US Movement
American Utilities brand NRG Energy is the fastest growing with an impressive 156 per cent increase in brand value, set at US$2.9 billion. The utilities brand’s fast growth can be attributed to its commitment to stay on top of industry trends and adapt to the transition to green energy.
The brand is among the largest power generators in the USA, and is diversifying into technology to measure environmental impact. Some of the new customer offerings include electricity planning tools, energy management, carbon offsetting and consultancy services.
In terms of brand value by country, China tops the chart, followed by the US, France, Italy, Germany, and Spain. Interesting names that score highly include EDF Energy, in at number three, and US Duke Energy at number nine.
The UK’s National Grid ranks lower at number 30, while Japan’s Kensai falls to number 44.
Brand Brilliance
Brand Finance also offers wider insight into how the world’s biggest brands are doing. It notes that Amazon is undoubtedly one of the world’s strongest brands, one of just a handful achieving the highest scorings possible.
This is because it has an extremely strong brand funnel, with near-universal familiarity, and consideration, and while its reputation score is not best-in-class, it is stronger than many of its critics might think.
Every strong brand has its own winning formula, and the research highlights Amazon’s particular advantages. Top of that list is the outstanding value which shoppers believe Amazon delivers. Amazon
ranks on this measure in big markets such as Brazil, USA, UK, and is #1 among retailers in many more.
Value has always been a big driver of consumer behaviour, but Amazon also delivers a slick shopping
experience (“excellent website/apps”), and this powerful combination is irresistible for many consumers, even those who question Amazon’s values and broader corporate reputation.
On purpose, the consultancy offers a mixed position, saying argument rages among CMOs and marketing
gurus over this issue. The jury is out – the data suggests that being seen to “care about the wider
community” does correlate somewhat with higher consideration levels, and is an asset particularly for
local favourites such as Jio (India) or Bunnings (Australia).
But brands like McDonald’s and Nike (as well as Amazon) are liked and desired despite somewhat moderate reputations on sustainability and values.
On branding itself, the consultancy argues that cool brands get talked about, and word-of-mouth
(WOM) is another key asset some brands possess. It has proven impact on brand growth.
In an absolute sense, big brands get talked about a lot more than small ones – their sheer mass presence and relevance ensures that. But deeper analysis reveals a number of challenger brands who look set to profit from above-expectation WOM levels and positive consumer sentiment.
Keep an eye on Tim Horton’s in Spain, Peros Garment Factory (Canada), SAIC in the USA and iinet in Singapore.
In the UK, Converse is ranked as the coolest brand, followed by Harley Davidson and Porsche. Contrastingly, in France, Levi’s and Burger King fill the top rankings.
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In Conclusion
Brand value, loyalty and performance are intrinsically tricky metrics to define. Growth is generally simpler to set but perhaps what’s most challenging in today’s business environment is the actual point of a brand.
Brands can evidently do all kinds of good while still making profit, but the hike in the position of British Gas tells another tale. The firm has ranked a 154 per cent value rise, but the truth is this is driven by a global energy crisis, war, a near total collapse of competition in the UK energy market and a raft of political uncertainty and furious consumers demanding emergency measures against a cost-of-living crisis.
That’s an incredibly volatile mix and one that’s tricky to navigate for any CEO. Branding has always been a strange mix of profit-driven shareholder satisfaction and consumer, environmental and social demand.
As time passes, things have been skewing in the favour of social and environmental governance, but the last couple of years have been anything but normal. It’s probably too soon after the pandemic and too volatile a time to truly judge what brand value means. But watch this space, because it’s not only essential to define, it’s constantly evolving too.