The consumer research survey experts at Keegan & Donato Consulting have extensive experience in conducting trade dress surveys and can help you determine if an alleged infringement is having a real-world impact on consumers.
Keegan & Donato Consulting is a specialty research consultancy and one of the most experienced companies in the field of trademark litigation.
We have designed, executed, and critiqued a vast number of surveys that have been admitted into evidence by attorneys practicing in federal and state courts, before arbitration panels, the NAD, the TTAB, and other specialty venues. We can work within your budget to deliver the survey evidence you need.
Our specialties include:
- Trade Dress Analysis & Surveys
- Lanham Act Analysis & Surveys
- Acquired Distinctiveness Analysis & Surveys
- Likelihood of Confusion Analysis & Surveys
- Strength of Mark Analysis & Surveys
- Secondary Meaning Analysis & Surveys
- Consumer Perception Analysis & Surveys
- Consumer Understanding Studies
- Survey Critiques & Rebuttals
Trade Dress Surveys
Trade dress usually refers to the “dress” of a product, the design and shape of the materials in which it is packaged, including size, shape, color or color combinations, texture, or graphics, but may also include the design and shape of the product itself.
It is intended to protect consumers from packaging and characteristics that imitate other products and to prevent a consumer from buying one product while believing it is a different product.
Because direct evidence of actual consumer confusion is rarely available, courts often look to surveys as strong circumstantial evidence in their assessment of whether infringement has occurred.
Trade dress is entitled to protection under § 43(a) of the Lanham Act if it is distinctive, either inherently or through an acquired distinctiveness (or secondary meaning). A finding of secondary meaning essentially elevates a trademark’s status, opening the path to protections that may have previously been unavailable.
Trade Dress Survey Best Practices
Keegan & Donato Consulting can conduct a survey to help you prove that your client’s mark has achieved acquired distinctiveness and is unlikely to cause confusion about the origin of goods or services associated with it.
The firm follows established principles of consumer survey research, including but not limited to:
- Properly defined universe selection and sampling frame;
- Rigorous and valid survey design that is probative of the relevant issues in the case;
- Inclusion of representative, qualified respondents;
- Use of procedures to minimize potential biases in data collection;
- Use of clear, precise, non-leading questions;
- Use of procedures to reduce guessing among respondents; and
- Full analysis and reporting of the data gathered.
When looking for trade dress survey experts to assist you in litigation anywhere in the nation, call Keegan & Donato Consulting at (914) 967-9421 to take advantage of our extraordinary expertise in consumer research.