That’s a good question with a pretty straightforward answer (that we will get to in two parts). In the first place, a trademark is property and has value. A U.S. trademark registration granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is the title to your trademark property — like the title to your car or the deed to your home. And as property, a trademark can be bought, sold, traded, rented (licensed), and used as collateral.
So a U.S. trademark registration:
• Is proof of ownership of your mark.
• Gives constructive notice to others of your exclusive rights to use your mark throughout the United States.
• Will serve as the basis for obtaining trademark registrations in other countries.
• Is your entrance into the Madrid System for the International Registration of Marks, allowing you to register in many countries through the USPTO.
• Will remain valid as long as you continue to use your mark and maintain the registration (i.e. pay the necessary renewal and maintenance fees to the USPTO).
• May be put up as collateral against a business loan.
• Forms a major part of the attractiveness and value of a franchise offer.
• Adds to the value of your business.
Your trademark is your brand, the face of your business, and what consumers say when they talk about your business. A U.S. trademark registration granted by the USPTO has inherent value because it grants you exclusive rights to use of your mark (brand) on and with your goods and/or services throughout the United States and its territories. And the value of your mark increases with use, unlike cars and machinery that lose value with use. The longer your use your mark, the more extensively you use it across the country, the more it becomes known to consumers, the greater its value as an asset of your business.
