Whether you are a small business owner or you are in charge of a larger corporation, you may have adopted a mark for your company. Marks are designed to alert customers to your brand, and can be a name, symbol or sign that represents your company. Although marks are not required to be registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, there are several benefits to doing so. There are also some things you should keep in mind before applying for a trademark registration.
You want to make sure your mark will not get confused with any other mark that is being used by another company. This can mislead your customers into thinking they are purchasing your product or services when they are not. Instead, you should look through the registered trademark database to ensure there are no other marks similar to yours.
Once you have determined that you have a unique mark, registering it gives you more legal stronghold when it comes to protecting it. If you find another mark that is similar to yours, you may file a claim for trademark infringement since you have the registration on that mark. It is important to continually monitor both the database and media for any marks that customers may mistake for that of your company.
If and when you should decide to extend your company into an overseas market, your federal trademark registration can assist you in filing for a foreign trademark as well.
This information is intended to educate and should not be taken as legal advice.
