The following is an edited transcript of my video 5 Trademark Lessons from Ted Lasso.
I loved the showed Ted Lasso, with its great story lines, acting, and cheerful presence. Here are five trademark lessons we can apply from the show:
- If you’ve seen Ted Lasso, you’ve seen the Believe poster in the locker room. Believe is important for the trademark process because trademarks are both an art and a science, so you have to have some belief when you’re building a brand that you’re on the right track and believe that the brand is worthy of being protected in order to want to take those steps.
- Underdogs can succeed. Ted Lasso and the team are big underdogs, and they have quite a bit of success. In the world of trademarks, underdogs can succeed just as much. You don’t have to be a huge Fortune 500 company. Small businesses can take advantage of trademark protection, trademark registration, and all the other trademark tools just as much as big businesses. In fact, it’s even more important for small businesses because they don’t have the deep pockets to spend their way out of a situation if they encounter one all the time.
- Sometimes you have to change your strategy in the middle. We see the team change their entire offensive and defensive strategy midway through the season because something wasn’t working. The coaches finally recognize it. They make a tweak and things go a lot better. In the world of trademarks, you often have to adapt, especially in the long and winding road of the trademark registration process.
- Coaching matters. The coaches make a big difference in inspiring the team. In the world of trademarks, having an experienced, inspiring lawyer can makes a big difference. In fact, data supports with evidence that having a lawyer makes a difference in improving the odds of success in the trademark application process.
- Be a goldfish. Ted gives the advice that how goldfish are happy, and it’s because they only have a ten-second memory. We can apply that to the world of trademarks because it’s a long and winding process with a lot of steps. Responses and amendments are going to be needed, even when you’re working with an attorney. So for the applicant, it helps to have a short memory and not be frustrated by these obstacles, knowing that if you’re working with experienced counsel, you can be a goldfish and make the process go a lot smoother.
