Finding the right website to register your valuable brand assets is a daunting task. Trademark registration is simply a very confusing subject and unfortunately many of the websites that offer this service make it even more confusing for you. As just one example, many offer multiple packages to choose from. The average business owner with trademarks to register will have no idea how to decide which package is best. The fact of the matter is that there are no choices to make when looking to register your trademark. There is a process and that is the process that anyone offering this service must go through. So if you see “cheap” package deals, avoid them like the plague. This will put your trademarks at risk if you don’t do everything necessary to maximize your chances of getting your trademark registered or, worse yet, not being sued for trademark infringement! The mere fact that someone offers you this option should let you know that they have no knowledge on the subject.

Which leads to the next big thing to keep in mind. When you’re comparing online trademark registration services, there are two main categories of websites you should be aware of. The first are document archiving websites or self-help websites. Some of these can be found on a website called comparelegalforms (online-trademark-search-registration.html), a website that does not do justice to consumer trademark registration services. This is because it does not include any trademark attorney websites, the second category of online trademark registration services. The ONLY way to register a trademark is through a trademark attorney. Simply put, any other service CANNOT PROPERLY REGISTER YOUR TRADEMARK for you. This is because only a lawyer can give legal advice. It is simply not possible to have any degree of confidence that your trademark application will be successful without the advice of an attorney to evaluate a trademark search, draft an appropriate product and service specification, advise on what basis of filing is appropriate, and respond to substantive issues raised by the USPTO (this is only a short list). I’m not even addressing the serious concerns about the unauthorized practice of law that surround document archiving services.

So now that you know to limit your search to those that are provided by trademark attorneys, what do you need to look for on these websites? First, how do you find them? Well, perhaps the best search term to use is “flat fee trademarks” or “flat fee trademark attorney”. This is because all the major trademark registration attorney websites offer flat fees and will advertise this on their websites. There is no other way to go when paying for this service. There is simply too much risk in paying an hourly rate to a lawyer in this area and lawyers know it. No wonder they all offer flat rates. This is what the consumer wants. The flat fee is very uniform across the major lawyer sites, so your comparison will necessarily be based on non-price factors, and those are significant!

The following is a list of factors that differentiate virtual trademark attorney offerings. This information is very difficult to get from the sites themselves, so at the end of this article I provide a link to a very helpful chart that compares many of the top sites on most of these considerations. The table contains factually obtained and verified information from the websites and is current as of the writing of this article.

• Does the lawyer include “responding to substantive administrative actions” in the fixed fee?

If the attorney only includes responses to “non-substantive” office actions or limits the time they will spend processing your application (there are several tasks involved along the way, such as presenting certain types of evidence, filing certain required forms, and taking other steps necessary to keep the app alive and well), then you won’t really get a fixed fee, right? So make sure these tasks are included in your flat rate.

• Do you get your money back if your trademark search reveals problems and you are unable to apply for your trademark?

This impacts a lot of people. You mean I could pay for NOTHING? In fact, you could. There is no guarantee that a trademark search will not reveal that similar prior trademarks exist which will prevent yours from being registered. In that case, determine what happens. Some attorneys will simply keep your money, some will charge you just for the search, some will offer you a discount on a new search, and at least one will give you another complete search for free. Also, make sure the attorney first performs simple “knockout” searches before doing the full trademark search. This is because these are easy and less expensive (for the lawyer) and can save you from having to use your fee on the full search. Find an attorney who will carry out unlimited knockout searches for you. This is rare.

• Does the lawyer give you UNLIMITED consultation time?

Bottom line, if not, then avoid. As a trademark attorney, I know that the process is VERY detailed and often confusing, requiring a lot of back and forth between attorney and client to ensure the application is filed correctly. That is why you are looking for a flat fee. I often spend several hours on “pre-work” before the application is submitted and part of this involves communicating with the client and asking certain questions. This is absolutely not something that can be avoided in some cases.

• How many kinds of goods and services are included in the flat rate?

Most lawyers only include one. Some include more than one. The more, the better. Often your products or services will span multiple classes and you shouldn’t have to pay more (although it does require more work on the lawyer’s part). This is simply a fact that the attorney needs to factor into the flat fee he charges everyone if he chooses to charge more, otherwise, again, you won’t get a flat fee, right?

Now that you’re a fully informed consumer of trademark services, you can put your money to work much better than ever before.