How do you use trademarks creatively to generate a sense of uniqueness in the marketplace, even if you don't have something unique?

Jack Welch the former CEO of General Electric famously said, If you don't have a competitive advantage—don't compete. And really, what it boils down to is that it's not enough to be good anymore, it's not enough to be better, it's not enough to be the best. You have to be able to say, We are the only ones in the marketplace who does something.

And a trademark could be a great vehicle to get you there, even if your products and services are no different from the products and services of your competition.

Trademark a Product Feature

The best example comes from Ford. They used to have an ad (actually a series of ads) that they ran on TV. They all finished with Only Ford has EcoBoost fuel economy. And interestingly, they never told you what EcoBoost fuel economy was.

They didn't tell you how it was better or how it was different from everybody else who makes cars. They didn't tell you what made it special, they didn't tell you if it was about ecology or economy. All that they told you is that Ford was the only car that had it.

So here is how it works. You come up with a feature that's important to your market. And importantly, the feature itself does not have to be unique. All it has to be is important to your potential buyers.

And then, here is the crucial piece: you give that feature a name. And that name has to be unique. The name can't be descriptive. It has to be really unique, something that nobody else has.

Then, as long as the name meets all these criteria, you can easily trademark that name. This will mean you have uncontested access to that name as it relates to your service. You can advertise it as special, even if it’s not. You don’t need to go into detail about what it means. Instead, you just want to focus on the name you have trademarked.

So get a feature, give a name, then trademark that name.

Advertising Your Trademark

And then use it everywhere: use it on your website, use it on your business cards, use it in your flyers, use it in your videos, use it everywhere, and always say: We are the only company that has [this name] when we are providing our services.

And the example that I came up with is a silly example, but I like it nevertheless. I tried to think of a boring profession, and what I came up with is a mortgage broker. They all pretty much do the same thing. And they all say that they are personable. And they all say they are reliable. And they all say they have integrity as to when they look for better rates for you.

So, how do you stand out? And I thought, hmm, what if you were to say, I am the only mortgage broker in the world who uses the IHNC calculator to come up with the best rates for your particular situation?

That sounds sexy, right?

Until you ask them, well, what does the IHNC calculator stand for?

And IHNC stands for I Have No Clue.

But, here is the thing. That was a silly example, of course. But even that still makes the service more desirable, because it creates interest, it creates intrigue, it creates something that differentiates you from everybody else. And humans are made the way that if somebody tells you that they are the only ones who do something, you automatically assume that it's gotta be good. 

Trademark Marketing Strategy

So, use the strategy: come up with a feature, give it a name, trademark the name, and make sure that you deliver the message to everyone that you're the only one in the world who has this feature—because that feature has the particular name; even if everybody else's services have the same feature as well. They just can't call it that.

Trademarks are always a great tool to protect your brand to make it easier for you to conduct business and grow your company. But with this creative strategy, you can also use trademarks as part of your business model to create intrigue and grow your brand image. Lots of big companies, like Ford, use this strategy, and there’s no reason you can use it as well.