Newsletter of the East Bay Chapter of STC
November/December 2003

What's in a Mark?

by Dara Golden
EBSTC Contributing Editor

Dara Golden is the former Interim Editor of Connection, the Silicon Valley Chapter’s newsletter.

A colleague once asked, “Why should I care about trademarks?” There is no definitive answer. Legal personnel say it is important to acknowledge your company’s trademarks and a courtesy to acknowledge other trademarks. Some technical writers say that to ensure technically accurate documentation, all trademarks must be acknowledged and attributed properly. This article addresses what trademarks are and how writers can ensure that trademarks are used properly.

Trademarks: What Are They?

A trademark or mark is any word, phrase, symbol, design, sound, color, or combination of these adopted and used by a company to identify its product (trademark) or services (service mark) to distinguish them from products and services made, sold, or provided by others. A registered trademark means that a company has filed the mark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and has protection from the office.

The following table provides a summary and examples of the different types of trademarks.

Trademark Limitations

It’s important to note that trademarks often acquire a secondary meaning regarding quality. For example, many consumers will choose a name brand over a generic because the name brand is perceived as being better or having a respectable company behind it—such as Tropicana Orange Juice instead of All-Brand Orange Juice.

Companies spend a lot of money to defend their products or services and to prevent other companies from copying them. McDonalds Corporation has successfully fought companies over using the McDonalds logo and colors to promote paint stores and hotels. While it is unlikely that a consumer would get a fast-food restaurant confused with a paint store or hotel, a red and yellow sign with an M could lead consumers to think they were getting McDonalds food and then be surprised if they didn’t.

It is important for companies to ensure that their trademarks are used properly and that the trademarks do not fall into “common usage.” Examples of common usage are kerosene and yo-yo. Once these referred to specific brands, but are now used generally. Recently, Kimberly-Clark Corporation took out ads in magazines directed to writers providing guidelines on the proper usage of the name Kleenex for their brand of tissues. Why is common usage bad? It is better for companies when people refer to their specific brand instead of a generic. A classic example is “Kleenex” vs. “tissues”—“Would you like a Kleenex?” or “Would you like a tissue?” Kleenex refers to a specific brand of facial tissues, while tissues could be any brand.

So, it’s important for companies to protect their trademarks, but what can technical writers do to ensure proper trademark usage? Writers can review trademark guidelines with company lawyers and ensure that there are guidelines for acknowledging and using trademarks in documentation.

Consistency Guidelines

Following are a few guidelines to help you apply trademarks consistently.

• Create a trademark list.
  Include not only your company trademarks, but also trademarks referred to in documentation, such as UNIX, Sun Microsystems, and Adobe.

• Verify trademarks.
  Ask your company’s lawyers which products are trademarked and/or registered trademarks. Also ask which products of other companies should be acknowledged in text and how.

• Create trademark guidelines.
  Ensure that all writers follow proper trademark guidelines. This includes where trademark acknowledgement is to be made (copyright page, footnote, or appendix) and how trademarks are acknowledged (such as “Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds” or “All trademarks are the property of their respective owners”). Have your company’s lawyers review the guidelines to ensure agreement.

• Update the trademark lists.
  As trademarks can become registered marks, check with your company’s lawyers to ensure that the marks are still accurate.

Writing Guidelines

Although companies have different trademark guidelines, below is a list of generally accepted writing guidelines.

Do

• Use the proper symbol. Don’t use a registered mark when the mark isn’t registered.
  Wrong: Sun Microsystems Java®
  Right: Sun Microsystems® Java™

• Use trademarks as adjectives, not nouns.
  Trademarks modify the product, such as Crayola™ crayons and Staples® copy paper.

• Spell the trademark the same way it is registered.
  Wrong: Air Port Card.
  Right: AirPort Card.

• Use trademarks consistently.
  Don’t use both Unix and UNIX.

• Trademark the first instance of the word.
  Wrong: The newest Barbie® doll has all Barbie® accessories included.
  Right: The newest Barbie® doll has all Barbie accessories included.

• Superscript the marks or, at minimum, use parentheses around the mark.
  Wrong: CrayolaTM, Red Hat R
  Right: Crayola(TM), Red Hat(R)

Don't

• Use a trademark as a verb.
  Wrong: Google for it.
  Right: Perform a search

• Use a trademark as a plural.
  Wrong: JavaStations
  Right: JavaStation systems

• Abbreviate trademarks.
  Wrong: MSWord.
  Right: Microsoft Word.

• Use puns.
  “A tip of the Red Hat” might be used in Marketing, but don’t use it in documentation.

While it is part of a company lawyer’s job to ensure that trademarks are used properly, it is part of a technical writer’s job to ensure that trademarks are properly attributed.

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