What is a trademark?

The UK Intellectual Property Office defines trademarks as the “sign which can distinguish your goods and services from those of your competitors”

Protection

A trademark is likely to be your most valuable business asset, attracting custom while safeguarding the integrity and investment in your brand.

Once registered and in use, this trademark becomes associated with your product or service, thereby providing consumers with an assurance of origin regarding your product.

Trademarks, in short, are a way of making your products or services stand out from the competition, whilst serving as a badge of origin. They can be made up of words, logos, or both combined. For trademarks to be acceptable for registration and your investment in them secure, they must be made distinct from the goods / services provided. This means they should not be made up of words that are common in your industry or frequently used by competing businesses.

To check whether a potential trademark is acceptable, you can perform a trademark search online now.