With changes in the global economy putting more people out of work, the number of people making the decision to begin their own business is on the rise. With this impetus towards creative thinking and the development of new websites and products, it becomes more important every day to consider "Brand Protection."

There are several components involved in the process of branding our product. The first thing to consider is Trade Mark Protection. In Australia, this is regulated by the Australian Government under Intellectual Property Australia (IP Australia). Trade Mark protection begins with registering your Trade Name. Once this is done there are several other areas involved in protecting your brand that need to be considered. These include domain names, business names, and how to protect your Trade Mark internationally.

So you've started a new business or had an existing one for a while and have decided to take things a step further and register your Trade Name. The first thing to think about is how you are going to distinguish your products and services from others in the marketplace. What makes your product unique or stand out from the crowd? Perhaps, people have already started to define your product or service with positive feedback, or you might have come up with a way to identify your business that others can relate to. It is important to check that this name or brand identification is not already being used. It can prove difficult to register a common name or name of a place or well known person. Also, some words are protected by law and cannot be registered under the Trade Marks Acts of 1995. Remember the controversy over the word "champagne", and also the use of "UGG boots" as a brand name.

In order to find out if the brand name you have chosen can be registered and what to do once you get to this point, it might be wise to seek professional advice as goods and services are divided into a number of classes. You need to perform searches in the relevant categories to be sure your Trade Mark can be registered. IP Australia has set up a website with resources for searches. However, they give the following advice:

• Patent, trade mark and design searching is generally only carried out by specially trained persons and the interpretation of the search results is a matter of legal analysis usually performed by specialist advisers.
• The search facilities provided are not a substitute for searches conducted or advice obtained from specialist searchers or advisers.

Once you have your Trade Mark and you are on track with getting it registered, you need to consider the other places you are going to use your brand. Just because you have registered a Trade Mark does not mean you have the domain name, so this might be your next step. A domain name is a textual address that corresponds to a numerical address for an internet location. It would be great to get the domain name that has the same wording as your brand name, but be aware others might have already claimed this location. If an internet address has an ".au" after it, it is registered in Australia. You can find more information about the Australian registration of domain names at Australian Domains (http://www.auda.org.au/about/info/).  There is a guide for small businesses in relation to domain names at this site.

So, you have a registered Trade Mark and purchased a Domain Name - but your brand is not fully protected yet! Registering a Trade Mark is not the same as registering a business name. This can be a little confusing, but a business name is the name under which a business operates. Registration serves as a means of identifying the owners of the business. If the business structure you have chosen is as a sole trader, a partnership or a trust, and not as a company, then you are required to register your business name in the state or territory in which you will operate. You don't need to register a business name if you plan to conduct your business under your or your partner's, first name and surname. Where trading occurs in more than one state or territory, the business name must be registered under the laws of each one. Registration of a business name is compulsory and must be completed before the business starts trading. You can conduct a search to see if your business name is already registered at Business name searchhttp://www.search.asic.gov.au/gns001.html

Once again, you may need to get professional assistance with this part of the process. On registering your business name you will be provided with an ABN (Australian Business Number).