The annual ranking of the top
100 global brands by Interbrand and BusinessWeek reveals that
leading financial services brands had a relatively strong year.
HSBC’s brand value rose the most – as it did in last year’s survey
– while European insurers Axa and Allianz entered the list for the
first time
Go deeper with GlobalData
HSBC and ING have again benefited from strong rises in their
brand value, according to 2007’s global ranking of brand strength
from consultancy Interbrand and BusinessWeek
magazine.
HSBC was one of the highest overall performers, both in the rise of
its brand value (up 17 percent) and its rank (up five places to
23rd). ING’s brand rose 12 percent in value, fuelled almost
entirely by its ING Direct retail banking subsidiary.
HSBC’s continued brand strength is shown by the fact that the
brands of only four other companies in the top 100 – Google (up 44
percent), Apple (up 21 percent), Nintendo (up 18 percent) and
Spanish clothing giant Zara (up 22 percent) – rose by a higher
margin. HSBC’s brand is worth, according to the research, a
sizeable $13.56 billion.
While no banking group is in the top ten (unless GE is included),
Citigroup retains its ranking of 11th, a position it has held for
the past three years. The group, which rolled out a global
marketing and advertising blitz on the back of its rebranding from
Citigroup to Citi in May (see RBI 572), could well break
into the top ten next year as its brand value edges closer to that
of tenth-ranked Mercedes-Benz.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataInsurance groups also made bold new entries into the top 100. AIG,
Axa and Allianz, all of which have significant international
marketing and branding campaigns in place (such as Allianz’s
involvement in Formula 1 racing and AIG’s shirt sponsorship of
Manchester United football club), are now ranked higher than famous
brands such as Kodak and Starbucks and oil groups BP and
Shell.
Branding is fundamental to success
Jez Frampton, group chief executive at Interbrand, said: “It is now
common knowledge that branding is fundamental to business success.
Brands, after all, live in our heads and our hearts. But
ultimately, brands are value generators for business. Increasingly,
we need to understand how brands deliver value and use this
information to better inform business decisions.”
Interbrand says its methodology evaluates brand value in the same
way other corporate assets are valued: on the basis of how much it
is likely to earn for the company in the future. The US consultancy
uses a combination of analysts’ projections, company financial
documents, and its own qualitative and quantitative analysis to
arrive at a net present value of those earnings.
It takes many factors into account when ranking the value of the
best global brands: each brand must, for instance, derive at least
one-third of its earnings outside its home country, be recognisable
beyond its base of customers, and have publicly available marketing
and financial data.
“Effective value creation comes to life in the hearts and minds of
consumers,” writes the consultancy. “Ultimate responsibility for
delivering the brand to stakeholders rests with the whole company.
HR, finance, operations, marketing and sales must all feel a sense
of ownership of the brand so that it lives throughout the
organisation.”
Managing the brand
Search engine Google is a particularly good exponent of this sort
of brand management, states Interbrand. Beyond its extensive
product portfolio, Google has “revolutionised the way it screens
employees to ensure that everyone who comes through its door is
‘Google-worthy’. This is what makes Google the brand it is. This is
why it has been able to break into the world’s 20 most valuable
brands within just two years,” Interbrand said.
