Brother

Helping businesses and consumers across Europe act against counterfeiting

Every year, thousands of people unintentionally buy counterfeit ink and toner cartridges which put the environment and our health at risk, as well as supporting unethical practices and criminal activity.

Brother wanted to take a stand. They asked us to create a Europe-wide campaign that would raise awareness, drive education, and empower people to protect themselves and their customers.

Interpret + Define

Unlike compatible consumables, which are legitimate alternatives, counterfeit goods pose serious risks:

  • Often contain unknown, potentially toxic substances.
  • Prone to leaking, breaking and poor print quality, which means they’re more likely to end up in landfill.
  • Most alarmingly, around 60% of counterfeiting is linked to organised crime networks, including those involved in human trafficking.

Our challenge was to speak to a wide range of audiences -  distributors, resellers, small to medium-sized businesses, and home office workers with one cohesive message: Act against counterfeiting. 

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Imagine + Create

We built the campaign around a single, powerful idea: everyone wants to act in an ethical way. By avoiding counterfeit printer ink and toner cartridges, they could help fight crime and do their bit for the greater good.

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We used the COM-B behavioural model to craft the campaign strategy. The big issues stopping action are motivation and capability: people don’t understand the negative impact of buying counterfeit printer ink and toner goes beyond just poor print quality, and they don’t know that there’s a simple online tool to check if their product is genuine.

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Creatively, we wanted to show how acting against counterfeits makes them a hero – they're choosing to protect their businesses and customers by buying smart. Each core audience was brought to life through a representative hero image in a confident pose, supported by targeted messaging that unpacked the specific risks they face and how to avoid them.

The hero of the campaign was an online video designed to cut through on platforms like Amazon, where the risk of counterfeit products is high. Surrounding this were digital ads, audience-specific guides for B2B partners, and a marketing toolkit to enable Brother’s teams across Europe to roll the campaign out consistently and confidently.

Rise + Shine

The result is a flexible, compelling campaign that does more than raise awareness, it invites action. By equipping Brother’s network with the tools to educate and influence at every stage of the buying journey, the campaign positions genuine Brother products as not just the better choice, but the right one.

It’s a bold move against a growing problem. And it proves that when the message is right, audiences of all shapes and sizes are willing to act.