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Trademarks are usually words, symbols or designs that customers
associate with a seller's goods or services. The term "service mark" is
used to refer to a mark used in conjunction with services.
The best trademarks are those that are distinctive and have no relation to the goods or services. Examples include made up words like "Kodak" or "Teflon". Words that are somewhat suggestive of the goods or services, or properties of the goods or services, can often be protected as trademarks, but are not as distinctive. Words that are merely descriptive of the goods or services cannot be protected as trademarks.
Considerable time is often required to conduct trademark investigations
and it is not uncommon to find that a first choice for a new trademark is
unavailable. It is recommended that persons interested in selecting a new
trademark have several possible new marks in mind. It is inadvisable to invest
in advertising and promotional material that displays a new trademark until
that trademark has been cleared for use by a trademark attorney.
Trademarks may be registered with the U.S. Trademark Office, http://www.uspto.gov. Usually, once a mark has been registered the owner of the registration is the only one in the U.S. who may use the mark in conjunction with the goods and services for which it has been registered. Registration may be applied for at any time, including before a mark is in use.
When a mark has been registered, the owner is entitled to use
the registration symbol 
in conjunction
with the mark. Until the mark is registered, the "common law" trademark
symbol "TM" ("SM" for service marks) may be used.
In the U.S., limited protection is granted for unregistered
marks, as well as unique color schemes and other distinctive stylistic features
that are used in conjunction with goods and services. Therefore, when designing
products or selecting names, it is necessary to avoid similarity to a competitor's
mark or product appearance, even if these are not federally registered trademarks.
Trademark rights are granted on a country-by-country basis.
Before introducing a new trademark into a country, a search should be conducted
to be sure that someone else does not own the mark in that country. Also,
many countries require actual registration of the mark with their trademark
office before a user can claim any rights.
Sometimes it is necessary to refer to another company's name or trademark in advertising or product literature. This is permissible only if done properly.
It may not be legally permissible to place your trademark on
another company's product without an agreement that authorizes such marking.
The selection and use of trademarks requires careful planning. It is therefore
important to work with an attorney experienced in trademark protection to
develop a comprehensive protection program before undertaking marketing of
new products or services.
Many businesses only think about protecting their patents, trademarks, copyrights or trade secrets after they have encountered a problem. It is much less costly to have a plan for protection of your valuable "intellectual property" so that problems can be avoided.
One approach to avoiding problems is to have an "intellectual
property audit" conducted. An intellectual property audit involves having
an attorney experienced in intellectual property review the business activities
and the protection you currently have. Such reviews usually uncover areas
in which protection can be improved at a very low cost. Just like an annual
physical checkup by a doctor, an annual review of intellectual property protection
can avoid serious problems later.
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