Know-How Exchange : Copywriting

Dear ing9450,

Phil's right on many fronts and I SECOND his words of caution but I'll go one step farther. Slow your punk ass down!

You tell us that this very much scares you. Good. It ought to.

I also agree with Phil that you're too early in the game to be thinking about names.

I'll answer your question about protection, then I think we need to have a cozy little chat about remaining on the right side of the law.

YES, any and all designs are protected by US Intellectual Copyright Laws. This protection is automatic and you'll find more information on copyright here: https://www.copyright.gov/, because you're confusing copyright (the legal protection of intellectual material, including design work) and copy writing, meaning, the writing of sales copy or sales text in order to convey a sales message.

As for all this "a fictitious business license enough with the city or county?" talk, you're insane! I mean, totally, utterly, barking mad.

I'm NOT a lawyer but it took me all of fifteen seconds to learn that the California Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) takes a very dim view of shenanigans like this and its Unlicensed Activity Unit (yes, there IS such a unit) works hard,—VERY HARD—to track down unlicensed individuals so that they can take action against them.

What kind of action?

Well, as of January 1, 2010 those caught contracting in California without a license for the first time will face six months in jail or a fine of up to $5,000.

A second offense will cost you 20 percent of the contract price, or $5,000, whichever is greater and you'll be cooling your heels in the hoosgow for at least 90 days.

Third time's a charm with ANOTHER 90 days in the chokey (which can
be extended for up to to one year) AND a fine of between $5,000 and $10,000, or 20 percent of the contract price.

And, according to California state law, anyone who uses an unlicensed contractor is a victim and is entitled to a refund, regardless of whether they knew the contractor was unlicensed.

You need to be aware here that this forum is read by hundreds of thousands of people, many of whom live and work IN CALIFORNIA.
All it takes is one person to report you and you'll be screwed, I mean ROYALLY FUBAR.

So, following on from Phil's advice (and both Phil and I are known on
this forum for telling it like it is, warts and all), stop.

Then run.

In the opposite direction.

If your brother wants to borrow money, he needs to take out a loan.
If his t-shirt designs are that good, his business, despite the fact that
t-shirt companies are a dime a dozen, ought to do OK. But what he'd
do better with is focusing on one niche within t-shirt design, and to
then go narrow and deep.

I hope this helps.

Gary Bloomer
Wilmington, DE, USA

I would only add that Gary and Phil are being too optimistic about this business venture. Things are not as rosy as they would have you think.

Stop. Tell your brother this isn't comfortable for you, and find some other way to show your brother you care. (This is actually a very good way to demonstrate your concern for him, but he may not understand that right away.)

Here is a primer I wrote on intellectual property:
https://expandabroad.blogspot.com/2005/12/intellectual-property-primer.html

Some of what is being done (shirt designs, etc.) would be covered under copyrights, but others (business name, logo, etc.) would fall under trademarks.

That blog post also links to a book by Nolo Press which covers these in detail, but actually I would buy and read a different book by Nolo Press, which covers most areas one would need to consider when starting a business. Along with intellectual property, it covers thinks like legal structure (LLC, partnership, etc.), DBA's, what forms needed to fill out to start a business, location, etc. I have read it many times, and am going through it again now for another start-up I am working on.
https://expandabroad.blogspot.com/2005/08/start-up-book-recommendation.html

There is a CA specific version, which if you will base the company in CA would be the one to get.

Instead of trying to do it all, why not take his designs and upload a couple to a site like CafePress (https://www.cafepress.com/cp/info/sell/index.aspx?area=learn&page=learn)? That'll save you lots of headaches, and learn what people buy (and don't).

Jay has got a great suggestion. A few years ago, with just a handful of design ideas, my brother set up a design shop at Cafe Press (https://www.cafepress.com/tulsatees) and also at Zazzle (https://www.zazzle.com/TulsaTees). It's not making him rich (yet!), but he constantly chats up his site and adds fresh content, and so he has been able to generates monthly sales. If you go look at his pages you will see that he is able to maintain a portfolio and exchange feedback AND LINKS with other virtual shop-owners--invaluable tools and exposure to gauge what designs might be worth pursuing in more traditional venues outside of e-commerce.

And, importanty, customers who find designs they like can still contact a virtual shop-owner if they want to bypass Cafe Press or Zazzle and work direct. So, in that sense, host sites like Cafe Press and Zazzle are marketing portals with broad reach--nice feature for someone just starting out with some designs.

None of this requires business licenses or massive startup costs, as far as I know. So it might be a safe alternative to determine if your sibling's designs (and motivation) have some legs.

--- Paul