I have a logo design idea that I've put together, how can I check if the logo or idea has already been used elsewhere?
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3Post it here so we can give a more informed comment?– LucianJan 23, 2017 at 7:24
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If you are truly concerned about conflict then one thing you might ask about is whether or not something like "logo insurance" exists. Even if your work is truly original, what's stopping from someone else from plagiarizing yours and then taking you to court? With some sort of insurance you will be able to get qualified lawyers to defend you in court with no money out of your pocket. My vision of "logo insurance" falls along the same lines as title insurance for a house. If it does exist then I am certain it would be less expensive than re-branding the company.– MonkeyZeusJan 23, 2017 at 15:08
3 Answers
The answer you probably aren't going to like....
A Trademark Search
See here -> US Patent office: Conducting a Trademark Search
If you are truly interested in ensuring a logo or brand is not in use elsewhere, you customarily hire someone to do a trademark search. There are attorneys which specialize in trademarks and patents.
This is similar to when you register a business name, a search should be performed to ensure you aren't infringing on some other business already in the same market.
You can do reverse image searching and all that, but really those will only placate your immediate gratification urges. Although in some cases that may be enough. These types of searches are in no way sufficient for legal means. They are merely a cursory examination of what may be on the internet not everything which may exist. There are millions of brands and logos which may very well not be on the internet.
But if you want to legally be certain you have a unique mark... you generally need a professional (customarily an attorney) to search for you. They know the ins and outs of any issues.
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If it's a monogram search the letters on Google and see if they've been used before.
Upload your logo to tinyeye.com and Google's reverse image search to see if it looks like something that's been used before.
If you made it from scratch not copying anything you can be pretty sure it's yours, unique and safe to use.
If it looks possibly like another brand then you might run into legal trouble and could be told to take it down.
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1In practice i have found that this does not work as well as one would like to.– joojaaJan 23, 2017 at 10:31
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