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Surveys & Survey Rebuttals

Ms. Harper has conducted thousands of surveys, hundreds of them for litigation purposes. Her research capabilities include state-of-the art survey designs, hosting platforms, sample selections, and analytics that are probative of the relevant issues in each case. Ms. Harper designs, fields, and analyzes quantifiable surveys that provide a reliable measure of consumer perceptions. Well versed in the primary treateses set forth by McCarthy, Diamond, Swan, and Thornburg, she is also conversant in cases that support or refute metholologies and findings.

Likelihood of Confusion Surveys

Ms. Harper uses both Eveready and Squirt-style methodologies to determine whether, and if so to what extent, likelihood of confusion exists when a trademark or trade dress causes relevant consumers to be confused as to the source or affiliation of that product or service.

Ms. Harper has conducted initial interest, point-of-sale, and post-sale confusion surveys, both in cases of forward confusion and reverse confusion.

Ms. Harper's surveys have been submitted and accepted as evidence in litigation matters involving a broad range of products and services nationwide.

Genericness Surveys

Ms. Harper is skilled at conducting and rebutting Teflon format genericness surveys that assesses whether relevant consumers consider a mark to be a common name or design, or a brand name or design. If consumers believe the mark is a common name (rather than associating it with a specific product or service), it provides strong evidence that the mark is generic. Similarly, if consumers believe the mark is associated with a single brand, the evidence is strong that the mark is not generic.

Secondary Meaning Surveys

Ms. Harper regularly conducts surveys to determine whether a word, name, slogan, symbol, design, or combination of these elements has acquired secondary meaning. Her secondary meaning surveys have been submitted and accepted as evidence in litigation matters involving a broad range of products and services.

Descriptive marks can be protected if they have acquired secondary meaning. Secondary meaning is achieved when relevant consumers come to associate a mark single source.

Deceptive Advertising Surveys

Ms. Rhonda Harper is skilled in designing and analyzing false advertising and deceptive advertising, packaging, and labeling surveys, from the identification of the survey universe and development of control stimuli, to the design of question format and wording and the selection of the proper statistical analysis.

Ms. Harper's expertise is based on decades of experience leading the advertising and research departments and agencies for Fortune 500 corporations, including Walmart and UPS.

Deceptive advertising surveys provide an analysis of whether, and to what degree, consumers have been misled, and also whether the allegedly deceptive element materially influenced consumers’ purchase decisions.

Survey Rebuttals

Ms. Harper provides guidance on how to approach the opposing counsel’s evidence in order to make a strong, effective rebuttal, including crafting effective critiques or constructing rebuttal surveys.

She is adept at providing a thorough critical analysis of the flaws in a poorly designed and executed survey.

She provides assessments of the degree to which surveys conform to generally-accepted principles of proper survey research. She has extensive experience with and a deep understanding of survey design, sampling, question construction, data analysis, and the methodological pitfalls that can introduce bias or systematic error.

Ms. Harper follows the standards set by Dr. Shari Diamond, among others, to ensure the validity of her research studies and those she is rebutting. These include:

Appropriate universe selection and sampling frame
Rigorous and valid survey design that is probative of the relevant issues in a case
Inclusion of representative, qualified respondents
Use of procedures to minimize potential biases in data collection
Use of objective, non-leading questions
Use of procedures to reduce guessing among respondents, and
Full analysis and reporting of survey data

Ms. Harper also provides guidance on how to approach the opposing experts' depositions.

Business Marketing Reports & Rebuttals

With more than 30 years of Fortune 500 experience across many industries, Ms. Harper is uniquely skilled at providing reports involving marketing and branding, product development / innovation, distribution, strategy, licensing, in-store merchandising, and more.

Ms. Harper has successfully rebutted expert opinions regarding a range of business and marketing areas. She formulates expert rebuttal critiques based on solid marketing principles and models, professional standards, and her more than 30 years of Fortune 500 experience. Ms. Harper also provides guidance on how to approach the opposing experts' depositions.

Licensing Reports

Ms. Harper has Fortune 500 officer-level experience as both a licensee and licensor. This real world experience combined with years of experience providing licensing expert testimony can make all the difference to your case.

Licensing is a marketing practice in which a trademark owner allows another entity to license their mark in exchange for royalties. As a trademark owner, Ms. Harper has put together programs monitor the licensee’s actions related to the trademark, ensuring that the products provided by the licensee meet appropriate quality standards. If these measures aren't taken, the agreement may become a "naked license." Moreover, the company may have lost the rights to the trademark if the licensee’s products failed to meet quality standards.

Licensing controls are required because consumers rely on trademarks to determine the source of a product. They rely on them in making purchases, since they trust a company that places a certain mark on its products to meet the standards associated with the mark. Failing to monitor the use of a trademark results in the loss of the trademark’s value in the marketplace. It no longer means anything about the products with which it is associated. This is sometimes known as the “abandonment” of a trademark.

Some of the key questions experienced witness Rhonda Harper uses to determine if the license is "naked" or if there has been an "abandonment" of a trademark include:

Did the Licensor provide brand standards and did the Licensee adhere to them?
Did the Licensor require regular communications and reviews?
Did the Licensee and Licensor have consistent staff and processes in place?
Did the Licensor regularly review and approve licensed products and services?

Examples of cases that relied on Ms. Harper's licensing and contract breakage expert reports include:

A cookie company licensed its brand to a consumer package goods company
A leading global jewelry company licensed its brand to a large jewelry retailer

Commercial Reasonableness

Ms. Harper's experience as a senior executive also makes the difference in determining commercial reasonableness. If your case involves determining whether your client or the opposition operated using commercial reasonableness in business strategy, marketing, advertising, and more, contact Ms. Harper who is routinely retained to opine in these types of cases.

Did the company perform in the usual manner in the market?
Did the company conform to reasonable practices?
Did the company act in good faith and fair dealing?

Examples of cases that relied on Ms. Harper's commercial reasonableness and contract breakage expert reports include:

The launch of a international brand through a U.S. retailer
The expansion of a retailer into multiple territories
The integration of a brand into a corporate portfolio

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Surveys & Survey Rebuttals

Business Marketing Reports & Rebuttals