If you have started a business and created your brand and logo you may want to know how

to register a trademark in India.

What is a trademark?

Your Brand in India A Trademark (TM) in India includes:

y y y y y y y y y y

Word or letter Device Brand Logo Slogan Label, ticket, name, signature Three dimensional shapes Numeral, shape of goods, packaging or Combination of colours Sound mark

When you register a trade mark in India you should:

y y y y

Avoid Selection of identical, similar and deceptively similar trade marks Avoid possible conflicts & infringement action Avoid unnecessary costs Avoid unnecessary opposition at the trade mark office

So how to register a trademark in India?

Before filing an application for registration of a mark in India, it is advisable to conduct searches to insure that the mark has not been used and registered by someone else in India. Such trademark searches can be made online, at he the Office of the Trademark Registry, by anyone who has an account with an Indian bank to enable payment to that trademark office (you will also need an Indian address and fill form TM-54). But it is faster and easier to appoint a trademark law firm in India to do the searches and submit application for your company.

Selecting your trademark section

Before registering a trademark in India you should however know for which category (and subcategory) you want to register your trademark. You can choose your product or service categories in which your business operates (or plans to operate) at the World Intellectual Property Organization. The site shows you all the 34 goods classes and 11 service classes. For each class you register a trademark in India, you will have to pay extra, the selection of several subcategories will however not attract any extra cost. It is therefore advisable to select all the relevant indications of goods or services in the selected section. The application can be submitted at one of the Trade Mark Registry offices in India in Mumbai (Head Office), Delhi, Kolkata, Ahmedabad or Chennai. The cost for the registration of a trademark in India is 3,500 Rs (60 ) for each section (this is a Government fee and does not include any property consultant or law firm fee for preparing the application and eventual oppositions to be filed in case the application is rejected).

Foreign companies who want to register a trademark in India

If the applicant has already applied for Trademark protection in one of the countries belonging to the Paris Convention or signatories of the TRIPS Agreement of the World Trade Organization (WTO), then an application for registration can be filed in India claiming the property of registration from earlier corresponding application in the convention country, provided that the application is filed in India six months of the priority date.

Duration and validity of a trademark registration in India

Usually, the Indian Trademark Registry grants the registration within a year, but sometimes in can take longer. The registration is valid for a period of 10 years, and may be renewed for further periods of 10 years each with payment of the renewal fee of 5,000 Rupees (80 ). So, a brand, if renewed on time, can be protected in India indefinitely. When considering the investments companies are making to create their brands when entering the Indian market or launching a new product or service, it is very advisable to register a trademark in India as soon as possible before other companies will use the same or a similar mark.

According to William J. McEwen, senior consultant at Gallup, companies should try to connect with their customers on an emotional level. In his book Married to the brand, Why consumers bond with brands for life Mc Ewen asks the questions how and why certain companies manage to create succesful brands. Succesful brands like Coca Cola, BMW, Harley Davidson offer a return to the customer and have a reputation for creating strong consumer bonds. How they do it? If customers marry a brand it means more than just buying a branded product, in fact most brands are married to only a small percentage of their customers. To reach the altar companies neet to go the extra mile and carefully listen to the voices of their customers. The

company must reinforce the brand promise at every touch point with the customer. So it is important that every employee is involved in relationship management. The AIDA formula: build Awareness, arouse Interest, create Desire and spur Action is not enough. Most brands are created and managed by talented individuals like Ray Korc at McDonlads or Steve Jobs at Apple. Brand managers must differentiate their products from others and highlight their benefits. The brand message must be credible, compelling and connecting to turn a prospect into a first date. Each brand relation begins with a brand promise. Succesful promises can be:
y y y y y

A solution to a problem Peace of mind Sense of status & prestige A feeling of self-image and self completion A sense of membership

The 4 Ps (Product, Place, Promotion, Price) are not enough any more a brand marriages requires the fifth P People. The employees who interact with the customers on a daily basis (the front line people) are the brand. In order to build a strong brand, companies need to fully engage their customers. According to Gallup there are four categories of engagement: 1. 2. 3. 4. Fully engaged: customers are passionate about a brand Engaged: customers feel an emotional bond Not engaged: customers use a product, but have no strong feelings for it Actively disengaged: there is no connection to the brand and customers could switch easily

To build a strong brand, marketing managers need to create a connection far beyond price and location, thy need to articulate the brand promise, align the customers touch points and try to fully engage the customers. Companies which succeed doing this can count on many brand ambassadors who will automatically spread the brand message to relatives and friends.

Building a brand online has become a must for every small and medium sized business and individual professionals. The times of I know this guy, who knows that guy so I will try to put you in touch are (almost) over. Everyone seeking a product, service or person will go online to compare, connect and get information. So how can SMEs build a strong brand online? According to Michel Joel, Canadas most influential male in social media there are some basic rules individuals and SMEs need to follow to build a successful brand online: 1. Stay informed: Using RSS feeds like Google Reader, iGoogle, My Yahoo and Netvibes will help you to stay on top of all the news in your particular industry.

2. You need a plan: Plan your showcasing and promotion strategy. What do you want to accomplish online? Once you have a strategy follow blogs and engage in industry forums. Try to contribute something valuable and try to keep the conversation alive. 3. Build a community of like-minded people with whom you can share ideas and do business with: you can start with a blog, online social media groups (Facebook, Linkedin), micro blog (Twitter) or a podcast (audio / video content). Keep in mind: whoever has and creates the best content wins. 4. Build a terrific website: Apart from blogging, social media, and forum posts you need to have a well maintained website, which is easy to navigate and demonstrates the same level of quality as your other web content. 5. Convey helpfulness and sincerity: You cant fake passion, so ensure that your message is genuine and try to focus on a special niche, even a very small one. You should speak like a human being not a press release. 6. Content is king: write short, punchy, memorable, fun and most importantly, simple. The material you publish should thoroughly engage your target. 7. Apart from text use good images, audio and video (YouTube) 8. Plan a robust mobile strategy: the future is going to be mobile so try to design your website in a way that it works also on small and keep the navigation simple. 9. Try to deliver the right message and the right type of content at the right time.

Seven Tips for Europeans to Win in Asia BusinessWeek

Written August 24th, 2010 by Andreas De Rosi Categories: Globalisation, Going Global, India, International Business, Investing in India, Marketing Strategy Tags: doing business in india, Europeans in Asia, Invest in Asia, Invest India 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Maximize human capital Create an innovation supply chain Invest in consumer insight Employ a global mindset Mitigate risk effectively Rethink consumption and distribution Create an advisory-led business

Sales and Marketing in India

Written August 16th, 2010 by Andreas De Rosi Categories: Business Strategy, E-Book Series: Doing Business in India, India, International Trade, Marketing Strategy, Sales Tags: doing business in india, India, india business, india marketing, marketing in india, sales and marketing, sales and marketing in india

Doing business in India? Read this 10 Sales & Marketing Tips

Finding the right Marketing Solutions Sales and marketing in India are quite different. After all, you need to take into consideration the culture, demographics, and even geography of the country. To help you out, you can make use of the following insights and tips:

1. Mumbai is the place to be

Though there are many growing centers in the country, only one is considered to be the main center when it comes to sales and marketing in India: Mumbai. Formerly known as Bombay, it has several promotional agencies, which can help you find advertising spaces in different parts of the country.

2. English is fine, but localisation is better

Many speak, write, and understand English. Hence, advertising using your own language will not be too difficult. However, you may still want to translate some of your promotional materials to Hindi. It still remains the number 1 spoken language here. Some areas in the region do have their own dialects such as Punjabi. You may also want to consider dialect translation.

3. Find yourself an expert or guide

Its best to work with an Indian partner. The partner doesnt have to be someone related to your business. You can find a translator, interpreter, or a guide. You can also hire a professional consultant who can help you assess the demographics and personalities of your chosen target market and assist you to develop the right sales and marketing strategy in India.

4. Identify clusters to find your target audience

The country is divided into different industrial clusters. These clusters are developed according to the kind of livelihood or businesses that are found within the area. You can use these clusters to determine the kinds of people you can go for as your target market.

5. Get your ads on TV

If youre targeting the middle class, you may want to get a spot on TV. India has a lot of English-speaking channels such as Star TV. Again, though, you may want to be a little bit creative with your advertisement by having them in Hindi.

6. If you can not afford TVgo for print ads

India does have quite a number of publications, but the business magazines and journals have dramatically increased over the years. Some of these newspapers are Business World, Business Today, Business India, and India Today.

7. Keep in mind different religions

Religion plays an integral role and you should keep this in mind when creating your Sales and Marketing Strategy in India. This means you have to be sensitive to the culture. You can also easily reach out to the Indian audience if you can publish greetings or offer special promos during special holidays like Diwali, the biggest Hindu festival

8. Make use of direct marketing

Direct marketing has been enhanced. Though it still takes a while for posts and mails to arrive, you can count that they will certainly reach your targeted customers. If you want something very fast, then definitely you have to go for e-mail. As a growing IT hub in Asia, a huge number of people knows very well how to use the Internet and social media like Twitter and Facebook. (According to InternetWorldStats.com 81 Million Indians use the Internet). Read more about direct sales and marketing in India on the India Direct Marketing Association website.

9. Go door to door
Its common for business to engage in door-to-door sales. You may want to do this if you want to reach out to your target customers who are living in villages, especially when posts and telecommunications are still in the process of being improved.

10. Hire the right sales people: from VIPs to hawkers

You may also want to be creative while youre doing that. Some would hire beauty queens and other well-known people to help them known on peoples doors and sell their products and services. If you want to go cheap, you can look for hawkers who can do contractual jobs for you. These people are actually recognized in the business sector since they generate thousands of businesses and rupees for the country.

More tips on Sales and Marketing in India will follow shortly Leave your comments, suggestions and tips about sales and marketing in India

The following article series Marketing in India will cover Kottlers 4 Ps (Product, Promotions, Price and Place), with focus on the Indian market. This first article will talk about the right product strategy for the Indian market. The upcoming articles will then cover the promotion, price and distributions strategy for international companies, which want to successfully sell their products in India.

When launching new products in India, companies should look at their products from different perspectives and then try to cover each aspect step by step in order to develop a successful product strategy for the Indian market. The most important part of a product is the core functionality. Electronic products normally dont need to be adapted to the Indian market: Samsungs LCDs look the same in Dubai, Hong Kong and New Delhi. But in the food sector for example products almost always need major changes (example: more spicy taste, removal of non-vegetarian ingredients etc.).
he second aspect marketing managers should look at when developing their product strategy for the Indian consumer market is: packaging. The most common example used in marketing text books is the 1 Rs. (0,02 ) shampoo pack. Sunsilk, Unilever s leading hair care brand, can be found at every corner shop in small packages (enough for using it once or twice or maybe just to try it out). The reach of smaller packs is much wider, and considering India s huge population a lot of small packs can result in quite high overall sales.

Along with the packaging comes the brand name. A strong brand name like Harley Davidson (which recently entered India), can surely make a big difference. If a company

does not have a global brand name, it should consider renaming its product for the Indiana market. Choosing the right brand name is a fundamental part when developing a product strategy for the Indian market. The German Ice cream maker Langnese-Iglo for example is selling its ice cream under the Langnese brand in Germany, but it is retailing under the brand name Walls in Asia. With 18 official languages and thousands of dialects, finding the right name for a product may be a difficult task and before launching a new product nationwide, overseas companies should ask for advise from marketing experts and potential consumers in different regions of India. In this way, selling in India is almost like selling in Europe, with its different languages and customs. Last, but certainly not least, international companies have to offer a good sales service and after sales service. Like in every country a well organised and effective customer service, warranty services, free home delivery and other goodies will increase customer satisfaction. Global companies should try to build up a strong relationship with their customers and offer locality schemes along with their products. This is also a way to gain valuable customer insights and can be used at a later stage to introduce better products

Product Decision Example Product design Will the design be the selling point for the organisation as we have seen with the iPad, the new VW Beetle or the Dyson Ball vacuum cleaner. Product quality Quality has to consistent with other elements of the marketing mix. A premium based pricing strategy has to reflect the quality a product offers Product features What features will you add that may increase the benefit offered to your target market? Will the organisation use a discriminatory pricing policy for offering these additional benefits? Product branding One of the most important decisions a marketing manager can make is about branding. The value of brands in todays environment is phenomenal. Brands have the power of instant sales, they convey a message of confidence, quality and reliability to their target market.
Level 1: Core Product. What is the core benefit your product offers?. Customers who purchase a camera are buying more then just a camera they are purchasing memories. Level 2 Actual Product: All cameras capture memories. The aim is to ensure that your potential customers purchase your one. The strategy at this level involves organisations branding, adding features and benefits to ensure that their product offers a differential advantage from their competitors. Level 3: Augmented product: What additional non-tangible benefits can you offer? Competition at this level is based around after sales service, warranties, delivery and so on. John Lewis a retail departmental store offers free five year guarantee on purchases of their Television sets, this gives their `customers the additional benefit of peace of mind over the five years should their purchase develop a fault.

Concentric diversification
This means that there is a technological similarity between the industries, which means that the firm is able to leverage its technical know-how to gain some advantage. For example, a company that manufactures industrial adhesives might decide to diversify into adhesives to be sold via retailers. The technology would be the same but the marketing effort would need to change. It also seems to increase its market share to launch a new product that helps the particular company to earn profit. For instance, the addition of tomato ketchup and sauce to the existing "Maggi" brand processed items of Food Specialities Ltd. is an example of technologicalrelated concentric diversification. The company could seek new products that have technological or marketing synergies with e xisting product lines appealing to a new group of customers.This also helps the company to tap that part of the market which remains untapped, and which presents an opportunity to earn profits.

[edit] Horizontal diversification

The company adds new products or services that are often technologically or commercially unrelated to current products but that may appeal to current customers. In a competitive environment, this form of diversification is desirable if the present customers are loyal to the current products and if the new products have a good quality and are well promoted and

priced. Moreover, the new products are marketed to the same economic environment as the existing products, which may lead to rigidity and instability. In other words, this strategy tends to increase the firm's dependence on certain market segments. For example, a company that was making notebooks earlier may also enter the pen market with its new product.
[edit] Another interpretation

Horizontal integration occurs when a firm enters a new business (either related or unrelated) at the same stage of production as its current operations. For example, Avon's move to market jewelry through its door-to-door sales force involved marketing new products through existing channels of distribution. An alternative form of that Avon has also undertaken is selling its products by mail order (e.g., clothing, plastic products) and through retail stores (e.g.,Tiffany's). In both cases, Avon is still at the retail stage of the production process.

[edit] Conglomerate diversification (or lateral diversification)

Main article: Conglomerate (company)

The company markets new products or services that have no technological or commercial synergies with current products but that may appeal to new groups of customers. The conglomerate diversification has very little relationship with the firm's current business. Therefore, the main reasons of adopting such a strategy are first to improve the profitability and the flexibility of the company, and second to get a better reception in capital markets as the company gets bigger. Even if this strategy is very risky, it could also, if successful, provide increased growth and profitability.