Call to Action: Tackling the Grey Market Intelligently
With 200 million pages on the World Wide Web, tackling the business of counterfeiting and grey market commerce is not easy. But it needs to be done because many manufacturers deal with problems like brand infringement, burgeoning counterfeits, grey market sales, etc. Online auction sites are probably the biggest drivers of grey market activities and counterfeit sales. Whether it’s aluxury brandlike Christian Dior or even Tiffany’s, or automotive parts; brands have struggled to stop sales of counterfeit products. Widespread brand abuse can be seen everywhere and almost seems omnipresent.
It’s a Grey Market out There!
Grey market products can have a tremendous negative impact on customers who expect the original manufacturer’s brand quality as well as the warranty. Grey market sales can adversely affect your revenue along with the revenues of your legitimate distributor channels. Generally it is noticed that products reach the grey market through authorized channels and are then released to unauthorized dealers who sell them on the grey market at huge discounts. Often these products are actually older products that may have been discontinued because newer models have taken their place. What suffers in the process is the original manufacturer’s distributor loyalty and the consumer that buys the product!
Detecting Fraud Intelligently
Protecting your brand and ensuring no one takes your legitimate business away has become one of the core activities of all brands and product manufacturers who realize the damaging potential of online fraud. Investing in the right kind of fraud detection software could add immensely to your brand protection initiatives. The software needs to assist in preventing fraud of any kind, be it via phishing or spoofing. It also needs to help you catch the offenders responsible for this fraud by providing you with total and complete visibility into possible grey market areas where goods might be sold or bought, including auction sites, B2B sites, etc. The software should also provide enough evidence if you decide to prosecute the offenders and drag them into court. Finally, you should be provided immediate awareness of any brand violations; therefore the solution you choose should be a 24/7 around the clock solution.
Protection Is the Key
To ensure your product and your brand reputation remain untarnished and your revenue streams undisturbed, it is important to realize that grey market activities and counterfeiting should be dealt with firmly. So detect fraud early on rather than suffering later, and choose the right fraud detection software carefully. Remember preserving your brand equity is important, and, once destroyed, it is very difficult to rebuild to its former glory. Better safe than sorry!
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