Sunday, March 7, 2010

Five steps to creating a brand value - The Billion Dollar Cookie

The cookie billion dollars is a story about the importance of trademarks.

How could a cookie value of a billion dollars?

Join me on a trip to New York to learn.

It's Morning Tuesday, June 6, 1989. Imagine a law firm conference room with views of Manhattan. I am Henry Kravis, head of the investment firm KKR, which recently captured the attention of the public by filling out a massive leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco for $ 25 billion.

You are in New Yorkfor the sale of the European Community Nabisco cookies, crackers and peanut business.

Are in the conference room next to his counterpart at the BSN, the largest food company in Europe, which buys the company. The sun sets behind the Chrysler Building. Lawyers and bankers in the room humming finishing last-minute information. A waiter in a tuxedo in a chariot wheels of champagne. Someone takes your hand over the receiver of a telephone and announces: "The money was moved."Uncorked champagne.

And then he presented with a ceremonial check for $ 2.5 billion.

There's a lot of money for snacks. But this is the key. BSN had to sell the knowledge and resources for these products. BSN what he really wanted were the famous marks Nabisco. Oreo cookies, Ritz crackers, peanut planters.

As head of a business - entrepreneurs, business owners, managers - who have a choice. What would you be? A seller of commodities or services with littleValue? Or the thing with the billions of dollars worth of cookies? The difference is the value created by the development and protection of your brand.

Here are five simple and inexpensive steps to start your own brand of value.

1. Choose a strong, unique name. Arbitrary and coined terms, in which marks more. Think, Google and Exxon, not American, national or United.

2. Check Trademark Office on-line documents and avoid terms that others have similar products. AvoidJoining a crowded field of similar name. Try one in your area. Trademark Office records can be searched http://www.uspto. Gov

3. Ensuring a series of domain names corresponding, in particular. Com domains. Control what to record in a Web site, including http / / www.nsi.com and http://www.godaddy.com.

4. Obtain registration of a mark. The advantages of registering trade marks of the United States is the country of return rights to the actual date of filing. The amount of costs for $ 325 on-line fileplus legal fees if you use consultants. Learning to http://www.uspto. Gov is. Costs low for the much more expensive to prove their rights in court, faced with no registration.

5. Police your rights. Real commitment to stop in a campaign under way for offenders correspondence too early and the distinctiveness of a mark by the termination of your rights. The cost of maintenance and enforcement is low, in order to create the value and cost savings by avoiding obtained in comparisoncostly litigation after an offense is established as a successful company.

What is the cookie of billions of dollars in your industry? It is likely that this is a business with a strong brand and a company that recognizes and protects the value of the brand. Take steps today to increase the value of your brand. Create your own billion dollar cookie. For more ideas on how under http://www.GuidingRights.com

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