Case Study: Nigerian beauty brand boosts sales by over 600% with Sproxil Champion. The unfortunate truth about brand infringement is that by the time the product owner realizes his brand is under attack, this attack is already well under way. By this time a portion of his revenue has been lost to the counterfeiter, as well as potential earnings from consumers who have deserted the brand due to bad experiences with the product.
When this happens, many companies turn to product verification solutions like Sproxil Defender. In some cases, the problem has to be managed discreetly; otherwise, paranoia about the existence of substandard copies of the product will lead to a mass boycott. This is the beauty of the Sproxil Champion solution. The allure of guaranteed or possible incentives helps to propel the consumer past their initial doubt to give the product another chance to win their loyalty. Very often, this is all that is needed, as Mr. Emeka Okonkwo, the Nigerian distributor of Otentika; a Swiss cosmetic brand found out. Within three months, sales which had declined to an occasional trickle were revived and boosted beyond his expectations.
To read more about how Sproxil Champion helped Mr Okonkwo’s business recoup market share and increase sales, download the case studyhere.
At the heart of Sproxil’s mission is the desire to make lives safer, healthier, and business more profitable for hard working brands. We are committed to providing our clients with quality solutions, but also actively working to scale their value and impact, whether geographically or by incorporating industry feedback into our processes.
We’ve had a lot of external activity in the past few weeks, the latest of which was a cocktail event hosted by our Indian office. We’ve been busy lately – we recently opened an office in Mali which is our first entry into a French-speaking country.
In February, Sproxil surpassed the 50 million verifications mark, the highest number of interactions processed in our industry. As a consumer engagement company among other things, we know the value of the appreciating the clients who helped us achieve this feat. With an ever increasing customer base as we steadily advance towards the 75 million mark, Sproxil India wanted to celebrate our progress and discuss the future with its clients and partners. And so July 20th was set for a roundtable and cocktail event.
After guests had arrived at the venue, the Hyatt Regency in Mumbai, the event started with a welcome address from Sproxil’s CEO Dr. Ashifi Gogo. Dr. Gogo’s presentation was on the most recent developments in anti-counterfeiting space globally. The next presentation was by Pradeep Dhargalkar, the head of packaging development for Unichem Laboratories Ltd; a big pharmaceutical brand in India. Mr. Dhargalkar gave an overview of preventive measures in the pharmaceutical industry.
The next industry speaker was Shreedhar Parundekar; Head of Brand Protection & Product Safety, for Pidilite Industries Limited, who shared insights on general brand protection strategies and intelligent packaging. The final address of the evening was from Anand Mehta, Sproxil India’s managing director, who shared customer success stories achieved with our solutions.
After the presentations were over, guests were treated to a stand-up set by a comedian as well as dinner and cocktails. Then they took tours of the Sproxil Defender Experience Center, where they interacted with the solution at the various stages of the process. They scratched labels of different genuine and fake products gotten from the market and received appropriate SMS responses to their mobile phones. Real-life images of exactly identical authentic & counterfeit goods were also displayed on a screen for them to observe. They were able to witness firsthand, how authentication labels are often the surest way to know the origin of a product before using it.
For the application stage, there were samples of semi-automatic packaging machines which could be used to apply labels to products, as well as demonstrations of other machines on one of the screens. Another screen was used to display the Sproxil data visualization portal.
Guests went home with a practical demonstration of Sproxil Champion; scratch cards with which they received vouchers for various services. It was an entertaining and informative event, and we would like to thank everyone who honored our invitation. For those who couldn’t, we took some pictures to share!
Sproxil was founded in 2010 primarily to give pharmaceutical companies and consumers a way to fight back against counterfeiting. This simple system backed by sound technology was so well received that our solutions quickly spread from brand protection to consumer engagement technology, as well as supply chain security.
In the seven years since, our clientele list has grown from pharmaceutical companies to brands from all sectors. We have worked with local companies as well as blue chip multinationals worth millions of dollars. We have received numerous awards, recognition from international agencies, and we are immensely honoured by them. One of our greatest achievements came this February, when we surpassed the 50 million verifications mark: the highest recorded. We are particularly proud of this milestone because of what it stand for; veritable proof that our solution continues to provide value. Each one of those interactions we have processed represents trust; of our clients in us, and their consumers in them.
As we advance towards the 75 million mark, Sproxil India is taking a moment to celebrate the story thus far. On July 20th in India, business executives from various brands, as well as Sproxil’s CEO Dr Ashifi Gogo, will be hosted to a celebration of this milestone. Guests will be treated to discussions on brand protection best practices, a review of anti-counterfeiting and packaging solutions, as well as cocktails afterward. If you are in India and would like to attend this event, please send an email to afrin.kazi@sproxil.com.
Global Anti-Counterfeiting & Consumer Engagement Company Set To Formally Commence Operations In Mali
Hon. Minister of Agriculture (middle) presents plaque to CEO of Sproxil Mali’s first client (left) with support from Sproxil CEO (right).
Bamako – Mali (July 11, 2017) – Sproxil®, a global leader in mobile-based brand protection and consumer engagement technology, is opening a country office in Mali. A two-day launch event will be held on July 11 – 12, to formally introduce its services to corporate entities and the government, as well as facilitate discussions on a cohesive approach to fighting counterfeiting.
Key executives in attendance will also participate in a workshop on the prevention of counterfeit and illegal agricultural and pharmaceutical products. Panelists will include representatives from agricultural input suppliers and other companies, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), and USAID, who are partnering with Sproxil to launch this initiative. This project is one of the results of an initiative led by the Commercial Law Development Program at the US Department of Commerce to prevent counterfeiting on a global scale.
“The only person who wins when fake and substandard goods are passed off as original items is the criminal. We are excited to extend our mandate of consumer protection to Mali. Our solution will empower consumers to confirm the authenticity of their purchases and provide brand owners the opportunity to take hold of their businesses” said Chinedum Chijioke, Managing Director, Sproxil, Africa.
Speaking of USAID’s motivation for partnering with Sproxil, Charles Davis, the acting USAID/Mali Economic Growth Office Director noted that, “counterfeiting is a major deterrent to the uptake of improved agricultural inputs, and we believe in the potential of this partnership solution to mitigate this danger.”
Although illegal and counterfeit agricultural inputs are the focus of the workshop, Sproxil’s verification service can be used by brands from any sector. With a mobile phone, Malian consumers will now be able to verify the authenticity of their goods in seconds, by sending the unique codes on the products to Sproxil’s designated verification system. Since the launch of this service in 2010, Sproxil has fielded over 50 million direct consumer interactions for brands globally, the highest number recorded.
About Sproxil
Sproxil® uses mobile technology and a proprietary fraud detection platform to launch secure, data-driven consumer engagement programs globally. Sproxil’s multi-award winning solutions are deployed by multinational manufacturers and brands across multiple industries to prevent supply chain fraud, amplify brand awareness, and optimize marketing expenditure. With teams of experts in Africa, Asia and America, Sproxil has executed projects across five continents and can offer services in over 100 countries worldwide. Sproxil is the only consumer loyalty and brand protection expert with both ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certification. For more information and a full list of Sproxil’s product suite, please visit http://www.sproxil.com.
About USAID
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is the United States Government agency which is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid. USAID’s global mission isto partner to end extreme poverty and to promote resilient, democratic societies while advancing the security and prosperity of the United States.” USAID has worked with the people of Mali for over 50 years to achieve major development gains, particularly in the fields of health, agriculture, and education. The Sproxil Public Private Partnership is supported through the Feed the Future Initiative, which is led by USAID and draws on the agricultural, trade, investment, development and policy resources and expertise of 11 federal agencies.
About CLDP
Established in 1992, CLDP is a division of the U.S. Department of Commerce that helps achieve U.S. foreign policy goals in developing and post-conflict countries through commercial legal reforms. CLDP’s unique, government-to-government technical assistance draws upon highly-experienced regulators, judges, policymakers, business leaders and attorneys from both the public and private sectors to deliver results that make meaningful and lasting changes to the legal and business environments of our host countries.
CEO Of Mobile Anti-Counterfeiting Technology Company Outlines Three-Point Plan To U.S. Congressional Committee For Making Intellectual Property Rights More Effective.
Washington, DC (25 April 2017) – Dr. Ashifi Gogo, CEO of Sproxil®, a global leader in mobile-based brand protection and consumer engagement technology, testified at a hearing held by the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Titled ‘Intellectual Property – Driver of Innovation: Making Our Lives Healthier, Safer, and more Productive,’ the hearing was presided over by Senator Chuck Grassley who is chairman of the committee on the judiciary as well as co-chair of the relaunched Congressional Trademark Caucus.
The senator expressed his pleasure at the fact that companies like Sproxil who had been recipients of the Patents for Humanity award from the United States Patent and Trademark Office were testifying at the hearing about how their award winning inventions had helped communities in need across the globe. Senator Grassley noted that innovation not only directly benefits society through the creative output of innovators but through the enormous economic impact it has on the American economy. He concluded by revealing that the Patents for Humanity Program Improvement Act had been reintroduced to encourage and reward companies that innovate and use patented technology to address humanitarian needs.
In his statement on what could be done to make defending intellectual property rights more effective, Dr. Ashifi Gogo gave three courses of action which are:
Secure supply chains and educate consumers to drive purchase decisions which make copyright theft unprofitable.
To encourage partnerships between global e-commerce websites, content distribution platforms, and law enforcement.
Increase inter-agency and private sector collaboration using technology platforms to share intelligence securely.
Dr. Gogo concluded with this quote: ‘Our society needs greater awareness and broad agreement to align our collective actions to reject support for intellectual property violators. We need to promote the discovery of new knowledge and innovations by individuals, corporations, research entities, and various other legitimate organizations, both large and small. I continue to believe that technology can play a key role as we work together to achieve that goal.’
Other witnesses at the hearing were: the acting assistant director of the Intellectual Property Rights Center in Washington, the General Manager Health & Life Science for Intel Corporation Ms. Kay Eron, Dr. Conor F. Madigan, Co-Founder & COO of Kateeva, and Dr. Neal Gutterson, VP of Research & Development at DuPont Pioneer.
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About Sproxil
Sproxil® uses mobile technology and a proprietary fraud detection platform to launch secure, data-driven consumer engagement programs globally. Sproxil’s solutions are deployed by multinational manufacturers and brands across multiple industries to prevent supply chain fraud, amplify brand awareness, and optimize marketing spend. With teams of experts in Africa, Asia and America, Sproxil has executed projects across five continents and can offer services in over 100 countries worldwide.
They have earned numerous awards and honors, including the 2009 Clinton Global Initiative Outstanding Commitment Award, the 2013 White House Champions of change award, and the 2014 Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship award for Social Entrepreneur of the year. They were also named the most innovative healthcare company in the world by Fast Company Magazine, ranking #7 overall. In 2015, Sproxil hit the 55 million verifications mark; the highest number of fielded verifications recorded. Most recently, they were nominated for the Unilever Global Development Award category of Business in The Community’s Responsible Business Awards.
Sproxil is the only consumer loyalty and brand protection expert with both ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certification. For more information and a full list of Sproxil’s product suite, please visit www.sproxil.com
Counterfeiting is not a topic that is limited to large corporations and multinational organizations even small businesses face the wrath of counterfeiters. This is becoming a rising problem especially in developing countries. SMEs are said to be the driving force for economic development so in many developing countries, organizations are providing support in various ways to help boost the success rate of SMEs.
SMEs garnering all the support possible and implementing proven business models become successful and contribute to the development of the economy in which they function. Unfortunately, with this level of success comes challenges and one of such challenges is counterfeiting.
Counterfeiters observe the rate at which certain products move in the market and if some are faster than others, they invest in production of those items whether substandard or outright dangerous. That way, they mask the products with the same packaging but different content and distribute. When consumers buy these products and find out its substandard or outright toxic, word of mouth spreads and your brand is damaged.
What happens when SMEs face counterfeiting?
Drop in Sales
Confidence in your product is lost
Company loses market share it worked so hard to gain.
Discouragement of new business initiatives in that economy
Loss of employment as company is not generating sufficient income
Risk of Health and Safety
Loss in tax revenue
Ban of local products in foreign markets
How can SMEs deal with Counterfeiting?
– Packaging
Packaging that is not easy to replace is a strategy companies use to avoid counterfeiting. Apart from the fact that the packaging is not easily accessible, frequent package change is encouraged. This may seem like an expensive approach but the investment to keep your business afloat is necessary.
– Loyalty reward campaign
Products like Sproxil Champion enables businesses run loyalty reward campaigns for their consumers. No matter what industry you are in, whether you deal directly with distributors or end users, rewarding your customer is always a differentiating factor. Counterfeiters are not able to implement these rewards and the Sproxil Champion technology is immediately able to detect and provide intelligence information to businesses about where their products are being counterfeited because they have tried to fake the loyalty reward and our system detects it. This product also works post counterfeiting in the minds of the consumers as the business is able to draw them in with rewards and potentially expand their market share.
– Brand Protection solution
Brand protection labels like the Sproxil Defender is another solution that businesses can take advantage of. You place a label on your product and consumers can scratch and text to verify the authenticity of the product. This builds trust in your brand and eventually weeds out counterfeiters and discourages them from faking your products in the future.
It is important to note that you would always need to stay ahead of the market to avoid counterfeiting in your business. The effects of counterfeiting in a developing economy are dangerous and whatever solution would be best to eradicate this problem must be implemented to discourage the industry of counterfeiting.
According to their website, the Niger Delta Development Forum “envisions a Niger Delta where all persons are able to live sustainable livelihoods, generate income and employment, and create economic opportunities unhindered by constraints from within and outside the market system in the region and beyond.”
The NDDF is not just talking about it, they have been taking strides to ensure that adequate structures are put in place to make their vision a reality. One of such strides is their annual conference home and abroad hosted in several regions to facilitate discussions, share ideas and look for creative ways to execute the ideas shared.
Key stakeholders from the region and partner organizations are invited to attend this event to share creative solutions to the problems in the Niger Delta region in Nigeria. The theme this year was focused “Towards Self-Sustaining Development in the Niger Delta: Narrating and Showcasing a Re-Imagined Niger Delta” A representative of Sproxil was invited to speak on the topic “Economic Diversification and the Digital Economy.”
Atim Ukoh, who handles the marketing communications for Sproxil spoke extensively on how the Niger Delta could benefit from the Sproxil solution. Citing examples of Sproxil projects in other parts of Africa, stakeholders were convinced that the purposeful inclusion of technology early on in the process of diversifying the economy would make their approach more targeted and yield more efficient results.
Great ideas were generated and new relationships were built. We are glad that Sproxil would be included in the beginning processes of developing the Niger Delta economy of Nigeria beyond Oil. For more information about the event, check out the NDDF website.
Check out some images from the event as seen on the NDDF site.
The ember months are upon us and these are the months that are notorious for consumer spending. Maybe your sales plateaued in the summer months and you are looking to boost sales again during the ember months. What is your company doing to make this happen? Has your company drafted a campaign strategy to ensure consumers are spending on your products and not the competition? How does your organization distinguish their brand within this frenzy? Ensuring your products are in hampers are great but offering consumers a little more will certainly get their attention during this period.
First you would need to define the objectives for your company and to do this you would need to take into account the current economic situation in your country. What are the current spending habits? What are the trends your company can capitalize on? These questions and many more would help you define realistic objectives and set realistic goals.
After analyzing your current situation, defining the strategy that would best serve your target market is the next step. Is your company trying to raise brand awareness at this point or just trying to clear the inventory in the warehouse? These goals would determine the strategy of the marketing. For example, if you are trying to clear inventory, you may want to offer a 2 for 1 pricing strategy to get consumers to buy the products off the shelf and possibly clear your warehouse.
The next step would be to decide on the best tactics to use to achieve the objectives for boosting end of year sales. As mentioned in the earlier example, you may decide to offer consumers a 2 for 1 pricing model and advertise this on radio, TV or online. Your strategy could be to reward consumers with airtime when they purchase your products in which case you can purchase labels to reward consumers using the Sproxil Champion program. That way consumers can be instantly rewarded with airtime straight to their mobile phones. These are some tactics to apply to win consumers loyalty during this end of year marketing frenzy period.
The end of year marketing plan on your end needs to be solid to achieve positive results. What plans have you made so far? Have you made plans in the past? Did they work for you?
Loyalty marketing is a term that has come to stay in the business world in recent times. How can you reward your consumers for being loyal to your products? Why should you even reward them? They need the products don’t they? Even necessity products have competition. Water is necessary for survival. So many companies manufacture bottled water but there is competition even within that industry. If water company A offers rewards for customers who patronize their brand and water company B keeps communicating just the benefits of drinking water which company do you think would have an increase in sales? Provided both companies offer the same value proposition. I think Water company A would win consumers hearts with their loyalty rewards.
How does Loyalty Marketing help your Business?
Win back customers
For several reasons, your original customers stray and find other products due to a number of issues. The other products may be more cost effective or your company did not invest the resources in looking after these customers when they were purchasing your products. Whatever the case may be, the best way to win back these customers is to run a loyalty marketing campaign. This entices them with the offerings but more importantly, you give them a chance to reconnect with a product they once loved and depending on whether your company has put in the work to improve the product, you would have won their hearts all over again.
Build a Database of Loyalty
Do you think that company that supply you consumer information have given you enough data about your real consumers? If you run a campaign and have consumers potential and existing purchase your product, you know they were genuinely interested in the product. The information you acquire from running that campaign is more targeted because you know for a fact that these consumers purchased your product. Loyalty campaigns help your company build a targeted database and you can always approach these consumers when your company is launching a new product or you want to get real market feedback.
There are many other reasons why loyalty campaigns are useful for your business. It helps you build customer lifetime value amongst other things. Has your company run a loyalty campaign before?
The world has been significantly dominated by Smartphones and mobile apps. Apple trademarked the ubiquitous catchphrase, “there’s an app for that.” Years after the tagline was introduced, the statement continues to hold true.Apps have transformed the way that we work and live. Dying to know that song playing on the radio? There’s an app for that. Need a quick way to understand what your baby’s crying means? There’s an app for that, too.
Apps have also changed how many industries operate and thrive, and the healthcare industry is no exception.
When we introduced our SMS-based product verification service(Mobile Product Authentication™ (MPA™)), we wanted to help people actively avoid dangerous counterfeit drugs and contribute to global anti-counterfeiting efforts. We then developed our mobile apps with the same premise, recognizing that the apps have the incredible potential to be a source of education, communication, and empowerment.
While we develop more ways for our mobile apps to bring greater value to consumers around the world, we reflect on other apps that are transforming the way we view health and wellbeing. Here are five apps that truly illustrate how health care and technology can intersect in amazing, productive ways:
Be My Eyes connects volunteer helpers all around the world with blind people via live video chat.
be my eyes app helping the blind see remotely
How it works When a blind person needs any assistance, like knowing the expiry date on the milk or navigating new surroundings, he/she requests assistance via the Be My Eyes app. Volunteers can then accept the request and connect via live video to help.
How it transforms health By tapping into an entire community of volunteers, Be My Eyes is making a significant impact for how blind people live.
Dexcom is a recently FDA-approved app that enables people to remotely monitor blood sugar levels of diabetic patients.
dexcom diabetes glucose monitoring app
How it works The Dexcom Share system is a complement to the G4 Platinum Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) System that allows patients to share their glucose levels with others. It even alerts people when glucose levels are low. While the app is particularly useful for parents with young children who have Juvenile Diabetes or children of older parents, the CGM data can be shared with any family members, health care providers, and even close friends.
How it transforms health The Dexcom app helps with real-time information sharing for Diabetes patients and their caretakers, making it easier to ensure that patients stay on top of their glucose levels. It gives peace of mind to caretakers and allows people to take greater control over the disease.
You may have Googled a few symptoms in the past and stumbled upon the WebMD website. With over 5 years of consumer insights and feedback, they finally created an app that gives users the same great health information and expertise we have come to trust.
webmd mobile health app
How it works WebMD has an app that offers physician-reviewed health content, interactive diagnostic tools, and on-demand healthy living information. WebMD’s innovative health improvement program helps people create and sustain healthier habits.
How it transforms health While WebMD’s app is an extension of its website, its impact on patient empowerment is still noteworthy. WebMD helps consumers actively manage their health by providing them with objective healthcare information. It also enables healthcare professionals access to clinical reference sources, stay up to date with the latest clinical information, and provides a forum to communicate with their peers in the medical community.
This app helps you monitor your heart rate wherever you are in less than 10 seconds.
instant heart rate app mobile
How does it work To use the app, place the tip of your index finger on the iPhone’s camera, and in a few seconds, your pulse will be shown on your screen. The app detects a change in color on your fingertip with every heart beat and utilizes an advanced algorithm to show you your heart rate.
How it transforms health The app’s main purpose is for those interested in monitoring their heart rate during exercise in order to obtain optimal caloric burn. While this app is not a complete substitute for a doctor or nurse, the app may also help those with heart conditions monitor their heart rate.
This interesting app provides step-by-step instructions for emergency first aid situations.
go to aid mobile app
How does it work GotoAid was created for the non-professional responder with easy to follow instructions for emergency situations. There are appropriate responses for everything from bee stings to weather related emergencies to a complete sudden cardiac arrest incident.
How it transforms health This app can empower people to respond appropriately during certain emergencies or life threatening situations. While it is no replacement for rapid response teams or a health care professional, the app has the potential to save a life when time is of the essence.
This is in no way an exhaustive list of transformative apps that exist to change the health care industry. Do you know other interesting and helpful health and wellbeing apps? Tell us all about it in the comment section!
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