Intro
For the past few months I have been building a mobile app for people with dementia. The plan was always to ship it under the name Reminisce, which is what we had called the project since the Google hackathon back in January. What I did not plan for was finding out, about two months before I was ready to launch, that “Reminisce” was way too generic to safely trademark. Multiple companies were already operating in adjacent spaces, and unless I wanted to pay a lawyer to argue my app was different, I needed a new name. That single discovery is what this post is really about, because what looked like a quick branding problem ended up reshaping how I think about starting a project.
The Rename
I would not have caught it if my dad had not brought it up. We were talking and he reminded me that I should look into trademarking the company and possibly copyrighting some of the newer features I had been inventing. I sat on it for about a week, then ran a manual search through the USPTO database and found the conflict almost immediately. The name was just too basic. Multiple companies had reasonable claims in adjacent spaces, and pushing forward would have meant either expensive legal work or the risk of being forced to rename later.
So I picked a new name, this time using a couple of Danish words that I think actually fit the app better. I am keeping the specifics under wraps until launch, but the LLC is formed and the trademark application is in progress. The rename itself cost me about a day of work. That part was not the hard part.
What It Actually Triggered
The harder part was realizing my business setup was wrong. A health app is going to need to operate differently than the consulting work and side projects I do. Different liability, different finances, different brand. So while I was already in rename mode, I went ahead and restructured into two LLCs: one for the health-focused apps, and one for general consulting, side projects, and the marketing side of everything. I used Northwest to file. It cost money, but it made the whole process much easier than I expected, and the time it saved me was worth it.
What I Would Do Next Time
The real takeaway is that figuring out the business plan is just as important as planning out the app. I have always been quick to start building, but this round taught me there is a real order to things, and skipping it costs you later. On the next project, my plan looks like:
- Set up the company structure (lucky to already be done with this one now).
- Plan out the app and the software.
- Check domain and app store availability.
- File the trademark.
- Then start building.
I am a builder at heart, and my first instinct when I have a good idea is to start building. The rename was a lesson learned, and I will not make the same mistake again. But that is the point. You are going to make mistakes when you build, and that is fine. The important thing is that you actually start. I would take a builder who ships and corrects over someone who tries to make everything perfect any day of the week.
- Zachary Witte