Taking your logo and turning it into a registered trademark is a smart move if you want to maintain an original image. There are several key steps to making a logo a registered trademark.
Instructions
1. Design an original logo to represent your business or product. Once you have an image in mind, you must ensure it is original.
2. A design search is required to establish your logo as a registered trademark. You can perform the design search by consulting the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Once you have conducted the search, a trademark lawyer must review your design search, to ensure it does not violate any other established trademark logo.
3. Once it is established that your logo is original, you must apply to the USPTO for trademark status of your original logo. The trademark filing must include a drawing of the logo as it will appear in use. Such as displaying the trademark, as it would appear on a package.
4. Once the logo is trademarked, you will be able to use ™ to indicate your trademark. At this point, you can register that trademark with the USPTO, and it would be a good idea to retain a lawyer to assist you with the process. To register a trademark, you must provide a list of goods and/or services that will be provided with that logo. You must account for the first use of the trademark and provide documentation. And finally, you must, again, provide a rendition of what the trademark would look like in use.
5. Once your documentation is processed and your trademark is registered, you will be able to use ® to indicate your registered trademark.
