A recent poll conducted by The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), revealed that 79% of UK shoppers will be watching their wallets as they seek out bargains this Christmas. The Study showed:

• 41% of respondents plan to buy less this Christmas
• 30% are looking to buy cheaper products than last year
• The younger demographic are 3 times more likely to happily (and knowingly) buy a counterfeit product
• 15% of consumers have no idea how to make sure goods they buy online are safe for use

As the cost of living crisis intensifies, all of us are looking for deals; the problem is, is the cheaper option the real deal?

Shoppers looking for their favorite brands to give as gifts for their loved ones may not know the dangers of buying fake products, like loose parts in toys, dangerous chemicals in cosmetics or faulty parts in electricals. Counterfeit goods are often cheaply made with low quality materials and can cause some serious harm.

Protecting consumers from counterfeits

For consumers, this could result in a catastrophic Christmas. So how can you decipher an authentic product from a fake? Here are our top tips:

• Research the seller and be wary of third party ecommerce/social media sites –  Do they look official? Is the platform well known? Have you bought from this seller before? Do they have a return policy?
• Check the reviews.
• Always check the manufacturer’s official site and compare the ‘deal’ product across manufacturer and reseller sites.
• If the price is “too good to be true”, it probably is.
• For electrical items, check for the appropriate safety marks for your country. These are also often faked so just because an electrical item looks to carry appropriate labelling does not mean, if it is fake, that it adheres to the appropriate quality and standard of the genuine product.

Protecting brands from counterfeits

For brands, counterfeit goods can have a hugely detrimental impact on revenue, reputation and customers. Fakes divert traffic (and sales) from your website: stealing your ideas for their own profit. And when the consumer receives the sub-par copy? YOU get the blame. In some cases, you could even be sued if customers come to harm.

So what can you do about it?

• Protect your intellectual property by registering it as far and wide as possible.
• Monitor online marketplaces, social media, domains, independent websites and app stores to find copycats imitating your brand and products.
• Report any such copycats and intellectual property (IP) infringements you find so they are removed quickly.
• Continuously monitor and enforce your IP.

Protecting your brand is key to your growth as a business, and now more than ever it is under threat from online copycats. SnapDragon is an online brand protection company dedicated to fighting fakes online. We combine cutting edge AI infringement finding technology with expertise from our multi-lingual team of analysts. We search all over the web to find instances of brand abuse, and enforce with a 97% success rate.

We know that protecting your brand online can be a time consuming task, so our aim is to help you rest easy in the knowledge that your brand is protected 24/7 at a price that won’t cost the earth. SnapDragon’s services are not just a “one size fits all” proposition, we provide bespoke packages to fit your specific needs, to any company big or small. Our aim is to make brand protection accessible to all.

SnapDragon offer free brand checks to show you where your brand is being exposed to online fraud, where you may be losing sales to fakes, and where you may have gaps in your IP portfolio. Get your no obligation brand check today.