Author: Christopher Hamel-Smith
To compete in the global and virtual marketplace on the Internet, we have to invest in building our reputations in target e-markets. We must almost literally burn - or brand - our company, our products and our services into the customer's mind. This means that we have to use our trademarks - or brand names - as well as of our domain names ("yourname.com") as key strategic assets. We must therefore be aware of the practical steps that we can take to enhance and protect the commercial value of these critical business assets.
Our first step must be to increase understanding within our companies of the strategic value of these intangible assets as we move into e-commerce. Developing and protecting these assets will not be inexpensive. We can only justify this expenditure when our companies recognize it as a valuable investment rather than an unnecessary cost.
