You are a service provider, manufacturer, retailer or distributor and your business name and the goodwill it generates is of fundamental importance to you. It differentiates you from the competition. You apply names, logos, straplines and other marks to your business and its products and your ideas and innovations are unique to you. These intangible assets are known by the generic term "intellectual property" and include your copyrights (in computer programs, reports, drawings, databases, photographs and other works), your designs, your trade marks or names and your inventions which might be patentable. The value of these assets may not appear on your balance sheet but their value cannot be questioned.

If you do not take action to protect your intellectual property, you might find your ability to protect your business from competition or to prevent abuse by others is more limited than you ever thought. As you grow your business nationally and abroad you might find the exploitation of your intellectual property is significantly hampered because others have used your ideas which might have been protected. Do not leave it too late to take advice on how to protect and exploit your assets.