The tech industry is dominating the list of Australia’s most-loved brands because they offer simple promises, deliver them and differentiate themselves from competitors, one Australian market expert says.
The comments come as a new global survey from Brand Asset Consulting reveals Google, Microsoft, Sony and the Apple iPhone are among Australia’s most-loved brands.
David Evans, research director of Brand Asset Consulting, says tech brands are at the top of the list due to consumers’ increasing love of smartphones and other gadgets that simplify their lives and allow them to easily connect with their friends and colleagues.
“There really was no surprise that tech brands are the top of the leading brands, but the surprise is in the extent to which they’re being admired by the majority of consumers and not just geeks. Apple has five brands which does well, including the new iPad, and that says something.”
“It’s clear why consumers love tech. The mobile phone is now about communicating and your lifestyle. It is your personal life device, you radio, TV, computer, phone book, etc. Consumers love anything that makes their lives easier, and these companies are now making it easier and simply for them to connect with others.”
Evans also says the tech brands follow the laws of branding well, making sure they make a promise, deliver on it well and then satisfies its consumers in the process.
“All brands need to make a promise. Bread needs to say something like, “tastes good and is good for you”. Tech brands do that exceptionally well. Google, for example, says we’ll search and find stuff for you, and they do it in half a second.”
“And then they continue to add on that. They add services ever year, and it’s usually free. Things like Maps, Voice Control, Chrome, etc. Google’s Android is becoming so popular it may even overtake Apple’s iOS, and that is because of the power of their brand.”
However, not all brands are doing well. Some traditionally well-loved brands have slipped, with overall trust levels falling by 18% here in the past year as opposed to a global trend of just 6%. Some of the biggest declines were for Huggies, Venus razors and Dare milk.
Vegemite has been one of the biggest losers, falling from fourth to 10th place after the disastrous iSnack 2.0 campaign.
“Vegemite was an interesting story because it still flies off the shelf, but it’s becoming more of the Baby Boomer generation’s brand, and younger people are not adopting it as fast as Boomer’s did. It has failed to connect with Gen Y,” Evans says.
“And then the iSnack 2.0 was a classic case of a brand not delivering on its promise. But the interesting thing was that it was damaging for Vegemite as well, because it took the hit for the product. All the negative publicity was on Vegemite, even though the campaign wasn’t even about it. Kraft didn’t deliver on its brand.”
Among the lowest-loved brands on the list were magazines FHM and InStyle, along with Tiger Airlines, MySpace, LinkedIn and Nutrient Water.
Several brands are also emerging as much-loved contenders, with ISP iiNet jumping from 684 to 364, helped by a massive advertising campaign, with manufacturer HTC also rising from 740 to 223 due to the rise of the Android operating system.
Among the most trusted brands include Panadol, which remained in first place from last year, followed by Band Aid, along with Canon, Nurofen and Google.
But Evans says one of the most surprising lists is the “Customer Centred” rankings, topped by Bunnings, the Good Guys, Amcal and Chemist’s Own. He says no tech brands appear in the top 10 and that these companies are well-known for their exceptional levels of customer service.
“These companies, more than any other types of brands, have worked out how to deliver excellent customer service. For instance, with Bunnings, they don’t sell you a hammer. They tell you which tools to buy, show you how to use, and actually help you complete your project.”
“There isn’t a single tech brand in the top 20 customer care brands, and that’s interesting given all the excitement surrounding these high-tech offerings.”
For smaller businesses, Evans says developing a brand means differentiating yourself from other contenders and making sure your promise is simple enough for you to deliver on.
“The single most important issue for brands is what we call beneficial differentiation. You need to stand out because brands are acting and tasting the same. Look at milk – there are dozens of choices and it’s hard to pick.”
“The tech brands have amazing differentiation with their products. Smaller businesses need to do the same thing and differentiate their brands.”
The top 10 brands were:
1. Google (Search Engine)
2. Microsoft
3. Google (Portal)
4. Microsoft Office
5. Nokia
6. Sony
7. Apple
8. eBay
9. Apple iPhone
10. Vegemite
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
