Tech giants dominate most influential brands study; Australia Post and Coles make top 10
Technology and internet platforms dominate the top 10 list of Australia’s most influential brands, with search engine Google coming out on top again.
Russel Howcroft (right) grills the panel: (L to R) Gabi Conlon, Google; Rachel Bondi, Microsoft; Samantha Bartlett, Australia Post; Gillian O’Sullivan, Ipsos
Microsoft was a surprise inclusion in second spot in the Ipsos survey which was revealed exclusively at the Mumbrella360 conference today, ahead of Facebook and Apple, while supermarket Coles was one of the biggest risers in this survey up to fifth spot.
Australia Post and Telstra were the two other local brands in the top 10 – eighth and sixth, respectively – whilst Youtube (7), Samsung (9) and Visa (10) rounded out the top 10 list.
The survey takes in 100 brands which are scored by consumers across the areas of engagement, trustworthy, leading edge, citizenship and presence.
Asked about the importance of the citizenship element on the survey, with many of the international brands scoring badly on that element, Ipsos managing director Gillian O’Sullivan said it was “really important for the local brands”.
“In every country we do the study it features in the top 10 in every case it’s the local drivers,” she added. “I don’t think it’s not important for the Googles and Microsofts, but what we see here is: if you’re a local business where you can’t compete on some things you can compete in a convincing way on those citizenship elements.”
Asked by Network Ten general manager Russel Howcroft about the rise of Coles the panel put its success down to the way it delivers its shopping experience.
Microsoft marketing director, Rachel Bondi, said: “It’s a modern shopping experience. I don’t think a supermarket in the US would hit this list. We’ve got expectations in goods and services and they’ve continued to raise that. How they package and brand is slick.”
Asked how Microsoft could knock Google from its top spot Bondi said it would be by continuing to innovate and transform the company and the way it works with customers and partners.
Howcroft asked Google ANZ’s head of marketing Gabi Conlon how the brand could stay in top spot.
“We need to stay focused on things that drive our success,” she said. “Influence is something users grant you on a daily basis, you continuously have to win the opportunity to be influential with your users.
“I do think that there’s a tremendous luxury and opportunity when users are using your services to focus on big bets that can set you up for the future.”
Google ranked top amongst all demographics, with nearly twice as many points as Microsoft.
Data presented at the session showed the disparity of perceptions about some other brands between different generations.
McDonald’s scored best with Gen X and worst with baby boomers, whilst Instagram’s influence grows the younger the demographic.
if clients continue to beat down agencies on retainers and fees this becomes an acceptable practice – how else can agencies adequately service clients, retain key personnel (which they are failing as it is) and make some kind of profit? Ultimately value banks are led by trading to leverage bulk buying power and deliver cost savings to clients (based on the media owners that they spend with). There isn’t anything dodgy about it – its all good intentioned
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