Digital and physical aspects of brand protection offer different types of brand protection – neither is a full solution for every situation in isolation. Businesses with a tried and tested physical solution may be missing out on additional consumer and supply chain insight that digital tools can provide. Businesses that dive fully into digital solutions risk running with a less secure solution whilst missing the opportunities to drive further engagement and enhance the perception of their product.
Here are our top 3 reasons to adopt a combined digital physical and digital approach to a brand protection strategy.
1. Easier and more inclusive overall authentication
The power of a good physical brand protection label is clear – an IZON® or PURE™ hologram enables authentication at any point in the supply chain, requiring no special tool and providing instant visual reassurance of authenticity. Intuitive design enables users to check for strong depth and movement effects that are virtually impossible to counterfeit. However not everyone is confident inspecting a label for authenticity and the amount of training provided to stakeholders along the supply chain may vary between companies.
The physical security features on brand protection labels provides reassurance to users that they aren’t being scammed when scanning a code (digital authentication isn’t fully secure in isolation) and, in turn, the act of scanning a label can provide information that helps users authenticate the label with greater certainty. So, for stakeholders who are not fully confident authenticating a label, a smartphone can act as their guide.
2. Enhanced engagement and perception of your product
Brand managers and product owners report that a well-designed label helps their product be perceived to be more premium – it tells them it is valuable enough to protect. Some also like that it signals to their consumers they care about them receiving the genuine goods. And there are a range of aesthetic choices to suit most brand needs, with the technologies underpinning PURE™ and IZON® creating very different aesthetics. Users that move your packaging around to inspect a physical product are engaging more closely with what they are purchasing.
Additionally, the presence of unique identifiers, including QR codes, sends a visual cue that the product has been tracked and that the company is embracing technology to protect its supply chain. When users scan that code it unlocks a myriad of ways in which a brand can then gain consumer insight whilst engaging with them directly.
Great design then ties it all together and ensures the brand protection label enhances the overall perception of the packaging and product.
3. Increased security through additional layers
Good brand protection solutions are multifaceted. They layer up multiple technologies and materials, relying on much more than just one security feature. Every layer of complexity built into the brand protection label is another barrier that the counterfeiter has to overcome. Visible security print, is enhanced with invisible (e.g. UV) security inks. Optically variable security features like IZON® and PURE™ create movement and depth effects that are virtually impossible to counterfeit. The various physical parts of the label are integrated in a way that creates additional processing steps beyond the requirements of simulating individual parts. The digital solution then builds in further steps and complexity, whilst providing real-time analytics to further protect the solution.
A digital-only or physical-only solutions would involve fewer layers and so would reduce the barriers to criminals looking to attack your brand protection solution. A combined solution, especially one with advanced security features and sophisticated digital software like Traceology®, is particularly robust in the face of criminals wanting to simulate your solution.
If you want to find out more about secure label and track and trace solutions, download the new brochures below.
