How To Build A Strong Brand

Trademark Symbol - Orange 2

I heard a statistic a little while ago that in the 1970s, something like 80% of corporate assets were tangibles (inventory, machinery, real estate, etc.),but that as long ago as in the late 90s, about 75% of all corporate assets were intangibles (trademarks, copyrights, patents, trade secrets, etc.). So what does this mean for you? Well, it means that if you are relying on your tangibles to be the primary means of making money then you need to rethink your strategy. This can seem like a daunting task, so let me suggest where to start: Your … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Intellectual Property, Legal concerns for small businesses, Trademarks
04/05/2013                                facebooktwitter 1 Comment                   business, copyright

The Untapped Gold Mine – Licensing Copyrights

NOTE: This is a guest post that I wrote for Design*Sponge. It was originally published on March 5, 2013. You can find the original post HERE. . . . . In the world of designers and artists, copyrights are what protect others from stealing your work. And as a designer, you generally own all the rights associated with your designs unless you are designing as an employee for someone else. This means that you can use your design to produce all the products you want for sale, from textiles to greeting cards. But what if you are just a small … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, BUSINESS LAW, Copyrights, Intellectual Property, Licensing Agreements
03/08/2013                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright

Designing For Hire: Who Owns Your Designs?

NOTE: This is a guest post I wrote for Design*Sponge. It was originally published on February, 26, 2013. You can find the original post HERE. . . . . One of the great benefits of being successful as a designer (or any kind of artist really) is that others will pay you (hopefully) good money to design for them. You may be hired on as a full-time employee or as an independent contractor on a job-to-job basis. At first you may be excited and flattered that others appreciate your work so much. But after sending that design into the person … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Copyrights, Intellectual Property, Licensing Agreements
03/08/2013                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright

Contracts Are Meant to Be Broken

NOTE: This is a guest post I wrote for Design*Sponge. It was originally published on February, 26, 2013. You can find the original post HERE. . . . . We all enter into contracts almost every day, whether we realize it or not. Every time you sign a receipt at the store you are entering into a contract. But what some don’t realize is that you don’t have to sign something for there to be a contract. You are forming a contract when you click “I agree” on your favorite website, or even when accessing some sites without doing anything … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, BUSINESS LAW
03/08/2013                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright

Top 5 Legal Concerns For Small Creative Businesses

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Check out my guest post today on Sycamore Street Press's blog: Top 5 Legal Concerns For Small Creative Businesses! … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, BUSINESS LAW
02/25/2013                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright

What Would You Do With Your Life If Money Were No Object?

http://youtu.be/8nif01WZ9aI If you are building the sort of business that you are passionate about, the sort of business that you would be involved with even if money were no object, if you are doing what you love in such a way that will teach your children and those around you to not be afraid to chase their dreams, then Juniper Law wants to work with you. Because that is what Juniper Law is to me. I have thought before about what I would do if I won the lottery or came into an inheritance that meant I didn't have to work for the rest of my … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , ,
01/10/2013                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright

Pitfalls in Marketing “Green” Products

Everything on the shelf these days seems to be "green." It's almost gotten to the point where I am not even sure what it means for a product to be "green." And it is precisely because of the likelihood that consumers can be confused or mislead by various environmentally friendly claims, that the FTC has issued guidelines for making environmental claims. Just this past month I read a story about the FTC brining a suit against Amazon.com, Leon Max, Macy's, and Sears for misleading environmental claims. In this case, these stores were claiming … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, BUSINESS LAW, INTERNET LAW, Legal concerns for small businesses, Small Business Tagged With: , , ,
01/09/2013                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright

Tips For Giving Endorsements Online

Endorsement used to just be for celebrities and major news outlets. But these days, every other blog is recommending a new product or giving a list of the top products for a certain service. We all know that companies are required to follow certain rules when advertising on TV, but are there similar rules for advertising through blogger endorsements? Part of the Federal Trade Commission's job is to protect consumers. And part of that role means ensuring that consumers are not unfairly manipulated by companies trying to push their products. On … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, INTERNET LAW Tagged With: , , ,
01/07/2013                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright

What You Need to Know About Instagram’s New Policies

Recently, like many of you, I got a notification on my Instagram account that let me know that they had updated their Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. And, again like most of you, I ignored it. But, unlike most of you, I ended up reading them - the whole thing! And there are some interesting updates that everyone should be aware of. So here are the biggest items I picked out, and what they mean for you. 1: By granting Instagram a "non-exclusive, fully paid and royalty-free, transferable, sub-licensable, worldwide license to use" your … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Copyrights, Intellectual Property, INTERNET LAW, Small Business Tagged With: , , , , ,
12/18/2012                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright

Protecting Your Copyright For $35

Copyright ownership originates as soon as an idea is expressed in a physical form. For example, if you were to come up with the lyrics to a song in your head, you do not have a copyright, but as soon as you put them on paper, you do have a copyright. This concept of expressing an idea in a physical form is known as "fixation." A lot of people understand that the rights contained in a copyright are automatically vested when a work is fixed in a tangible medium. But what most of those people don't understand is that you cannot enforce those … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Copyrights, Intellectual Property Tagged With: , ,
12/11/2012                                facebooktwitter Leave a Comment                   business, copyright
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