Protecting Your Work
Hello Community! Thanks for joining us here in the Community for today's Business Discussion post. Today I'm sharing a post from the QuickBooks Blog that talks about how to protect your work as a small business owner and get the credit you deserve.
Terms to take note of:
- Intellectual property: Intellectual property (commonly referred to as IP) is anything you’ve created with your mind, like an invention, a work of art, or a brand name. Patents, trademarks, and copyright are all examples of intellectual property protections.
- Trademark: Trademarks apply specifically to the language and designs you use to identify and market your product, like a brand name or a logo. Unlike copyrights and patents, trademarks never expire.
- Copyright: Think of copyright as a patent for written and visual works, like novels, poems, art, and architecture. These protections begin from the moment you create your work, whether or not you’ve gotten around to publishing it. A copyright generally lasts for the life of the creator plus another 70 years.
- Public domain: Works that are either ineligible for copyright protection or, more often, whose copyright has expired fall within the public domain — which means that the author does not need to grant permission for their use or distribution.
The post goes on to explain how to protect your small business branding; which consists of trademarks for assets like your company name, your logo, and any taglines or slogans you might want to use. Additionally, you can read more about how to protect your products, how to receive the credit you deserve, and more. The comments are open for your stories and experience. Take care friends!