Trademarking my brand?

[dan]

How exactly does trademarking work and is it required to go thru the long tedious (and expensive) process to register a name/logo? Or is putting a 'TM' to it good enough?

[knarfwiz]

putting a TM on it does nothing...and you are right it is expensive, which is why most small businesses don't do it...depending on your Sate laws you can, and most likely will be required, to register the name with them ( they will also be able to tell you if someone else is using it) and as long as there is no conflict I have seen companies in different areas with the same name. ( Just imagine how many "Do Drop Inns) there are in the U.S.
Some day when you make it big and need to protect the name, you will be in a financial position to do so.

[bcnu]

In the USA, Canada, UK and a few other common-law countries, you get AUTOMATIC trademark protection by being the first to use a distinctive brand on your goods or services in commerce. You can optionally register in one or more US states ($40 to $100 for 5 or 10 years) or in the federal USPTO for about $300. Your unregistered rights can be enforced in state or federal courts against anyone "passing off" their goods or services using a brand that is "confusingly similar" to yours, assuming you were in that market first. You should put TM or ™ on your brand to indicate to others that you claim proprietary rights short of the ® placed on a federal registration.

One nice thing about federal registration is that the filing date of your application becomes your national "priority" date, after which anyone who starts using a similar brand in related fields is considered "on notice" of your seniority and right to stop them when and if your markets ever conflict.

Add: In all my years of handling trademarks, I have NEVER found any state that "requires" you to register a brand. Perhaps knarfwits is confusing a brand with a company name, which states actually do require you to register, if you're "doing business" in their state. Most company names are not trademarks and most trademarks in the USA are not registered anywhere.