For the first time in the history of Interbrand’s Best Global Brands report, there is a new number one brand: Apple.
Interbrand has published its 14th Annual Best Global Brands chart. The study identifies the top 100 most valuable global brands. With Apple claiming the top position this year, Google jumps to second place and Coca-Cola, the brand that held the top position for 13 consecutive years, moves to number three. This year, the total value of all 100 Best Global Brands is $1.5 trillion; an 8.4% record increase over the total value of the 100 Best Global Brands in 2012.
Technology has dominated as the most valuable sector overall, with a combined brand value $443.154 billion. Companies including Apple, Google, Amazon and Facebook rank highly in the chart.
Apple has appeared on Interbrand’s Best Global Brands ranking since 2000, when the ranking debuted. In 2000, Apple ranked number and had a brand value of $6.6bn. Today, Apple’s brand value has increased nearly 15 times to $98.3 bn.
Apple’s omnichannel experience and focus on customer service and usability has aided its rise to the top. With 72 million Macs in use and record-breaking sales of both the iPhone and iPad, Apple has made history by unseating Coca-Cola and becoming Interbrand’s most valuable global brand of 2013.
"Every so often, a company changes our lives — not just with its products, but with its ethos. This is why, following Coca-Cola’s 13-year run at the top of Best Global Brands, Apple now ranks number one," said Jez Frampton, Interbrand’s global chief executive officer. "Tim Cook has assembled a solid leadership team and has kept Steve Jobs’ vision intact – a vision that has allowed Apple to deliver on its promise of innovation time and time again."
Interbrand’s Best Global Brands methodology was the first of its kind to become ISO certified. It analyses the many ways a brand benefits an organisation, from delivering on customer expectations to driving economic value.
Interband examines the financial performance of the branded products or service, the role the brand plays in influencing consumer choice and the strength the brand has to command a premium price.
Out of this year’s top 10 brands, seven hail from the technolohy sector. Furthermore, four tech brands make up this year’s top five rising brands: Facebook (52, +43%), Google (2, +34%), Apple (1, +28%), and Amazon, (19, +27%).
Tech brands continue to dominate Interbrand’s Best Global Brands report – underscoring the fundamental and invaluable role they play in consumers’ lives. Due to its commitment to product innovation and its massive marketing spend, Samsung (8, +20%) has surpassed Apple in smartphone sales and appears to be leading the tech sector in terms of connectivity and home automation.
Most notably, one-time category leaders, Yahoo! and Blackberry fell off this year’s ranking entirely, while Nokia (57, -65%) experienced the largest decline in brand value in the history of Best Global Brands. Nintendo (67, -14%), and Dell (61, -10%) also experienced a decline in brand value. In the fast-changing world of mobile, digital, and social media, these brands have struggled to articulate their respective attributes and deliver meaningful and seamless experiences across all platforms and touchpoints.
