Yorkshire Tea makes for a Brand new firm on list
It’s that time of the year again. YouGov has published its BrandIndex Buzz score rankings for 2015, and for the second year in succession Aldi and Lidl are the brands with the greatest score.
This is whether a respondent has heard something positive or negative about a brand in the last two weeks.
The German discounters are in the same positions as last year, and they have advanced as brands, with ambitious expansion plans and a commitment to a fairer wage for employees across the organisation.
In a move that has shaken the sector as a whole, Aldi and Lidl have built upon their reputation for cheap prices by offering quality and reliability.
Their advertising has reflected this shift and by attracting customers from across society, it is clear both are going onwards and upwards.
A new entry into the top 10 this year is Yorkshire Tea, joining perennial favourites John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and Dyson on the list. However, its strong performance tells us a good deal about modern consumer attitudes and how brands can appeal to today’s shopper.
Yorkshire Tea has invested heavily in marketing this year, cultivating a creative and quirky image, grounded in the heritage of the company and its local roots. All of this has helped to foster a dedicated and loyal customer base and, crucially, an expanding share of the shrinking tea-drinking sector.
Co-operative Bank is the most improved brand in our full list. Indeed, the whole Co-op group has enjoyed something of a renaissance among our respondents in the past year. Elsewhere, there is positive news for certain utilities and financial institutions, as the negative press coverage that has been all-encompassing for the past few years, begins to fade away.
The common denominator for successful firms seems to be that they have coherent but creative marketing and communications strategies as well a focus on the customer, making sure they lay the foundations for long-lasting and strong relationships.