Coca-Cola tops InterBrand’s 100 ‘best’ brands

Coca-Cola has retained the top spot in InterBrand’s 100 “best” brands in a list dominated by technology brands.

Coca Cola

Apple moved to second from eighth place last year, while Google (4) increased its brand value by 26 per cent and overtook Microsoft for the first time in the report’s 13 year history, according to InterBrand.

The brand consultancy analyses the ways a brand “touches and benefits” an organisation from business performance, influencing customer choice and the strength of the brand to command a premium price.

Jez Frampton, InterBrand’s global chief executive officer, says: “As global competition increases and many competitive advantages, like technology, become more short-lived, a brand’s contribution to shareholder value will only increase. The world’s 100 most valuable brands are leading the way by listening to consumers, employees, and investors alike and delivering a seamless and holistic brand experience across an ever-evolving range of consumer touch points.”

New Entries

New entrants to the 2012 list include Procter & Gamble-owned Pampers (34), Facebook (69), Prada (84), Kia (87), Ralph Lauren (91) and MasterCard (94).

Pampers’ “high-ranking” entry is attributed to its use of social media and loyalty programmes to connect with consumers, combined with greater business transparency from P&G.

InterBrand also believes that despite Facebook’s rocky financial performance since its IPO in May, its growth as a brand is enough to secure it a place in the league for the first time.

MasterCard’s Priceless Cities loyalty and CRM programme has helped boost the credit card brand’s customer satisfaction and increased its brand value.

Biggest Risers

Apple, which jumped to second on the list from eighth last year, has increased its brand value 129 per cent despite rising competition from Samsung and Google, according to InterBrand. Samsung’s brand value has also increased by 40 per cent.

The launch of Amazon’s Kindle Touch and Kindle Fire devices has helped boost the online retailer’s brand value by 46 per cent putting it at 20, up from 26 last year.

Exits

Financial brands Barclays, UBS and Zurich have all exited the Top 100 this year as have handset maker HTC, Nivea and Armani.

Sectors

Technology brands continue to dominate with five of the Top 10 brands and four of the top five risers coming from the sector.

Automotive brands are also recovering following the downturn with digital initiatives such as Audi’s (55) future showroom and Ford’s (45) MyTouch as well as global campaigns from BMW (12) and Hyundai (53) boosting brand value.

All seven of the luxury brands in the Top 100, including Burberry (82) Louis Vuitton (17) and Gucci (38), increased their brand value in 2012, which InterBrand says reflects a “changing global consciousness” where luxury brands rely not only on “superior products”, but also digital presence and reputation.

The success of FMCG brands such as Kellogg’s (29), Heinz (46), Colgate (47) reflect their success in emerging markets.

Surprisingly, some brands within the financial services sector, American Express (#24), Morgan Stanley (#54), AXA (#58), Allianz (#62), and Visa (#74), have improved their brand value despite the scandals still engulfing the sector.

Earlier this year, Millward Brown’s BrandZ list named Apple the world’s most valuable brand.

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