So you have put all work into your business: you already got a name, you have made some marketing materials, even written some things for your customers. If you don't want your competitors to be able to take what you've done and exploit it, though, you're going to need to take some steps to protect yourself.
You can trademark both your business' name as well as the names of any products you sell. The only condition is that they can't be too similar to names that someone has already trademarked, and you can't usually trademark words that are in common use. It costs a few hundred dollars to register a trademark, and you can do it through the patent office. It can be a waste of money to trademark too many words, so you should only bother with it if you think one of your names could be threatened by competitors. Once you get your trademark - it is yours thus you can do whatever you want with it, including giving others permission to use it or selling it to them. Remember, though, that your trademark usually only applies in the country where you registered it -- you will not usually be protected from competition where foreign businesses are using your trademark. Also, your right to use the trademark will only last for a set number of years (usually a decade from the date of registration). After this time, you will have to pay again to renew it.
It's called a pen. It's like a printer, hooked straight to my brain.
- Dale Dauten
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