BizSugar.com › Marketing › The Difference Between a Trade Name and a Trademark – And Why You Can’t Overlook Either

By Caron Beesley. When it comes to starting a business, there’s often some confusion about the process of business name registration. How are trade names and trademarks different? An important reason to distinguish between trade names and trademarks is that if a business starts to use its trade name to identify products and services, it could be perceived that the trade name is now functioning as a trademark, which could potentially infringe on existing trademarks. Learn more about the role trade names and trademarks have in your business and how to apply for each.