Building brand success

Global outreach, a contented workforce and progressive CSR approaches are oft-cited cornerstones for brand success. Yet financial achievement remains a crucial component in deciding the ranking for brands, particularly for industry measurements such as Brand Finance’s Brand Strength Index (BSI) 2016.

While Apple keeps the top spot in the 2016 rankings, the latest report highlights a number of high profile brand surprises. Volkswagen drops 36% in the 2016 portfolio value rankings, largely due to a drop in public trust in the company.

This year's standout brand developments see Amazon and Toyota climb the rankings, both improving to top ten positions with growth percentages of 24-30%. In addition, Nestlé's 14% growth comes as a result of abundance in the market, with over 500 brands; product success in Nestlé's bottled water, coffee and frozen meals have contributed to a $8.3bn increase, from $58.3bn to $66.6bn.

Unilever's 18% growth comes as a result of its recent successes and brand developments, its recent Axe campaign 'Find Your Magic' takes male grooming into new realms with a less conventional approach to image standards. As a result, Unilever's 22nd place positioning makes them the highest ranked UK company, followed by Vodafone's 2% increase in the highly competitive technology sector.

Woes continue for Volkswagen, its 36% drop is punctuated by a staggering $23.3bn loss, and a drop in the BSI from 6th place in 2015 to 23rd place this year. VW's recent emissions scandal contributed to its decline - read more about how this affected the automotive industry rankings here.

A final word on China, as its brands enjoy the highest BSI value improvements, its banking sector has shown particular growth. The Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, the China Construction Bank, and the Agricultural Bank of China all experienced over 30% growth this year, the Agricultural Bank topping the BSI rankings with a 42% growth from $22.7bn to $32.2bn.

Brand Finance calculates brand strength on a number of factors, including financial performance and sustainability. Combined with a 'royalty rating' fostered through database analysis and licence agreements, Brand Finance's 0-100 BSI evaluates brand performance annually, placing current progress against the previous year.