Developing strong trademark cases with survey-backed research is straightforward. You win on the facts that matter to courts. These include what real consumers think, notice, and remember. It’s true that documents and declarations help you win, but they can’t replace clear, defensible data from the people whose opinions actually matter. A well-planned survey turns assumptions into real evidence that can be used successfully at injunction, summary judgment, or trial.

Why Surveys Change Outcomes

Judges look for reliable proof that’s tied to the legal questions in front of them: confusion, association, secondary meaning, genericness, or what an ad actually communicates. Surveys effectively answer the important questions by providing numbers and explanations that are firmly grounded in the marketplace. Done right, they show not only what consumers think but why. All of these things ultimately help the fact-finder weigh probative value over attorney argument.

Build on the Right People (Your Universe)

Every strong survey starts with the “universe”: These are the respondents whose opinions truly matter.

• For a consumer product: current or likely purchasers.
• For B2B: specifiers, procurement roles, or end-users who influence purchasing.

Confirm real engagement with the category by focusing on recent purchase, planned purchase, or decision influence.

Separate Signal from Noise (Controls)

Undoubtedly, controls are the backbone of credible findings. In many ways it’s about removal and replacement while not deviating. A control version removes or replaces the accused element while keeping everything else constant.

You’ll compare the test to control to see the impact that is caused by a challenged mark, trade dress or message. This helps to neutralize the background noise of a popular brand or a common design feature.

Pair this design with neutral wording and a pretested, non-leading questionnaire, so you’ll achieve clearcut results that are not only easy to read but also defend.

Mirror the Marketplace (Stimuli)

Show respondents what likely purchasers actually see and perceive:

• Product pages
• Packaging
• Shelf sets
• App screens
• Search results
• Sponsored listings

Document the choices, such as image angles, order, device compatibility, exposure time, so your method is transparent.

Ultimately, everything matters. Remember that even small, practical details often decide whether a court views the work as realistic and reliable.

Map Findings to Legal Elements

A strong report links each result to the issue at hand:

• Likelihood of confusion: Net confusion after control; evidence of source, affiliation, or sponsorship beliefs.
• Secondary meaning: Figure out if consumers connect a descriptive term or trade dress to a single source.
• Genericness: Determine whether people treat a term as a product category rather than a brand.
• Ad takeaways: Look at the message that the consumers actually perceive and whether it’s material.

The Payoff

Developing strong trademark cases with survey-backed research means treating survey work as precise litigation research. You’ll start with the right universe, use clean controls, mirror the marketplace, enforce field discipline, and report in a way courts can trust.

When you align design, fieldwork, and reporting to the actual legal questions that have been put forth then the findings carry weight.

Ready to build a survey plan that fits your facts, timeline, and budget? Contact Keegan & Donato Consulting, Inc. Start a conversation online or call (914) 967-9421 to talk through developing strong trademark cases with survey-backed research for your matter.