How to Trademark Your Brand

A trademark is a legal right attached to a word, name, logo, slogan, or combination of those elements that identifies the source of goods or services. In the United States, a registration on the USPTO's Principal Register is prima facie evidence of your ownership and of your exclusive right to use the mark in commerce for the goods or services listed in the certificate, subject to any conditions or limitations stated in it (15 U.S.C. § 1057(b)).

This guide covers the foundational decisions every brand owner makes before filing: what a trademark protects, what to file first, which classes apply to your business, and how to keep the registration alive once it issues. For the full step-by-step USPTO process from clearance search through registration, see our companion article: Trademark Registration for AI Startups. The process applies to any business filing for federal trademark protection, not just AI startups.

What a trademark protects, and what it does not

A trademark protects brand identifiers: the name of your business, product, or service; your logo; your slogan; and in some cases your brand's distinctive colors, sounds, or packaging.

A trademark does not protect:

• The underlying product or service itself
• The text of your content, articles, videos, or music (that is covered by copyright)
• Your business ideas or methods

Knowing the boundary matters because creators and founders often conflate copyright and trademark. Copyright protection subsists in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression (17 U.S.C. § 102(a)) and vests initially in the author; for a work made for hire, the employer or other person for whom the work was prepared is considered the author and, unless the parties have expressly agreed otherwise in a written instrument signed by them, owns the copyright (17 U.S.C. § 201). Trademark registration is a separate step that protects the brand identity, the name and logo you have built around that content.

Step 1: Decide what to file

Most brand owners need to protect at least three things:

1. The brand name. The word or words that identify your business (e.g., "StarGuard").
2. The logo. The graphic design paired with the name, if you use one consistently.
3. The tagline or slogan. If you use one commercially and it functions as a brand identifier.

Start with the name. The name is the most important registration because it is the element that other parties are most likely to copy. A logo can be redesigned. A name is much harder to replace once an audience has built around it.

File the name as a standard character mark first. A standard-character drawing claims the name without any particular font style, size, or color. A design mark (logo) can follow, and its special-form drawing depicts the claimed design or stylization.

Step 2: Identify the right trademark classes

Trademark classifications are administrative and do not limit or extend trademark rights. The USPTO and CIPO both use the Nice Classification system, which divides goods and services into 45 classes. You register in the classes that match what your business sells.

Getting the classes right is one of the most consequential decisions in the filing. Common classes for founders and creators:

After filing, the identification of goods and services may be clarified or limited, but not broadened. A use-based application must cover goods or services with which the mark is in use in commerce, and an intent-to-use application requires a bona fide intention to use it. A trademark attorney identifies the classes tied to your actual revenue, not just the category you think describes your business.

The registration process at a glance

Once you know what to file and which classes apply, the path from filing to registration runs through five operational steps: clearance search, filing, office action response, publication, and registration. The full step-by-step walkthrough, including current 2026 USPTO fees, specimen preparation, office action response strategy, and Madrid Protocol international filings, lives in our companion article: Trademark Registration for AI Startups. The walkthrough applies to any business, not just AI startups.

A few foundational facts worth knowing before you file:

• Filing fees as of January 18, 2025. The USPTO charges a base fee of $350 per class for electronic applications. Using the USPTO's Trademark ID Manual to identify your goods and services avoids the $200-per-class fee charged when an application does not use ID Manual entries. Other per-class fees, such as the $100 fee under 37 C.F.R. § 2.22(b), can still apply. The prior TEAS Plus and TEAS Standard tier system was eliminated as part of the same 2025 fee restructure.
• Examination time. We do not forecast USPTO processing times; the USPTO publishes its current trademark processing wait times.
• Use-based vs. intent-to-use. If you are already using the mark in commerce, file a use-based application with a specimen. If you have not yet launched, file an intent-to-use application to reserve your priority date. You will need to submit proof of use before the registration issues.
• US and Canada are separate filings. A US trademark registration does not extend to Canada. If you operate in both markets, both filings belong in the same round. A qualifying priority claim may preserve an earlier filing date; prior use and intervening applications must also be assessed.

Step 7: Maintain your registration

A trademark registration is not permanent by default. To keep it alive, you must file:

• A §8 Declaration of Use between years 5 and 6 after registration ($325 per class)
• A combined §8/§9 Declaration of Use and Renewal between years 9 and 10, and every 10 years after that ($650 per class)
• An optional §15 Declaration of Incontestability alongside the year 5-6 filing, which, if the conditions of 15 U.S.C. § 1065 are met, makes your right to use the mark incontestable for the goods or services in continuous use for five consecutive years after registration, subject to the defenses in § 1115(b) ($250 per class on its own; $575 per class combined with the §8)

Missing a maintenance filing, including its grace period, results in cancellation or expiration of the registration. Your attorney or an IP docketing service can track these deadlines.

You should also monitor for new applications that conflict with your mark. The USPTO allows oppositions during the 30-day publication period. After registration, a cancellation proceeding at the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board is the available channel.

Trademark fundamentals checklist

Use this before your call with a trademark attorney.

Decide what to file

• Identify the elements you need to protect: name, logo, slogan, or combination
• List the goods and services you currently sell or plan to sell under each mark
• Identify the trademark classes that correspond to those goods and services

Confirm the basics before filing

• Note the date you first used the mark in commerce, or whether you have not launched yet
• Decide whether you are filing in the US, Canada, or both
• Decide whether the application is use-based or intent-to-use
• Budget for the base $350 per class USPTO fee, plus any additional fees for free-form descriptions or Section 1(b) extensions

Plan the maintenance schedule

• Calendar the year 5-6 §8 Declaration of Use deadline
• Calendar the year 9-10 combined §8/§9 renewal deadline
• Set a recurring 10-year renewal reminder

For the full filing process, including clearance search depth, specimen preparation, office action response strategy, and Madrid Protocol international filings, see Trademark Registration for AI Startups. The walkthrough applies to any business filing for federal trademark protection.

If your clearance search reveals a conflicting mark, if your goods-and-services description is complex, or if you need to file in both the US and Canada in the same round, working with a trademark attorney from the start saves time and reduces the risk of a refusal that could have been avoided at filing. StarGuard Law's trademark practice handles registration from clearance through registration, including the maintenance filings above.

This guide is for general information only — not legal advice. Laws differ across jurisdictions. Consult a qualified IP attorney before acting on anything in this guide.