Online Brand Protection for Start-Ups
By: Stephen Connolly
Tags: Brands, Brand Protection, Startup, Counterfeiting, Intellectual Property

I also write about IP matters Pointer Brand Protection

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

Whether you’re a new tech start-up with patents to protect, or a fledgling fashion house that needs to safeguard its brand new logo, considering how you can defend your intellectual property rights against counterfeits should be a central part of your business plan. Although there are numerous different kinds of IP rights that may apply to your new business (from copyright to trade secrets), taking advice on future protection is crucial.

For many new businesses, however, especially those with an eye on the global market, one of the biggest problems may not be whether you own a substantial portfolio of IP rights, or how many online listings for fake products you have, the problem may well be closer to home…(HINT: it’s you!)

Counterfeiting is a reality of modern business, and most brands who achieve a modicum of success will face it at some time. That’s why the defence of your intellectual property rights should be factored in to your new business plan from the start. If you plan to succeed then you should also plan for defending your success and its inevitable piracy. After all, an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.

Don’t let your defences be something you only consider once the horse has bolted and the marketplaces are full of fakes — strategize for success ahead of the game.

A soapy example

Ollie and Stan start a company producing a brand new kind of soap with radical anti-bacterial properties. They aren’t too imaginative so they simply call it “BactiSoap”. As they are concentrating on the USA as their biggest possible sales region, they take out a single trademark for that area. The short -term gain for them is that they save some money on the initial outlay and a US trademark is quicker than some of the other countries around the world.

They work hard, and, in time, the product is on the wishlist of consumers across the world. The product is flying off the shelves, leading to a slew of new products from rivals and in-house (cheaper) own brands. As BactiSoap is only protected in the USA, manufacturers across the world are free to market similar sounding soaps based on the market-leading success of the originators.

Less than a year after the product’s launch the market is already flooded with low-quality imitations that drastically affect consumer perceptions of the idea. Everything the original founders had created is ruined. While initial sales in the USA had been strong they have now reduced dramatically, and when the company look to sell abroad they find that a rival company have already taken out IP protection on both the idea and the trademark.

What could they have done?

Many brands suffer from this kind of poor IP planning, resulting in damages to their own success. There are steps a new business can take to account for these possibilities, however, and they begin at the very start of the business planning stage.

Steps to take

· Intellectual property considerations should be made from the very beginning. As with the registering of a business address or a payroll system, IP rights are integral to growth. These registrations don’t have to be prohibitively expensive (even just a company name or key product range), but taking steps to protect your ideas should be crucial.

· Plan for success and for future expansion. What are the company’s ultimate sales goals? Be conscious that IP is protected by a system that takes account of differences across countries and the kind of products produced. If you believe that you may want to sell in additional markets and with other products in the future then starting the registration process earlier rather than later is worthwhile.

· Consider how the sales landscape is changing as your company grows. Your sales accounts will be a key indicator in how the market for your brand is changing globally. If sales are dropping off in a particular country with no apparent reason then it’s worth looking in to whether rival products have usurped your success.

· Rather than reacting to every single instance of counterfeit behaviour, use your time and budget effectively to target those places and platforms that are really causing you the biggest damage in terms of your sales figures or brand reputation.

Disclaimer: ALWAYS TAKE LEGAL ADVICE ON TRADE MARKS