Building a trusted, reputable brand means investing in an effective supply chain management system. Full visibility of your supply chain lets you know where your products are coming from, and how they're getting into consumers' hands. 

Shping Security (formerly Authenticateit) was developed as the world’s most robust and scalable way to track and trace your products, to help you see what you need to know, when you need to know it.

Counterfeiting has always been a major issue for luxury brands, but now the problem is growing to affect industries around the globe – from food producers to pharmaceutical companies. Advances in manufacturing now mean it's easier than ever to create sophisticated counterfeits, and harder than ever to detect them.   

An effective serialisation and traceability solution is a key defence against counterfeiting. So how do you know if serialisation and traceability is right for your business? Ask yourselves the following questions to see if a track and trace solution is right for you. 

Is your industry or product susceptible to counterfeiting?

Each year, counterfeiting costs brands on average 6.4 % of their annual turnover.  Many businesses may not even realise their products are being counterfeited, which is why it's always best to assume a proactive rather than reactive approach. It's easier to prevent sub-standard counterfeit goods hitting the market than it is to wind back reputational damage once it's been done. 

Shping lets customers verify the authenticity of your products prior to purchase with a single scan. Scanning a product barcode with the Shping app will let consumers know exactly where it came from, and whether it's genuine. If someone scans a counterfeit barcode, you'll be alerted to the precise location of these goods, along with any additional information you'll need to take action.

Do you have problems with parallel or grey imports?

If you distribute your products in different markets, you may choose to set a different price point for different regions. In order to maximise your Average Selling Price (ASP), you'll need a mechanism to identify and stop parallel or grey imports.

What are parallel or grey imports? Parallel or grey imports occur when products sold at a lower price to distributors in country A get rerouted to country B – a market where you would normally charge a higher price for these goods. 

Apart from driving down your ASP, grey imports may also upset your loyal international distributors. Having a safeguard in place to prevent these imports shows your authorised distributors that you are serious about maintaining their market share and protecting their profit margins. 

The right track and trace system will enable you to crack down on grey imports by enforcing your distribution policies and discouraging distributors from shipping to another country without consent. You'll be able to identify exactly where your products are scanned, and monitor who has control of your product at each stage of its journey.

When a product is scanned in an unauthorised location, you'll be alerted immediately and given the information needed to contact the distributors in your supply chain. 

Do you need to comply with industry and government regulations?

Can you be sure your current supply chain management system is compliant with all industry and government regulations?

• A number of industries, like the pharmaceutical and certain food divisions, are highly regulated with serialisation and traceability requirements. Does this apply to your industry?
• Are you exporting to markets where traceability is a requirement for market access?
• Are you required to report certain information to government or customs agencies?

These are all vital points to consider when reviewing your supply chain management processes. If you answered yes to any of the above, deploying an industry standard track and trace system will ensure your operation is fully compliant.

Consider implementing an EPCIS-compliant serialisation and track and trace solution that is created with industry standards in mind. This solution should be compatible with other industry standard systems, such as ERP and third-party track and trace solutions.

Do you want to swiftly and seamlessly manage product recalls?

In the event of a product recall, action needs to be taken swiftly to effectively manage the situation and minimise damage to your reputation. Immediately notifying customers who have purchased the recalled product is critical from both a customer-service and a regulatory standpoint.  With Shping, all it takes is the scan of a barcode to see exactly where recalled products are within the distribution chain.

Implementing the right traceability and serialisation solution prepares your business to efficiently manage product recalls and minimise damage. Shping allows brands to immediately activate product recalls when the need arises: whether that's after a consumer lodges a product complaint, or when a supplier announces a product recall, you'll be able to respond quickly and effectively. 

If you want to learn how Shping Security platform can protect your company and secure your supply chain, subscribe to our mailing list.