When it comes to trademarking, product manufacturers must protect themselves and their products from imitators, but must also be careful to avoid infringing on others trademarks. It makes sense to take a lot of time over the printing of product packaging and product labelling, since this information could put you on the wrong side of the law.
When virtually any element of a piece of packaging can be registered as a trademark, it can be tough to decide which elements are actually worth trademarking. But trademark you must, and be quick about it. Once a similar product comes onto the market, you may be completely unable to do anything about it, leaving your product open to imitation.
In a visually cluttered market, packaging achieves a sense of shelf presence, colour and shape which other brand associations can be built on. Nescafe coffee jars, Toblerone’s unique triangular packaging or the famous Coca-Cola bottle are all examples of packaging arguably superseding the product in terms of consumer awareness and recognition.
Coca-Cola set a brief in 1916 to design a Coca-Cola bottle which could be recognised by someone even if held in the dark, or even identified from a broken piece of the bottle. This was in response the Coca-Cola product and packaging being imitated. It seems to have worked well, as the bottle is one of the most well-recognised symbols in the world and manufacturers would think twice before infringing this very famous trademark!
Manufacturers should be careful not to tread on thin ice in terms of duplicating other brand’s packaging trademarks, and should seek legal advice before producing a new item of packaging, if it borrows designs from other products.
The law also protects consumers from manufacturers making false claims about their products, be it the origin, the production process, the packaging or distribution. It’s important that consumers can trust your brand, so don’t lie to them!
False claims are criminal, and green marketing can be especially dangerous in this capacity. Vague terms like ‘eco friendly’, ’sustainable’ or depictions of fresh fruit on artificially-flavoured product packaging are all examples of package design which could lead to legal complications.
Manufacturers should also be very careful not to include any information on the packaging which might mislead consumers. Any touted environmental benefits must be explained and associated with specific elements of the product or its production, such as transport, packaging, use, or disposal.
If you are honest with your customers, they will appreciate it and respect you. False claims means lost authority and when customers can’t believe what you say is in the box, your product and brand are doomed.
Sauven Marking is a leading manufacturer and global supplier of bar code printers to the food, beverage, pharmaceutical, industrial and electronics industries.
