Black-and-white cartoon of a monocle-wearing stick figure in a top hat holding a sign reading 'Words, Phrases, Symbols, Logos,' with speech bubble saying 'I'm Traditional' — representing traditional trademarks.

A "traditional" trademark refers to the conventional and well-recognized form of a trademark, which includes words, numerals, slogans, symbols, logos, and other distinctive elements used to identify and distinguish goods or services in commerce. Traditional trademarks are the most common and easily recognizable type of trademarks used by businesses to establish their brand identities (especially compared to non-traditional trademarks).

A traditional trademark is owned by and used by an organization, in contrast with a collective mark that is owned by an organization but used by members of the organization to indicate membership in the organization and a certification mark that is owned by an organization but used by authorized users to indicate compliance with a certification standard.

For example, COCA-COLA® [1] (word trademark), OBEY YOUR THIRST® [2] (slogan trademark), and the stylized Coca-Cola logo [3] (logo trademark) are all examples of traditional trademarks, owned by The Coca-Cola Company.

Eager to learn more? Check out our posts on 5 Key Facts About Trademarks, What’s a Trademark?, and Trademark Genericide.

[1] USPTO, U.S. Trademark Registration No. 238,145, available at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=238145&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=SERIAL_NO&searchType=statusSearch.

[2] USPTO, U.S. Trademark Registration No. 1,991,640, available at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=1991640&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=SERIAL_NO&searchType=statusSearch.

[3] USPTO, U.S. Trademark Registration No. 238,146, available at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=238146&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=SERIAL_NO&searchType=statusSearch.