Interbrand Releases 11th Annual Ranking of the 100 'Best Global Brands'

Coca-Cola retains the number one spot; Google gains on Microsoft, while HP enters the top 10

News provided by

Sep 15, 2010, 08:00 ET

NEW YORK, Sept. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM, Microsoft and Google lead Interbrand's 11th annual ranking of the "Best Global Brands." Google (#4) sees a 36% increase in value over last year, bringing the brand closer than ever to rival Microsoft (#3). HP (#10) enters the top 10 for the first time, having increased brand value under a new business model and brand platform. For the 11th year straight, Coca-Cola (#1) retains its top spot as the number one ranked brand on the list.

Interbrand, the leading brand consultancy, publishes the ranking of the top 100 brands based on a unique methodology analyzing the many ways a brand touches and benefits an organization, from attracting top talent to delivering on customer expectation. Three key aspects contribute to a brand's value; the financial performance of the branded products or services, the role of brand in the purchase decision process and the strength of the brand to continue to secure earnings for the company.

A number of prominent brands faced extraordinary crisis in 2010 resulting in stalled growth, value loss and in the case of BP, failure to make the ranking this year. BP's environmental disaster and inability to make good on its brand promise of "Beyond Petroleum" led to it falling off of the list and helped competitor Shell emerge as an industry leader, now ranked number 81, up from number 92 in 2009. Although the Toyota (#11) recall caused the brand to lose -16% of its brand value, its long-standing reputation for reliability, efficiency and innovation helped it weather the crisis better than expected. Goldman Sachs (#37) was once the envy of Wall Street, but now faces the dichotomy of strong economic results and an angry public that will continue to lash out until the company begins to demonstrate that it is making sincere efforts to better align its ethics with its brand.

Technology brands continue to lead the pack, with IBM (#2), Microsoft (#3), Google (#4), Intel (#7), and HP (#10) earning top rankings. Apple (#17) increased brand value 37% through carefully controlled messaging and an endless wave of buzz surrounding new product launches. Despite a challenging year, HP made smart additions to its product portfolio and swiftly expanded the HP brand to protect its ranking on the list. With 32% brand value growth, BlackBerry (#54) remains the most popular smartphone for business users, despite pressure from Apple as it edges into the corporate world.

"2010 was the beginning of a long road back towards economic recovery," said Jez Frampton, group chief executive at Interbrand. "From real-time customer feedback through social media to increased transparency about corporate citizenship, brands were faced with a profound change in the way they relate to customers and demonstrate their relevance and value. Despite this new paradigm of brand management, the advantages of building a solid brand remain the same."

During a difficult year for the auto industry, Mercedes Benz (#12) and BMW (#15) were able to sustain and build their value through innovative design and a focus on delivering premium value vehicles with luxury features. Using customer feedback, largely drawn from YouTube, Flickr, Twitter and Facebook to launch the 2009 Fiesta, Ford (#50) stands out as one of the best example of how to use social media. Award-winning products like the Q5 and rich heritage help Audi (#63) lead industry growth this year with a 9% increase in its brand value.

Despite the economic downturn, luxury brands Cartier (#77), Armani (#95), Louis Vuitton (#16), Gucci (#44), Tiffany & Co (#76) and Hermes (#69) all saw the value of their brands increase in 2010 by continuing to invest in their heritage and legendary status. Outstanding customer service and a focus on unique in-store and online experiences allowed them to stay strong, even while consumers cut back spending.

In the financial sector, legacy brands Citi (#40) and UBS (#86) lost double-digits in brand value, while Santander (#68), Barclays (#74) and Credit Suisse (#80) made their debut on the list for the first time. Their ability to stay true to brand promises in unsure times, and avoidance of the subprime mortgage crisis, helped them stay the course.

Interbrand's 2010 Best Global Brands is available in full, along with expanded content and methodology, on Interbrand.com at http://www.thebestglobalbrands.com.

About Interbrand

Founded in 1974, Interbrand is recognized for being at the forefront of the dialogue on brands as business assets. Today, Interbrand is amongst the largest brand consultancies and has grown to include 40 offices in 25 countries. The combination of rigorous strategy and analytics with world-class design creativity help its clients to create and manage brand value in all market dynamics. It is widely respected for its annual study, The Best Global Brands, and creating a broader platform for the discussion on brands in the Webby-award winning website brandchannel.com. For more on Interbrand, visit www.interbrand.com.

Interbrand's Annual Ranking of the Best Global Brands For 2010

2010 RANK	2009 RANK	BRAND	SECTOR	2010 BRAND VALUE $m	2009 BRAND VALUE $m	% CHANGE (BRAND VALUE)
1	1	COCA-COLA	BEVERAGES	70,452	68,734	2%
2	2	IBM	BUSINESS SERVICES	64,727	60,211	7%
3	3	MICROSOFT	COMPUTER SOFTWARE	60,895	56,647	7%
4	7	GOOGLE	INTERNET SERVICES	43, 557	31,980	36%
5	4	GE	DIVERSIFIED	42,808	47,777	-10%
6	6	MCDONALD'S	RESTAURANTS	33,578	32,275	4%
7	9	INTEL	ELECTRONICS	32,015	30,636	4%
8	5	NOKIA	ELECTRONICS	29,495	34, 864	-15%
9	10	DISNEY	MEDIA	28,731	28,447	1%
10	11	HP	ELECTRONICS	26,867	24,096	12%
11	8	TOYOTA	AUTOMOTIVE	26,192	31,330	-16%
12	12	MERCEDES-BENZ	AUTOMOTIVE	25,179	23,867	6%
13	13	GILLETTE	FMCG	23,298	22,841	2%
14	14	CISCO	BUSINESS SERVICES	23,219	22,030	5%
15	15	BMW	AUTOMOTIVE	22,322	21,671	3%
16	16	LOUIS VUITTON	LUXURY	21,860	21,120	4%
17	20	APPLE	ELECTRONICS	21,143	15,433	37%
18	17	MARLBORO	TOBACCO	19,961	19,010	5%
19	19	SAMSUNG	ELECTRONICS	19,491	17,518	11%
20	18	HONDA	AUTOMOTIVE	18,506	17,803	4%
21	21	H&M	APPAREL	16,136	15,375	5%
22	24	ORACLE	BUSINESS SERVICES	14,881	13,699	9%
23	23	PEPSI	BEVERAGES	14,061	13,706	3%
24	22	AMERICAN EXPRESS	FINANCIAL SERVICES	13,944	14,971	-7%
25	26	NIKE	SPORTING GOODS	13,706	13,179	4%
26	27	SAP	BUSINESS SERVICES	12,756	12,106	5%
27	25	NESCAFÉ	BEVERAGES	12,753	13,317	-4%
28	28	IKEA	HOME FURNISHINGS	12,487	12,004	4%
29	37	JP MORGAN	FINANCIAL SERVICES	12,314	9,550	29%
30	30	BUDWEISER	ALCOHOL	12,252	11,833	4%
31	31	UPS	TRANSPORTATION	11,826	11,594	2%
32	32	HSBC	FINANCIAL SERVICES	11,561	10,510	10%
33	33	CANON	ELECTRONICS	11,485	10,441	10%
34	29	SONY	ELECTRONICS	11,356	11,953	-5%
35	34	KELLOGG'S	FMCG	11,041	10,428	6%
36	43	AMAZON.COM	INTERNET SERVICES	9,665	7,858	23%
37	38	GOLDMAN SACHS	FINANCIAL SERVICES	9,372	9,248	1%
38	39	NINTENDO	ELECTRONICS	8,990	9,210	-2%
39	40	THOMSON REUTERS	MEDIA	8,976	8,434	6%
40	36	CITI	FINANCIAL SERVICES	8,887	10,254	-13%
41	35	DELL	ELECTRONICS	8,880	10,291	-14%
42	42	PHILIPS	ELECTRONICS	8,696	8,121	7%
43	46	EBAY	INTERNET SERVICES	8,453	7,350	15%
44	41	GUCCI	LUXURY	8,346	8,182	2%
45	44	L'ORÉAL	FMCG	7,981	7,748	3%
46	48	HEINZ	FMCG	7,534	7,244	4%
47	45	ACCENTURE	BUSINESS SERVICES	7,481	7,710	-3%
48	50	ZARA	APPAREL	7,468	6,789	10%
49	47	SIEMENS	DIVERSIFIED	7,315	7,308	0%
50	49	FORD	AUTOMOTIVE	7,195	7,005	3%
51	52	COLGATE	FMCG	6,919	6,550	6%
52	57	MORGAN STANLEY	FINANCIAL SERVICES	6,911	6,399	8%
53	55	VOLKSWAGEN	AUTOMOTIVE	6,892	6,484	6%
54	63	BLACKBERRY	ELECTRONICS	6,762	5,138	32%
55	54	MTV	MEDIA	6,719	6,523	3%
56	53	AXA	FINANCIAL SERVICES	6,694	6,525	3%
57	58	NESTLÉ	FMCG	6,548	6,319	4%
58	60	DANONE	FMCG	6,363	5,960	7%
59	56	XEROX	ELECTRONICS	6,109	6,431	-5%
60	61	KFC	RESTAURANTS	5,844	5,772	2%
61	NEW	SPRITE	BEVERAGES	5,777	N/A	N/A
62	62	ADIDAS	SPORTING GOODS	5,495	5,397	2%
63	65	AUDI	AUTOMOTIVE	5,461	5,010	9%
64	67	AVON	FMCG	5,072	4,917	3%
65	69	HYUNDAI	AUTOMOTIVE	5,033	4,604	9%
66	64	YAHOO!	INTERNET SERVICES	4,958	5,111	-3%
67	81	ALLIANZ	FINANCIAL SERVICES	4,904	3,831	28%
68	NEW	SANTANDER	FINANCIAL SERVICES	4,846	N/A	N/A
69	70	HERMES	LUXURY	4,782	4,598	4%
70	66	CATERPILLAR	DIVERSIFIED	4,704	5,004	-6%
71	71	KLEENEX	FMCG	4,536	4,404	3%
72	74	PORSCHE	AUTOMOTIVE	4,404	4,234	4%
73	75	PANASONIC	ELECTRONICS	4,351	4,225	3%
74	NEW	BARCLAYS	FINANCIAL SERVICES	4,218	N/A	N/A
75	80	JOHNSON & JOHNSON	FMCG	4,155	3,847	8%
76	76	TIFFANY & CO	LUXURY	4,127	4,000	3%
77	77	CARTIER	LUXURY	4,052	3,968	2%
78	NEW	JACK DANIEL'S	ALCOHOL	4,036	N/A	N/A
79	82	MOËT & CHANDON	ALCOHOL	4,021	3,754	7%
80	NEW	CREDIT SUISSE	FINANCIAL SERVICES	4,010	N/A	N/A
81	92	SHELL	ENERGY	4,003	3,228	24%
82	94	VISA	FINANCIAL SERVICES	3,998	3,170	26%
83	79	PIZZA HUT	RESTAURANTS	3,973	3,876	2%
84	78	GAP	APPAREL	3,961	3,922	1%
85	NEW	CORONA	ALCOHOL	3,847	N/A	N/A
86	72	UBS	FINANCIAL SERVICES	3,812	4,370	-13%
87	86	NIVEA	FMCG	3,734	3,557	5%
88	95	ADOBE	COMPUTER SOFTWARE	3,626	3,161	15%
89	84	SMIRNOFF	ALCOHOL	3,624	3,698	-2%
90	NEW	3M	DIVERSIFIED	3,586	N/A	N/A
91	88	FERRARI	AUTOMOTIVE	3,562	3,527	1%
92	NEW	JOHNNIE WALKER	ALCOHOL	3,557	N/A	N/A
93	NEW	HEINEKEN	ALCOHOL	3,516	N/A	N/A
94	NEW	ZURICH	FINANCIAL SERVICES	3,496	N/A	N/A
95	89	ARMANI	LUXURY	3,443	3,303	4%
96	91	LANCÔME	FMCG	3,403	3,235	5%
97	90	STARBUCKS	RESTAURANTS	3,339	3,263	2%
98	73	HARLEY-DAVIDSON	AUTOMOTIVE	3,281	4,337	-24%
99	100	CAMPBELL'S	FMCG	3,241	3,081	5%
100	98	BURBERRY	LUXURY	3,110	3,095	0%