As counterfeiters grow smarter, how secure is your brand from online threats? Meet the insiders at OpSec, where pioneering strategies, innovative technologies, and deep industry expertise come together to safeguard brand integrity and value.
Our dedicated team, including optical scientists, integration engineers, and online analysts, not only understands the intricate issues faced by brands but thrives on solving them with innovative thinking and techniques. Hear directly from the experts on topics they are passionate about as we share their Voices and Viewpoints.
Today, Kaitlin Watson, our seasoned Customer Success Manager, takes you behind the scenes of our proactive approach to online brand protection. With a keen focus on overcoming the cunning tactics of counterfeiters and unauthorized sellers, Kaitlin shares her experience in building defense mechanisms for a diversity of brands.
Kaitlin Watson | Customer Success Manager
Kaitlin works with a variety of household names across a wide range of industries, ensuring their reputations remain untarnished in the digital landscape. She has a knack for troubleshooting customer business problems, and her passion lies in applying technical solutions to safeguard the brands she serves.
Q: What challenges do brands face when fighting online brand abuse?
A: Counterfeit sellers are constantly shifting tactics, and they can be specific to a region. For example, different keywords are used in Latin America and Europe, and the kinds of infringement differ. In Latin America, we’re seeing outright counterfeit and policy violations, whereas in Europe they’ve started to hide it. Counterfeit sellers are burying product photos under the fourth or fifth photo in the listing, and no longer using the brand in the title. Keywords are also hidden in such a way that marketplaces don’t automatically spot the infringement. The biggest challenge for brands is being able to identify these trends, especially if they’re selling internationally.
Q: How do you support brands as they tackle common IP threats in unique ways?
A: Consumer goods brands have complex distribution networks and specific sales policies. One way we protect brands from gray market sales is by identifying online sellers who ship to a European Union (EU) country from outside the EU. Since this is a policy violation, we will send a cease and desist notice to enact takedowns quickly. In certain markets, we also counteract gray market sales by identifying listings with prices below the minimum advertised price (MAP). Our online pricing radar alerts brands to issues with email alerts and reporting.
“In certain markets, we also counteract gray market sales by identifying listings with prices below the minimum advertised price.”
In 2021, 13% of sales were consumer goods sold in markets not envisaged by the manufacturer.
Q: What kind of insights do you provide to help brands modify their response?
A: I spend a lot of time tracking where trends are headed and how threats are shifting. For example, after enforcements have removed infringements successfully on one marketplace, I run a discovery process on other marketplaces to see if infringements have increased. I have open conversations with clients so they are aware of the nuances behind the enforcement numbers. Another subject I like to dig into is keywords by region. I review regional keyword scans to identify those keywords that uncover a lot of infringements, and those that do not. If a keyword is working well in Latin America, I’ll go on to test it in other regions. The regional perspective is very important, because the results are widely different between a region like Europe or Latin America.
Q: How can intelligence-driven dashboards impact brand protection strategies?
A: OpSec collects a lot of data during our scanning, harvesting, and enforcement processes. While the sheer amount of data is on the face of it impressive, my clients feel that the real impact is in our dashboard reports. They offer an in-depth understanding of the brand’s exposure, answer relevant business questions, and allow them to shift their brand protection strategies. We’re also able to provide insights into the data points that clients are requesting through custom-built dashboards. For one client we have a customized product code dashboard that filters high value products and shows them where the counterfeit listings are and the listing prices. This allows them to identify the high value targets and shift their brand protection strategies.
“3D printed products are continuing to impact the counterfeit landscape.”
Between 2020 and 2026 the market for 3D printing is expected to almost triple in size.
Q: Are there any rapidly evolving threats that brands should look out for?
A: I believe the top three threats to be aware of are deep fakes, AI generated images, and 3D printed products. As OpSec is already seeing with multiple clients, deep fakes are being used to mislead consumers by creating false advertisements, brand collaborations, and celebrity endorsements. AI generated images, often used on counterfeit goods or listings, are also misleading. They look very real, and it’s very easy to hop on an AI platform to create fake images. 3D printed products are continuing to impact the counterfeit landscape. While it is not a new technology, the recent drop in 3D printer costs has led to a rise in the production of counterfeit products.
Take the next step with OpSec
Ready to outsmart counterfeiters with strategies as advanced as the threats you face? Join Kaitlin and the OpSec team in transforming your brand protection tactics and strategic response. Discover how the unique insights and custom-built dashboards that we’ve discussed today can help meet your brand’s specific challenges. Explore the OpSec Insight platform or connect with us directly for an in-depth consultation to start your journey.