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What makes a brand?

The latest news from Cafestudy

Posted by: Caféstudy

31st Jul 2019 03:23pm

For a number of years, Edentify has been asking you about your favourite brands. This has given us a fascinating insight into the brands that people can really relate to.

When we looked at the results recently, we saw a clear list of the top 10 favourite brands:

1. Apple
2. Nike
3. Cadbury
4. Nescafe
5. Samsung
6. Adidas
7. Moccona
8. Coles
9. Sony
10. Woolworths

This list raises a couple of thoughts and issues.

The brands that are missing from this list are as interesting as those that are there. Bunnings, Qantas, Coca Cola, Google, and Amazon for example are some of the best-known brands in Australia and globally, however they don’t make our top 10, while not one but 2 brands of instant coffee do!

The explanation for this lies in the nature of the question. By asking, unprompted, for people to nominate their favourite brands we learn which brands are the ones that make a tangible impact on people’s lives and that they could not live without. It prompts an instinctive and emotional response.

It means we have a list that highlights brands that people like because they keep them connected (Apple, Samsung); that they use every day (Coles, Woolworths); that help them express themselves (Nike, Adidas, Sony); and brands that they can truly enjoy (Cadbury, Nescafe, Moccona).

Most of all, this list demonstrates that a brand is much more than the sum of its parts, and shows us that the emotional bonds people have with brands are stronger than the rational. It is these emotional bonds that make brands more salient, and keep people coming back.

This research also raises fundamental questions about what brands actually are. By most measures, Google stands out as one of, if not the, leading brand globally. However, it has barely rated a mention in our research. This suggests that our idea of what a brand is may be different to the average person, and that brands without a tangible product – which includes a host of newer tech-based brands – represent something different altogether. This will present a challenge to start-up brands in the years to come.


Comments 7

site77
  • 26th Jan 2022 12:43pm

Innovations make a brand stand out and qualities that are suitable for those looking for a youthful, more accessible brand with recent technologies.

capfantastic
  • 28th Nov 2019 06:39pm

Down down prices are down, Coles. They used a Status Quo song. Down down deeper and down. It’s always a song that leaves an indelible mark in your mind. In this case we feel that Coles is going that extra mile to keep the price low on everyday goods. I mean who ever does a price to price comparison? Is anyone that dedicated?

Yqsymnx
  • 24th Sep 2019 03:34pm

"By asking, unprompted, for people to nominate their favourite brands"
And herein lies the crux of the matter. Dependent on whom the question is issued, will include the brands most related to this demographic. Should you ask tech brands in America, the likes of Google and Microsoft would be testament to this part of the world. However, ask someone in China and you would receive vastly different answers: Alibaba, Baidu, Xiaomi.

A brand, methinks, is a memorable label.
Should a company provide significant usefulness to a community, its name would become a relate-able and memorable label.
You don't search for something these days, you Google. The company has been deemed useful and a 'memorable label'

The top 10 list provided, is a snapshot of a moment and place in time.
Its basis being on popularity and functionality of the demographics surveyed. Let's redo the survey in India/Iceland/Mexico. I'm absolutely certain the brands listed would be much changed.
Ie. Apple, while Steve Jobs was marketing the brand would still be on top in 'Western' countries. However, in 2019, while it is still strong, I believe is starting to blend in with other developed, or up and coming technology brands whom can provide the same or similar innovation from all over the world.

Rhino2
  • 9th Sep 2019 01:25am

In my opinion, am not after brandy-like everyone else I prefer good and quality brand. Special cases with electronics have used other type of brand and the most common one's apple and Samsung. You can feel quite differences between Samsung with other Android products in terms of battery life, speed and designs.

Captured
  • 8th Sep 2019 05:39pm

I find this quite interesting. If it was in fact an open ended question to get these answers.

Looking through the list of 10 brands, i only feel attached to three of them- Cadbury, Coles and Woolies. But if asked what brands were my favourites, i would not have mentioned any of those.

The Fat Man
  • 27th Aug 2019 04:09am

I believe that these brand names have come from a survey that listed the names of a selection of brand names, and did not include all. I say this as I associate brand names with manufactured items, and Coles and Woolworths are not brand names, but are registered business names such as Apple, Nike, Cadbury, Samsung, Adidas, and Sony.

riq
  • 12th Aug 2019 07:08pm

I love a brand that I can associate with a catchy jingle or phrase that immediately brings to my the product.