The festive season is the time for brands to capture the attention of enthusiastic buyers. Brands invest big budgets to ensure they make the most of this time. According to the industry experts, the ad spends are expected to see a 10-15% growth. And the biggest spenders out of this are auto, FMCG, jewellery, handset, and eCommerce brands.
While all this looks promising, the digital threats also loom around this time. Brands are hands full to fulfill the requirements during peak seasons, and this opens the door for fraudsters to find their way to manipulate digital assets to scam vulnerable buyers and also steal ad budgets.
Fraudsters play on the vulnerability of users and brands during this time. Their weapons are urgency and emotional vulnerability of the end users and credibility of the brands. Some of the threats that are at peak during this time are:
+ Surge in fake websites using credible brand names
+ Fake discounts, too good to be true deals
+ Sale of counterfeit products
+ Fake UPI IDs and QR codes
While these frauds target vulnerable users, there are fraudsters who target the ad budgets of the brands. During the festive season, fraud by dishonest affiliates also rises. To claim high commissions, they use tactics like bidding on brand keywords to redirect organic traffic from their website to the brand’s website, thereby claiming it as paid traffic. Then there is the tactic of running manipulated ads on Incentive channels. They lure users to install or sign-up on apps on behalf of an incentive like cashback etc. They also tend to run misleading ad campaigns. Brands running branding campaigns on OTT channels also face issues of frequency breach, where one ad is shown to a user multiple times, eventually leaving the user frustrated.
When campaigns are reviewed post-season, the damage often becomes clear. Revenue and brand reputation take a hit due to fake sites and misleading offers. Genuine buyers are lost during the most crucial period of the year. Campaign data is skewed, making ROI reporting to management nearly impossible.
High-demand seasons require constant vigilance and proactive detection to curb the impact. For brands, having the right set of tools in their tech stack is important to ensure they are not losing money to fraudsters. With continuous monitoring, brands can detect anomalies proactively and flag them before fraudulent activity hits the bottom line and turns into major losses.
Fraud during the festive season moves fast, and so should digital threat detection and protection. Real-time detection across both ad fraud and digital threats is essential. Continuous monitoring can flag fake websites, counterfeit listings, and fraudulent payment methods before they harm buyers. Real-time checks prevent budget leakage from invalid traffic, affiliate manipulation, and frequency breaches.
Protecting Campaigns: Source-level transparency reveals risky publishers or affiliates and accordingly marketers can evaluate and invest in partners they can trust.
The result? Brands stop paying for invalid traffic and consumers shop safely.
Final Word: Building Safer Festive Campaigns
As festive spend surges, taking actions against digital fraud is the first step towards campaign efficiency. Brands need to be vigilant and ensure they are prepared for the festive season with the right set of solutions. With vigilance and proactive monitoring, brands can ensure they get the most out of the festive season.
The author is co-founder & CEO, mFilterIt
