Brian is right on. As a business law attorney, many of my clients forget that their "goodwill" has a value and that if they do not protect their rights to their goodwill such as their logos, name marks, etc., someone may just step in front of them and register it first. That can cause a huge problem in the long run especially if their success can sometimes be very dependent upon their intellectual property. As a franchise attorney, the first thing to creating a successful franchise is to have that trademark registered everywhere that you will be selling your franchise. That's why I send my franchise clients to Brian to take care of their Trademark registrations.