How to prepare a trademark search brief

Four details that belong together

A name alone is not a search brief. Add your goods or services, research jurisdictions and desired research depth. Explain your purpose: choosing a name, entering a market or considering an application. This gives the report a practical question to address.

You do not need a finished filing specification. Describe your products clearly and flag uncertainties for clarification. Otherwise, assumptions may produce a report about a different business idea from the one you intend to develop.

Give the exact name and label any variants

Copy the intended spelling, including spaces, hyphens, accents, numbers and additional words. List each candidate separately, identifying your preferred name and alternatives. Three possible brands should not accidentally become one combined name.

Mention pronunciation, alternative spellings or planned short forms as search hints. Confirm whether variants receive separate searches within your package. For a logo, distinguish name research from research into visual elements; a name search alone is not a full logo comparison. The DPMA treats figurative elements as a distinct search aspect. DPMA: Trade mark searches.

Describe products rather than supplying only a class number

Explain what customers will buy or use. “Beverages” is less specific than “bottled non-alcoholic lemonades and fruit juice beverages”. For services, describe the activity, purpose and users. “Software” might mean a downloadable application or an online service. Explain your offer before assuming a classification.

Separate current products from planned additions. Flag unclear ingredients, functions or delivery formats. Distinguish selling your products from a separately offered retail service. A filing's goods and services specification determines protection. DPMA: Goods and services.

• Too vague: “Class 32, drinks, possibly more later”.
• More useful: “Non-alcoholic lemonades and fruit juice beverages; initially no milk, coffee or tea beverages; further products undecided”.

Use Nice classes as a starting point

Class numbers help prepare a brief but cannot replace product descriptions. There are 45 classes. Label your proposed classes as checked or provisional; if unknown, start with specific goods and services. DPMA: Goods and services.

Class numbers alone do not decide whether goods are similar. Sharing a class does not automatically make goods similar, and different classes do not automatically make them dissimilar. An EUIPO research report on defining goods and services explains this principle. Relevant neighbouring product areas should therefore not be dismissed solely through a class filter.

For the lemonades and fruit juice beverages in the example below, Class 32 provides a reasonable reference. WIPO also lists exclusions, including coffee- or tea-based beverages and certain milk beverages. “Non-alcoholic” is therefore not enough to classify every kind of drink. WIPO: Nice Classification 2026, Class 32.

Distinguish research territory, registers and billing country

Name each country where you plan to use the mark. “Europe” is ambiguous. EU trademarks have EU-wide coverage alongside national systems. EUIPO: Where to register. Selecting “EUIPO” as your research scope does not automatically mean every EU country's national register is searched.

A Germany brief also needs a clear boundary: earlier EU trademarks and international registrations with protection in Germany may be relevant. The DPMA recommends consulting EUIPO and WIPO databases as well. DPMA: Trade mark searches. Confirm which registers the agreed research actually covers.

Billing country is a separate detail. A business billed in Germany may need research for another market. Check the research jurisdictions in the summary independently of the billing information you provide later.

Completed example: NIVORA for Germany

This brief is entirely fictional. NIVORA, the plans and contact address are teaching examples, not a customer order. No register search was performed. Nothing here states whether relevant rights exist, or whether the name can be used or registered.

Review the scope before completing your order

Compare your question with the current package descriptions. TrademarkIQ's Quick check covers identical names and very close variants. Standard adds broader similarities and the goods or services relationship in a concise assessment with sources and open questions. Pro includes Standard research with detailed individual analyses, evidence documentation and agreed in-depth additional checks. Providing a longer brief does not automatically expand the package you order.

Then check the name, full product details, jurisdictions and package in the summary. Resolve missing countries or unclear goods before completing the order. Avoid entering confidential documents or unnecessary customer details in the chat, and read the service's privacy notice.

A clear brief makes findings easier to interpret. It does not replace a legal assessment or guarantee trademark availability. Rights outside the trademark registers can still matter; the DPMA mentions business identifiers among them. DPMA: Trade mark searches. If the report exposes an unresolved legal question, that is a reason to seek an appropriate legal review.

Continue with the sample report and package selection

Start with the fictional sample report to see how a report is organised and understand its limits. Then use the package selection to choose a scope and the checklist to prepare your details.

Your checklist

• Record the main name with its exact spelling.
• Distinguish alternative names from search hints.
• Describe name and logo research separately.
• State specific goods or services.
• Label unresolved products and proposed classes.
• Specify countries or the intended EUIPO scope.
• Confirm the registers and depth of research.
• Check research jurisdictions independently of billing country.
• Read the complete summary before finishing.

Common questions