Research on top brands may reveal surprise results

TNS Research Surveys, commissioned by Avusa Media, has gone beyond looking at the sole variable of brand size and dug deeper to discover what truly makes a brand strong. These insights will be revealed at the Top Brands Awards at Lexus Fourways on Thursday 20 August 2009, where winners from over 25 categories for consumer brands ranging from beverages to retail banks will be awarded.

"As well as using a new method that applies the concept of relative advantage by looking at brand relationships holistically, the coverage of the survey is much wider this year with more emphasis placed on metropolitan areas and it also looks at brands from a business angle," says Neil Higgs, director for innovation and development at TNS Research Surveys.

Flexibility of smaller players could pay off

To introduce a more business-focussed approach over 400 interviews were conducted with business leaders and decision makers to discover which brands are the most valued from a business perspective. Eleven categories were selected as the most widely used by most companies in South Africa and the brands awarded span from car hire service providers to short-term insurers. This was in addition to the interviews with 3500 adults, making up a representative sample of South African adults.

"The winners of these awards will most likely be companies that realise that it is even more important to spend money on marketing during a recession as they have a better opportunity to gain valuable market share in these current times. Smaller players that have flexibility and the entrepreneurial flair to adapt to this tough environment as well as facilitating stronger personal customer relationships should also come out tops," says Enver Groenewald, Avusa Media GM: Advertising Revenue and Strategic Communications.