Getting a Registered Trademark for Amazon’s Brand Registry

There are many reasons for getting a federal trademark registration.  One specific reason relates to selling products on Amazon.com.  Amazon created the Amazon Brand Registry to help sellers on the platform protect their intellectual property—mainly their brands and product names—and to create an accurate and trusted experience for customers on amazon.com.  Amazon explains that sellers enrolling in the Amazon Brand Registry have greater influence and control of their brand’s product listings on Amazon.  This is accomplished in several ways, including by providing sellers increased content options for product listings, tools for searching and reporting potential infringement, and preemptive and enhanced enforcement against infringers.  But, perhaps most importantly, enrolling on the Amazon Brand Registry simply increases product sales—more dough, moola, cheddar, benjamin, smackers, etc. 

Significantly, in order to be eligible for Amazon’s Brand Registry, a seller must first have a federal trademark registration in hand for the relevant brand—it is not sufficient to have a filed or pending trademark application.  Many people eager to get selling on Amazon are surprised to first learn that it may take a year or longer to acquire a trademark registration. And that time frame assumes that the seller properly teams up with a qualified and experienced trademark attorney to: (1) identify and describe goods and services by United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) standards and categories; (2) conduct trademark clearance searches, analyze results, and assess risk; and (3) properly draft and file the trademark application. 

As I frequently mention, I do not recommend that folks try to get a trademark registration on their own or by using an online service—I’ve seen too many people get burned here and be forced to start over.  I have also been very successful in having amazon take down competitor listings based on diy trademark registrations that were improperly obtained or had defects of some kind.  So, best to do it right out of the gate. Then enjoy the c-notes, a racks, gs, or maybe even bricks or rocks.