Apple makes record rise as Coca-Cola keeps Best Global Brands top spot

Apple’s 58 per cent increase in brand value is the highest rise the survey has ever seen, with the launch of the iPad, the success of the iPhone and the potential of the iCloud all cited as contributing factors.

The report, which lists 100 companies, offers a ranking based on the way in which a brand benefits an organisation, covering financial performance of branded products or services, how the brand influences customer purchasing decisions, and the brand’s ability to secure delivery of expected future earnings.

IBM is ranked second, Microsoft third and Google fourth, echoing last year’s results, but Nokia has slipped from eighth to 14th.

Burberry has moved from 100^th to 95^th , after experiencing a 20 per cent rise in brand value. Graham Hales, managing director of Interbrand London, says this is largely down to ‘the 60 per cent of their marketing spend which is going on digital; significantly this shows how brands are starting to chose to market themselves’.

Techonology has been a ‘bumper category’ says Hales, while luxury continues to do ‘better then expected globally’.

External social, political and environmental factors appear to be encouraging corporate responsibility. Hales says, ‘All of the top brands have convincing corporate responsibility agendas, like IBM’s Smarter Planet initiative. There is more evidence of brands spotting the need for social agenda, and they need to, to help society through the austerity measures.’