Unauthorized Use of a Brand: How Do These Violations Impact You?

When we talk about brand violations, it is common to think directly about piracy or other types of counterfeiting. However, this is just a part of this concept. After all, these violations can also take the form of unauthorized use, plagiarism, and patent copying. But what are the real dangers of this unauthorized use for brands and how can you prevent them from affecting your brand? Join Branddi and learn more about the subject in this article!

What is unauthorized use of a brand?

In short, we can say that unauthorized use of a brand refers to the act of using elements of existing companies' industrial property without authorization. That is, this can happen not only through copying products and services but also by using logos, colors, or other characteristics protected by the company.

Increasingly common, especially due to the conveniences brought by digital marketing, it is not uncommon to find legal cases involving brand violations. Proof of this is that piracy alone causes a loss of over 450 billion annually in Brazil.

But besides the financial side, there are many other issues that lie behind this unauthorized use. Keep reading to understand how violations can impact your brand!

How does brand violation impact companies?

As we mentioned above, when we talk about company violations, it is common for brands to think directly about the financial impacts involved. This is because these copies and counterfeits are responsible for diverting conversions and sales intended for the original brands.

However, that’s not all. After all, these violations can also cause other negative effects, such as market loss, reputation damage, and costs with litigation actions.

Understand more about each of these threats below!

Market loss

When brands are always threatened and associated with counterfeits and low-quality services, they not only confuse their consumers but also face difficulties dealing with partners and affiliates. This positioning ends up diluting the company’s strength, causing it to lose not just resources, but mainly authority. As a result, the company becomes even more exposed to these occurrences, becoming an easy target for the continuation of these violators.

Reputation damage

By being constantly associated with low-quality products, the brand gradually has its reputation undermined. After all, consumers do not always understand that the merchandise comes from an imitation and not from the original company. In other words, the public, stakeholders, and the market will understand that the violators are speaking on behalf of your brand, and it will lose credibility.

Costs with litigation actions

If the issues involving brand violations are not resolved, they lead to the worst possible impact: legal resolution. That is, when the brand and the violators go to the judicial sphere to resolve these cases of unauthorized use. This option, however, even though effective, has some problems.

The first one is the location of these violators, as the internet allows these malicious users to camouflage themselves in the digital universe. The second one directly relates to the cost involved in these processes.

After all, litigation actions tend to be highly bureaucratic, meaning your team has to invest heavily in financial resources and time to protect your elements against these violations.

How to shield your brand from unauthorized use of a brand?

After learning more about the potential negative impacts of unauthorized use of a brand, it’s natural that you are interested in understanding how to shield yours from these occurrences. After all, this way, you not only protect your investments but also demonstrate a strong image of fighting violations and other threats.

Thinking about this growing need, Branddi has created a quick step-by-step guide with three essential tips for companies that want to rid themselves of unauthorized use. Let’s go?

Tip 1: Register all intellectual property related to your brand

Although it is not enough by itself to keep your brand protected digitally, registering intellectual property is indeed important. After all, it is what legitimizes your company’s right over these elements.

Therefore, make sure that the characteristics that compose your company are duly registered and legalized to avoid others from taking advantage of what you have built.

Want to better understand how to register at the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI)? Check out the content we made exclusively on the subject!

Tip 2: Educate your consumers

This is a point that is commonly overlooked by companies when combating digital violators. However, this positioning is a serious mistake.

After all, educating your consumers about your brand’s communication and product standards can be essential so they can recognize suspicious actions on their own. This not only guarantees a decrease in costs for correcting these situations but also makes your brand stronger and more self-aware.

So, create clear communication and a unified tone of voice for your sales and communication channels. This, without a doubt, will make it harder for those who think about violating the components of your business!

Tip 3: Use technology to monitor suspicious activities

Technology can be an important partner for companies in digital marketing. After all, it enables more speed, strategy, and effectiveness in digital protection actions.

In this context, having specialized support like Branddi is essential for making informed decisions. This way, you not only ensure that your brand is doing what’s necessary to protect itself, but also save time and resources that could be invested elsewhere.

Learn more about Branddi's role in cases of unauthorized brand use!

Count on Branddi and shield your brand against violations!

Branddi is a pioneering Brazilian company in digital brand protection. For that, we rely on a highly skilled team, technology, and artificial intelligence.

In cases of unauthorized brand use, we carry out a thorough scan and monitoring on Google, social media, and marketplaces like Shopee, Mercado Livre, Amazon, Americanas, and Magalu.

This way, we can ensure that no suspicious occurrences are using your brand elements. Moreover, if any threat is detected, we send a notification for content removal and perform complete follow-up until it is deleted. All this is done quickly and out of court.

And the proof that our actions are efficient lies in our results: 99% success in complaints and a 25% increase in sales and lead generation.

Do you want to protect your brand against unauthorized brand use? Count on Branddi!