Sustainable Brands - MARQUES

Sustainable brands MARQUES Sustainability conference

(European Trademark Association)16.09.09

www.davidgreen.me.uk

What do these have in common?

Brands need to be protected if they are to be sustained – ‘hoover’ ‘aspirin’ and ‘escalator’ are all now generic terms – as trademarks they have become meaningless.


A changing world - megatrends

Economy

DebtRecession

Shift from West to East

VolatilityMicrofinance

Aging demographicsChanged capital markets



Energy

Economy

Fossil fuel exhaustion

Renewables

Efficiency and conservation

Diversity of supplies Security

Growing demand

Geopolitics


Environment


Energy

Economy

Global Warming/Emissions

Resource Management esp.Water & Soil

Commodity consumption

Sustainability/Green livingConscious capitalism

Biodiversity & Habitats



Digital

Environment

Energy

Economy

Internet of things(that think)

Humaninterface

Social media services

Wireless web/Digital spectrum

Meaningful machine manipulation

Data visualisation

Government initiatives



Digital

Environment

Energy

Economy

Internet of things(that think)

Social media services

Wireless web/Digital spectrum

Meaningful machine manipulation

Data visualisation

Government initiatives

Humaninterface


A changing world – impact on brands

All organisations operate in this changing social environment

“Flourishing involves making money on a long-term sustainable basis ”.Enterprise IG ‘Brandjacking’ report

Public scepticism over brand promises – recession, political and corporate accounting scandals, greenwashing

Companies being scrutinised not just for what they sell but how they operate

The Internet enables this scrutiny to take place in full public glare

The Internet also facilities systematic brand and trademark infringements


Brand abusePolicing the Internet

Brand abuse on the web

Brand abuse on the web is growing in scale and sophistication, and also increasingly opportunistic

15% of goods sold online are estimated to be counterfeit.

Widespread, organised, criminal brand and trademark infringements – which use a wide variety of techniques such as phishing, malware, spam, cybersquatting etc.

Collectively such infringements are referred to as online brand abuse or ‘brand-jacking’


Brand abuse threats - cybersquatting

Infringing on trademarks within the domain name system – most common type of brand abuse.

Many are opportunistic and will drop on receipt of one or more C&D letters.

Audit of all registered domains, ownership and forensic analysis to identify cross holdings before any C&D.

Often part of an overall brand infringement that involves other tactics.

WIPO domain arbitrations2009 = 2025 ytd2008 = 39582007 = 35452006 = 28062005 = 3312

Sunrise periodsDomain name kitingDomain name slamming

449, 584 incidents of cybersquatting recorded in Q4 08 – up 18% yoy*.


Brand abuse threats - phishing

Criminals attempt to steal personal identity and related information using emails, websites and social media that reflect brand identity of targeted brand.

A record 502 organizations were phished in Q1 2009, an increase of 24 percent from Q1 2008

Financial services and payment provider brands are most targeted, but..

.. other industries are now being targeted and attacks against social media companies increased 241% between Q1 2008 and Q1 2009


Brand abuse threats - malware

Crimeware/Malware – visitor directed to a bogus site or page – malicious code (e.g. a virus) is downloaded in the background – compromised computer can now be used to launch email spam, log info entered via keyboard, and even in cyber warfare.

1.6M malicious codes identified in 2008 – a 165% increase on 2007

“The release rate of malicious code and other unwanted programs may be exceeding that of legitimate software applications”.Symantec Internet Security Threat Report’ April 09


Online brand infringement

Brand Abuse

Customer Solicitation

Global Counterfeit Sales

Traffic Diversion

Direct Marketing of Fake Goods

Identity/ Credential Theft(Phishing)

Gray Market Sales

Counterfeit Wholesale Exchanges

False Association

Identity Fraud(Financial)Protect Brand:

monitor for abuses and take action

Defend Revenue: control online channels, prevent loss of revenue

Disparagement

Cyber-Squatting

Copycat Sites

Create Ownership in Identity with global domain

registration and management

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Severity of Threat

Source: MarkMonitor

Brand Compliance


Online brand protection - implementation

Considerations Services

Start early to set precedent and to demonstrate pro-activity to sponsors

Establish process, workflow and reporting

Identify technology tool - RFPPrioritise infringement typesContinuously revise filters as

new sponsors and issues arise Filter out irrelevant domains Allow time for Cease & Desist

notifications to take effect

Brand monitoring services Online security services

Domain monitoring Internet monitoring for

trademarksLogo and image trackingURL link checkingAuction site monitoringPhishing attack management


Online brand protection - mitigation

Efforts will depend on threat type.

Issue prioritisation based on riskanalysis of the 3 R’s:Priority content of concernProcess for determining sites for enforcementConsiderations for responding to infringers

Monitor results to demonstrate ROI

You are defending your:•Rights (IP)•Revenue•Reputation

Monitor Analyse Mitigate


Brand engagementSocial media

Social media revolution


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8

Social media

More than a movement from traditional media to online media.

It is a fundamental change in behaviours that have far reaching implications for both government and for organisations in every industry sector.

Control over customer conversations is no longer possible in this new world - organisations must engage with this social change if they are to influence these new conversations.

“If you have a brand, you‘re under threat. Your customers have always had an idea about what your brand signifies, an idea that may vary from the image you are projecting. Now they‘re talking to each other about that idea. They are redefining for themselves the brand you spent millions of dollars creating.”ForresterGroundswell Report



Social media spectrum

Social media

Wikis

Social bookmarking

Microblogs

Blogs

Social networks

Social video,

photo & audio

Widgets & Mashups


Web and social media – brand impact

Brand damage Brand engagement

Stella Artois – user generated content on ‘wife beater’ moniker was returned top of Google searches ahead of company’s own content

Dell – disgruntled customers coalesced on the web – ‘Dell Hell’

Obama – highly effective use of social media in his election campaign was a ‘tipping point’


http://www.thisistrue.com/dellhell.html

Social media implementation

Organisations recognize the need to implement or improve their social marketing programs, but cite a lack of tools and expertise as their biggest challenges.

Strategy and objectives – not technology tools!

Enabling employees – rapid micro-communications

Listen and respond to what customers and critics say



Luxury or necessity?

You have no choice – the trends are worldwide and already happening

Organisations must reflect social and environmental concerns, but brand sustainability is much more than this

Sustainability is creating durability for your brand in a changing world

Brand protection and brand engagement go hand in hand to create a sustainable brand

“If your business depends on a positive Internet reputation, then you have little choice than to explicitly manage that reputation online”.Gartner

“(Social media) has created a permanent, long-lasting shift in the way the world works”. Forrester

“The adoption of social networking type applications will drive the next generation of business software and growth” (Bill Gates)



Sustainable Brands - MARQUES

Business

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