can guide you.

Brand Security: Exclusive Rights and Protection Provided by Trademark Registration

What is the difference in trademark rights provided by no registration, state registration, and federal registration? Learn why federal registration is essential for having the strongest trademark rights possible.