Top 10 Branding Mistakes That Diminish Business Value

Top 10 Branding Mistakes That Diminish Business Value
By Cheryl L. Hodgson, J.D.

Branding is one of the most important parts of any business and successful branding starts with the registration and maintenance of trademarks. Filing a trademark application might seem simple but in reality, it is the steps you take both before and after the application that really count. In the branding process, companies often face a fork in the brand path, one direction leads to Brand Distinction and the other leads to Brand Extinction. Here are the top ten branding mistakes to avoid so that you can follow the path to Brand Distinction:

Branding is one of the most important parts of any business and successful branding starts with the registration and maintenance of trademarks. Filing a trademark application might seem simple but in reality, it is the steps you take both before and after the application that really count. In the branding process, companies often face a fork in the brand path, one direction leads to Brand Distinction and the other leads to Brand Extinction. Here are the top ten branding mistakes to avoid so that you can follow the path to Brand Distinction:

Branding is one of the most important parts of any business. Successful branding begins with the registration and maintenance of trademarks. Filing a trademark application might seem simple, but in reality, the steps you take both before and after the application is filed are even more important. In the branding process, companies often face a fork in the brand path, one direction leads to Brand Distinction and the other leads to Brand Extinction. Here are the top ten branding mistakes to avoid so that you can follow the path to Brand Distinction:

1. Selection and use of a word or phrase without conducting a proper search and investigation of prior users of the term. Conduct an investigation prior to your use, since sued by a third party, the failure to perform a search prior to adoption and use can be considered evidence of bad faith and used against you in court.

2. Failure to analyze the results of investigative search reports carefully and failure to use them as a tool to position the brand in the market with a clear registration strategy. Look for the intersection where selection can meet protection. A trademark is a shield and a sword. Stake out your turf and fence it in.

3. Adoption and use of weak terms that describe the goods and services or contain the generic term of the product. Terms which describe the goods or services, or the characteristics of your goods and services can not be registered and make legal protection difficult if not impossible. Successful registrations of weak terms create a false sense of security, and these types of marks require constant vigilance.

4. Incorrect use of trademarks in advertising and marketing materials leading to loss of rights. Trademarks should be used as adjectives, not verbs or nouns for the goods or services.

5. Improper trademark filings that are too narrow or overbroad, leading to increased risks of rejection or opposition by third parties that you could have avoided. Do it yourself, but only if you understand what you are doing because up to 80% of all filings receive a rejection or Office Action from a trademark lawyer working for the Trademark Office

6. Failure to protect a personal name as a brand when appropriate. An individual's name can be extremely valuable and should be registered and protected as a trademark when used to market or endorse goods and services. For example, authors teaching workshops, or offering services on line will benefit greatly from a registration as a means of preventing unauthorized use of one's name in domains or for competitive goods and services. Just because your parents gave you that name does not mean you automatically own rights for it as a brand.

7. Erroneous belief that trademark registration is enough to protect rights. A trademark registration is a piece of paper, not the property itself. While a registration gives certain statutory rights and presumptions, one should not ignore the marketplace. Trademarks and brands can comprise up to 70% of the value of a business and require ongoing management.

8. Failure to monitor and police trademark rights against new entrants into the market by use of expert counsel. Trademark rights are lost if the term becomes generic some examples being "aspirin" and "escalator" Therefore, be alert and show infringers who is in control by notifying unauthorized users of similar marks for related goods and services of your rights.

9. Mistaking a domain registration with trademark and brand protection. Clients have lost their domains and have been sued because they failed to register a trademark for their goods and services.

10. Failure to maintain and renew registrations as required. Clients who treat registration as a commodity often fail to file necessary documents to keep registrations in effect. Trademarks require "maintenance" filings between the end of the 5^th and 6^th years from registration, and renewal after 10 years.

7 Things You Really Must Do to Make On-the-Job Training Successful in Small-Medium Business

7 Things You Really Must Do to Make On-the-Job Training Successful in Small-Medium Business
By Leon Noone

Summary
Whether training a new or current employee the old adage still applies. "If the student hasn't learnt, the teacher hasn't taught". In the workplace you also suffer a major penalty. It costs you heaps when employees can't do their jobs properly because of poor training.

1. Specify What They'll Be Able To Do At The End
The purpose of training is to get a job done well. The first thing to do is to state what the trainees will be able to do at the end of the training that they couldn't do at the start. The operative word is "do": not understand, appreciate, grasp or any of these other fuzzy verbs; "do". If you can't measure it don't teach it. And you can only measure what the trainee can do.

2. Specify What They Need To Know
In order to be able to "do" trainees need knowledge. Only when you've stated what they need to be able to do can you specify what they need to know. Be careful. Don't overdo the "knows". For example, you don't need to know how a PC works in order to be able to operate it. But you do need to know how to read various screens and what data represents.

Stating the "able to do" and "need to know" matters is the key to successful on job training. Do this before you start. If you don't, your trainees won't learn what's essential.

3. Set Performance Standards For "Do" And "Know"
It's not enough to say "be computer literate" or "operate all company computer systems". You need to add "how often", "how well", "how quickly", "how accurately". You must decide how you would measure competence and what you'd consider to be adequate knowledge. This degree of detail also gives the trainee clearly defined goals and standards and a clear idea of how his or her competence will be assessed.

4. Replicate Job Conditions
This is the golden rule: replicate actual working conditions as accurately as possible. Use tools and equipment in good working order exactly as the trainee would find them on the job. If you can run the training in the trainees' normal workplace, that's ideal. You can learn to drive in the family sedan. But it's no place to learn to be a Formula One racing driver.

5. Treat Safety Seriously
Be casual about safety and that's what trainees will learn. Ensure that all safety procedures and practices are followed exactly. Imagine that you're teaching the trainee how to throw a hand grenade safely and accurately for maximum effect. Be as careful as you would in those circumstances.

6. Plan Carefully And In Great Detail
You might be the best trainer working with the smartest trainee. It doesn't matter. Your training will be as successful as the thoroughness of your planning. You have your "able to do", "need to know" and "performance standards". That's an excellent basis for your training plan. To develop your plan start with the end goal and work backwards to the start - where you'll commence the training. Include competency checks at various stages of the plan. And don't move to a new training phase until you're satisfied with trainee competence in the previous phase.

7. Test Before Training
There's one last thing to do before you actually start training. You must test each trainee before starting the training. Use the competency checks you've built into your training plan. If you're satisfied that the trainee is competent in any areas, don't train in those. Nothing irritates trainees than being taught something that they're already good at. It wastes your time and resources too.

Conclusion
It's what you do before you start training that determines whether or not your training will be successful. It's been said so often it's a cliché. But it merits repeating in this context. "if you don't know where you're going, how will you know when you've arrived"?

Leon Noone helps managers in small-medium business to improve on-job staff performance without training courses. Some say his ideas are too unconventional. Find out for yourself by reading his free Special Report "49 Practical Tips For Better People Management In Small-Medium Business". Simply visit http://www.leons7secrets.com and download your free copy now.