What Does Modern Traceability Look Like for CPG?

When we think about traceability, likely the first products that come to mind are fresh foods. We all want to know where our food comes from, where it’s been, and that it’s safe.

But what about the other goods we consume such as cleaning products, pre-packaged food and beverages, and cosmetics? We use these things frequently but don’t often know where they come from, what they’re really made of, and whether they’re authentic. As a brand, you want to be sure your products are effective, safe, and authentic and your consumers want the same — 56% consumers say they are worried that the new products they buy are counterfeit.

What can brands do to ensure both product authenticity and consumer happiness? Invest in traceability.

Traceability lets you keep track of your products

Without robust product data, you could be in the dark about the location of your product as it moves along the supply chain. Traceability, bolstered by product digitization, helps to reveal the opaque sections of your product’s supply chain. When you have real-time reporting of the product journey, you can detect and help prevent product diversion and ensure that your products are only sold in authorized channels.

Traceability supports product safety

When your products are authentic, they are safe. Your consumers deserve your real products, and traceability helps you bypass diversion and enable products inspectors, customs agents, and even consumers to easily scan your products to confirm their authenticity. Additionally, traceability ensures product safety even after your items have hit the shelves. If a product is recalled, for example, you can identify the problematic batch and address the issue more surgically rather than doing away with your entire inventory. Furthermore, when you leverage covert digital watermarks for traceability, you also combat counterfeiting by those looking to create bogus goods or tamper with the authentic ones who won’t be able to circumvent watermarks with secure QR codes for advanced, multifactor authentication.

Traceability provides you with post-purchase data for greater marketing potential

With traceability, you’ll get robust post-purchase data that you can use in several ways. You can use it to form better relationships with your consumers by sharing product provenance, and by capturing first-party data for more targeted marketing. You can also use it to measure the performance of your products.

No matter how you use traceability data in your business, it can help unlock value across your organization, and we can help. Discover how traceability can help your CPG brand when you schedule a demonstration of our brand protection and consumer engagement products.