The list of ten most valuable brands of 2013 compiled by Interbrand features quite a few familiar faces: Google, Coca Cola, IBM, Microsoft and General Electric. The list has not changed much since 2009, except for two notable additions, Apple and Samsung, which kicked Nokia out of the list down to the 57th place. What has propelled Apple and Samsung into the ranks of top performers? Our textbook suggests four main drivers of brand equity: awareness (familiarity with the brand), perceived value, brand associations and brand loyalty.
At this point, I think, both companies are way past the awareness building stage. They do spend money on brand exposure, as the recent Oscar selfie made with Samsung phone has shown, but I don’t see lots of heavy advertising. Unlike Microsoft and Coca Cola, the tech giants did not even bother make a Super Bowl ad this year.
As a person with no background in computer science and limited understanding of this technology, I can’t really say how much value does iPhone provide in relation to price. I do appreciate the user-friendly interface and reliability, but it is difficult for me to make a comprehensive comparison to competing products. And I think that there are many people who are like me. It seems that they have to make their decisions based on perceptions rather than hard facts. According to Interbrand, the role of brand in purchase decision is more important when products are not easily comparable. Technology products fall within this category, and that’s probably one of the reasons they have the most valuable brands.
Apple has created such strong brand associations of innovation and creativity that consumers probably don’t even think about researching its technology before making a decision to buy the product. I still wonder what will it take to make them switch to Samsungs.
http://www.interbrand.com/en/best-global-brands/2013/best-global-brands-methodology.aspx