Experienced consumer survey companies, such as Keegan & Donato Consulting, can provide research, analysis, affidavits, declarations and expert reports for clients in Austin, TX and throughout the U.S. in support of trademark infringement, trade-dress litigation, and marketing, business and financial issues.
Consumer research involves sampling from a large group of relevant consumers and asking them carefully constructed questions to elicit opinions about a certain topic or topics. When properly designed and executed, consumer research studies yield highly reliable data that is projectable to the studied population as a whole.
Lanham Act issues are particularly well-suited to testing through consumer research. Because the Lanham Act primarily addresses the ways in which consumers interpret—and misinterpret—names, symbols, and other marks used by businesses in commerce, a well-designed consumer research study can determine whether an alleged trademark infringement is having a real-world impact on consumers.
Principals Mark Keegan and Tony Donato can help you and your client design and execute a methodologically sound survey that will provide persuasive evidence of consumer perceptions about products and brands at issue and will withstand the rigors of litigation.
About Keegan & Donato Consulting
Mark Keegan and Tony Donato offer a combined 25 years of experience in conducting consumer research studies in the context of intellectual property disputes.
Mr. Keegan’s experience in formulating case strategies in complex litigation involving marketing, economics, business, and financial issues on behalf of his clients, along with Mr. Donato’s experience in survey design and execution, research, data analysis, strategy and case management, create a rare combination of strategic and analytical skills.
Our firm specializes in a wide range of trademark and trade dress surveys and analyses, including:
- Likelihood of Confusion–Surveys are commonly used to ascertain whether or not consumers are confused by a party’s use of a contested mark. We measure likelihood of confusion with both standard survey designs and innovative custom surveys.
- Strength of Mark–Trademark law protects distinctive marks, and the levels of legal protection are directly linked to the strength of the mark. Consumer surveys can be used to measure the level of consumer recognition of a mark or brand.
- Acquired Distinctiveness– Consumer research studies can help determine whether consumers associate a mark with a certain product and whether the mark is distinctive enough not to cause confusion about the origin of goods or services associated with it.
- Secondary Meaning–We can help to strengthen your case strategy by targeting relevant consumers in your client’s market and evaluating how they perceive your client’s brand.
- Lanham Act Claims– A well-designed consumer research study can provide empirical evidence on the issue of whether an alleged trademark infringement is having a real-world effect on consumers.
We have developed surveys for and collaborated with firms that manage some of the largest trademark portfolios in the world, such as Schepisi & McLaughlin PA in New Jersey, Stanley, Mandel & Iola LLP in San Diego, Girard Gibbs LLP in San Francisco, and Riemer & Braunstein LLP in Boston. Our litigation surveys have been accepted as evidence in matters involving a broad range of products and services.
When you need a consumer survey to support your case in Austin, TX, take advantage of the extraordinary expertise of consumer survey companies such as Keegan & Donato Consulting. Get in touch with us at (914) 967-9421 to learn more about how we can help.