If you are serious about earning income through Amazon, then you understand the importance of Amazon Brand Registry. It is no secret that Amazon significantly favors businesses registered on the Brand Registry. For example, only registered brands can use rich text and images in their listings. Furthermore, Amazon excludes non-registered brands from its most important business-building tools, including Amazon Brand Analytics, Sponsored Brands, and Amazon Stores. Finally, unless you register your brand with Amazon Brand Registry, you have no recourse against counterfeiters who use your own brand to steal your customers, while damaging your reputation you worked so hard to acquire. Good news: we can help you enroll your brand in Amazon Brand Registry in under a week.
Step 1: Apply for trademark registration with the USPTO
First things first, you need to apply for a federal trademark registration with the United States Trademark and Patent Office (USPTO). The process may seem simple, but it is unforgiving. A single mistake on your trademark application can lead to a rejection from the USPTO. If you value your brand, our advice is to hire an experienced trademark attorney. Your brand is too important to entrust to a non-attorney.
When is the best time to apply for the trademark registration?
The best time to apply for a trademark registration is prior to launching your brand. Many business owners and non-attorneys have a misconception that to secure a trademark registration, the trademark must be actively in-use. This is not true. In fact, the USPTO has a specific mechanism called Intent-To-Use, which allows you to have your trademark examined and allowed before you start using it in commerce. This route is highly advantageous. Essentially, the USPTO vets your trademark candidate and informs you whether this trademark is registrable. In this manner, when you do launch your business, you will have a peace of mind that your marketing dollars are being invested into a brand to which you have exclusive nationwide rights. In addition, by being proactive, you will have Amazon’s powerful branding and marketing tools at your disposal right off the bat.
What if you already have a live Amazon listing for your brand, but have not yet registered your trademark with the USPTO? No worries: better later than never. If your listing is already live, we strongly recommend applying for a federal trademark registration as soon as possible. The USPTO examination process is the same regardless of whether your trademark is an “intent-to-use” or is already actively used in commerce.
Step 2: Launch your brand
To enroll into Amazon Brand Registry, Amazon requires that your brand must be actively in use on Amazon marketplace. As a part of the enrollment process, Amazon will require you to provide your ASIN and photographs of the packaging prominently displaying your brand.
Step 3: Apply for Amazon Brand Registry
After we file your trademark application, the USPTO will assign your trademark a serial number within a week. At this point, you can sign in to your Amazon Brand Registry account and request to enroll your brand. The process is simple. All you have to do is provide Amazon with the requested information, including your trademark serial number. We handle the rest.
Amazon will automatically determine that we are the law firm listed on your trademark application. Then, Amazon will contact us directly to confirm that you are indeed our client and that we have filed the trademark application on your behalf. We generally respond to Amazon Brand Registry requests within one business hour. After Amazon receives our confirmation, your enrollment process is complete. We will continue to monitor your trademark application/registration and will make sure that everything stays up-to-date.
Please visit our Services page dedicated to Amazon Patent and Trademark Infringement.
