Brands See Redistribution of Loyalty

A significant re-distribution of brand loyalty was identified in the 14^th annual survey conducted by Brand Keys

 

• Amazon, Apple, Domino’s, Disney+, TikTok and Pfizer Take Top Spots
• Retail, Food and Beverages, Tech Sectors Seize Lion’s Share of Loyalty
• Plant-Based Meats, Pharmaceuticals, Streaming Video, and EV Brands New to Top-100

NEW YORK, NY, September 13, 2022 – The 2022 Brand Keys Brand Loyalty Leaders survey found a significant sorting-out of brands by consumers when it comes to loyalty in the post-pandemic marketplace. A significant re-distribution of brand loyalty was identified in the 14^th annual survey conducted by Brand Keys (brandkeys.com), the New York-based loyalty and engagement research consultancy.

For 2022, 1,624 brands in 142 categories were examined in the Loyalty Leaders List, which reveals best-practice guidelines for nurturing customer loyalty, yielding stronger bottom line performance. “The 2022 brand loyalty rankings are leading-indicators of what a return-to-normalcy marketplace will look like in the coming months,” noted Robert Passikoff, Brand Keys founder and president.

2022 Top-20 Brands On Loyalty Leaders List

Consumers ranked this year’s top-20 Loyalty Leaders as follows
(#s in parentheses indicate 2021 loyalty rankings):

1. Apple: smartphones (#2)
2. Amazon: online retail (#1)
3. Domino’s: pizza (#4)
4. Disney+: video streaming (#6)
5. TikTok: social Networking (#21)
6. Pfizer: pharmaceuticals (new)
7. WhatsApp: instant messaging (#8)
8. Netflix: video streaming (#3)
9. Google: search engines (#7)
10. Amazon: video streaming (#5)
11. Nike: athletic footwear (#10)
12. MSNBC: cable news (#31)
13. Discover: credit cards (#12)
14. Apple TV: streaming video (#20)
15. Instagram: social networking (#9)
16. Home Depot: home improvement (#11)
17. Samsung: smartphones (#14)
18. Dunkin’: coffee (#22)
19. Hyundai: automotive (#17)
20. Apple: tablets (#15)

Categories Making Up 2022’s Top-100 Brands

This year, some sectors saw more loyalty than others:
Half the brands (51%) in the 2022 Loyalty Leaders List fell into three general categories:

• Retail (22%)
• Food & Beverages (16%)
• Technology (13%)

The remaining Loyalty Leaders List was represented by brands in Consumer Packaged Goods and Entertainment (11% each), Automotive (9%), Financial (8%), and Social Networking (7%).

Six Brands New To Loyalty Leaders List

Shared and intersecting consumer values – critical behavioral indicators – led consumers to “promote” six new brands to the Top 100 Loyalty Leaders:

• Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods
• Moderna and Pfizer
• Paramount +
• Tesla

“Brands first entering the top 100 are early-indicators of consumer value migration,” said Passikoff. “Plant-based meat substitutes and electric vehicles, while different sectors, represent similar values other brand categories should attend to. It’s hard to miss precedents as regards sustainability, greening and new pharmaceutical brands ties to health and wellness.”

Loyalty Leaders and Losers

“Loyalty is never unalterable, which is why it’s critical for brands to monitor movement within the Loyalty Leaders List,” noted Passikoff. “A brand’s change in loyalty-rank always predicts future consumer behavior. The stronger the loyalty bond, the higher on the list, the more positive consumers’ behavior. Better behavior always equals a better bottom line. The pandemic and supply chain issues have had their moment-in-time effects, but loyalty always wins in the end,” added Passikoff.

The dozen brands with largest loyalty-list gains this year included:

• State Farm (+25)
• MSNBC (+19)
• Costco (+18)
• McDonald’s (+17)
• TikTok and Sam’s Club (+16 each)
• com (+15)
• Apple TV and Chobani (+12 each)
• Dollar Tree and Mattel (+11 each)
• Levi Strauss (+10).

The dozen brands that saw greatest losses in customer loyalty-rank included:

• Purell (-52)
• Clorox (-41)
• Lowe’s (-23)
• Facebook (-17)
• New Balance (-14)
• Spotify (-13)
• Lyft (-12)
• Ralph Lauren (-11)
• Jeep, Starbucks, Call of Duty, and Budweiser (-10 each).

Why Consumers Are Loyal To Your Brand

“Loyalty is about emotional brand connection and consumers’ mostly-emotional expectations. Connect and meet expectations and your brand will always do better in engagement, consideration, and purchase,” noted Passikoff.

The 2022 Loyalty Leaders List demonstrates that brands with high levels of loyalty can emerge from pandemic flashpoints and economic rollercoasters stronger than before. Brands that make loyalty, engagement and consumer expectations a priority not only appear high on the Loyalty Leaders List; more importantly, they show up high on consumers’ shopping lists.

Methodology

Brand Keys Loyalty Leaders analysis was conducted during August 2022. It includes 68,125 assessments (M/F, 16 to 65 YOA). Respondents self-selected categories in which they are consumers and then assessed brands for which they were customers, assessing a total of 1,624 brands in 142 categories.

Unlike economic-use models that rely on archival data and profitability guesswork, Brand Keys’ rankings are 100% consumer-driven, measuring both emotional and rational aspects of each consumer’s decision making process in the moment, which is why loyalty correlates very highly (0.80+) with customer behavior, sales, and profitability.

The complete 2022 Top 100 Loyalty Leaders List can be viewed here.

For more information regarding the Brand Keys 2022 Loyalty Leaders List, your brand’s position on the list, or information about integrating predictive loyalty and emotional engagement metrics into your marketing and branding efforts, contact Leigh Benatar at [email protected].

Contact: Visibility

Len Stein
[email protected]
914 527.3708