Methodology
Three data streams
The central pillar running through the heart of our approach is to identify the brands that matter most to consumers. With this in mind, we developed the master brand list based on three data streams that speak to the different types of relationships that consumers have with a brand.
1. The nation’s favourite brands
The first data stream was a nationally representative study of the nation’s favourite brands – each consumer was invited to spontaneously type in their top 10 favorite brands. We collated 9,000 spontaneous brand mentions from our sample of 6,100 consumers and identified the top brands mentioned (125).
2. Social media velocity
We measured the social media traction for each of the Top 125 brands, identifying how many brand mentions they received on social media.
3. Brand revenue
We collated publicly available revenue figures for each of the Top 125 brands.
By synthesizing all three data sources and applying a rank order, we established how each brand performs on three different consumer metrics:
The brands consumers think about
The brands consumers talk about
The brands consumers buy
The Most Connected Brands Index (MCB Index)
The MCB Index is the combination of four key brand metrics which are weighted together to produce a one number summary of a brand’s ability to connect with consumers.
We measure connection across four key characteristics:
Prominence
The brand’s presence and scale
Distinctiveness
The brand’s unique identity and ability to set trends
Emotion
The brand’s ability to form emotional relationships
Dynamism
The brand’s momentum and social traction
How we statistically linked the measures to what matters
To ensure that our index was statistically robust and proven to relate to what truly matters to consumers we ran a number of statistical analyses.
Firstly, regression analysis was used to select the variables which are significant in driving brand strength. Then correlation analysis was used to create the weights for the selected variables.
The derived Most Connected Brands Index was calculated as a weighted average of these variables. These scores were then indexed on the average, providing a ranking of all the brands included in the study.
A note on the overall ranking
Whilst brands may have the same overall MCB Index score, the ranking has been derived from the specific, non-rounded, decimal place data.
Uncovering rich insights behind the rankings
1. Brand consideration and likely future usage
2. Satisfaction
3. Recommendation
4. Delivery on needs
5. Value for money
6. Social responsibility
7. Brand imagery
Our final diagnostic was to use our unique emotive framework. Humans are instinctive, emotional creatures and as such we are often resistant or consciously unable to articulate how we feel about a brand. Based on psychological theory and neuroscience, we have developed an emotive framework to assess the emotional response to a brand. This question is timed, as using implicit response testing can identify what consumers truly think implicitly and subconsciously about each brand.
