Scenario: coffee company “R.” built 5 years around the slogan “Awaken Every Sense” — on packaging, signage, advertising everywhere. One day, a new rival launches with “Awaken Every Sense of Yours” for their campaign. Customers assume the brands are related. R. is furious — but the slogan was never trademarked. Still actionable? Yes — but via detours, and the expensive lesson: slogans must be registered like trademarks.
Slogans are trademarks: registrable!
Many businesses don’t know: commercial slogans are registrable as trademarks — distinctive word signs. Requirement: the slogan must be distinctive (not generic descriptive phrases like “tasty, nutritious, cheap”). “Awaken Every Sense” — distinctive → registrable. With a title:
- A rival’s confusingly similar slogan = trademark infringement → sue for cessation + damages;
- “Awaken Every Sense of Yours” adding two words doesn’t escape — the test is confusion, not identity.
Unregistered: 2 detours
- Detour 1 — Unfair competition: under the Competition Law, using a slogan that confuses with another business’s reputable slogan is unfair competition. Requirements: prove your slogan has reputation (R.’s 5 years of advertising = good evidence) + the rival’s use confuses;
- Detour 2 — Copyright: a creative slogan (not an ordinary phrase) may be protected as a work — rival copying = copyright infringement. Harder (must prove creativity), but a fallback.
Act now: 4 steps
- Step 1 — File the slogan trademark NOW: even mid-dispute, today’s filing protects tomorrow — and grounds future cases;
- Step 2 — Gather evidence: 5 years of slogan advertising (ad invoices, signage photos, packaging), confused-customer surveys, the rival’s ads (notarized);
- Step 3 — Warning letter: demand cessation by deadline — many cases end here when rivals see a 5-year reputation file;
- Step 4 — Sue: unfair competition (plus trademark infringement once titled) — cessation + damages.
Prevention: treat slogans like brand names
- Trademark every slogan upon adoption — small cost, big effect;
- Use consistently (one slogan, not rotating) to accumulate reputation — reputation is the “capital” for unfair-competition claims;
- Monitor the market — early detection, cheap resolution. Set calendar reminders to re-check registries yearly: slogans evolve, and each new tagline deserves the same filing discipline as the first.
Frequently asked questions
Can generic slogans (“the tastiest”) register?
Hard — purely quality-descriptive slogans lack distinctiveness and face refusal. The more creative the slogan, the easier to register and defend.
Rival adds words to my slogan — infringement?
The test is confusion — adding/dropping words doesn’t escape if the overall impression still confuses. “Of Yours” doesn’t save the scenario’s rival.
Filing mid-dispute — in time?
File broadly: register the slogan in both standard-character and stylized forms where budget allows — stylized filings protect the logo lockup while standard-character filings block rivals from using the words in any typeface.
In time for the future — later-granted titles still cover continuing acts. But the current case must go via unfair competition/copyright. Hence: don’t wait for disputes to file.
How many slogans can one company use?
Unlimited — each registered slogan is an independent trademark. But focusing on 1–2 main slogans builds stronger reputation than spreading thin.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council