Want to prevent knock-offs? Focus on spelling, bar codes

Just how difficult is it to separate the real from the fake in consumer packaged products? Even packaging materials and printing professionals have had difficulty identifying one from the other in exercises at recent packaging conferences and workshops.

Counterfeiters have become so good at copying the real thing that they can come very close to a perfect match in printing quality, color, and other essentials that brand marketers use in their packaging.

So how to tell the difference between real and fake? Sandra Block, a columnist at USA Today, recommends to check the packaging for spelling areas and the absence of a bar code. Legitimate product manufacturers, she says, use extra caution to avoid these errors in their anti-counterfeiting strategy.

This information could be highly valuable to your consumers. You don’t want them becoming loyal to a knock-off of your brand.