Whether you’re a country or a company, brand reputation is crucial. For corporations trying to stand out amongst an array of competitors, name recognition can be make or break.
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The Axios Harris Poll polled a nationally representative sample of nearly 43,000 Americans to find out which 100 companies emerge as top of mind—for better or for worse.
How is Brand Reputation Measured?
The polling process started by asking respondents which two companies they felt excelled or faltered in the U.S.—in other words, which companies were the most “visible” in their eyes.
The top 100 brands that emerged from this framework were then judged by poll respondents across seven dimensions, over three key pillars:
- Character
Includes a company’s culture, ethics, and citizenship (whether a consumer shares a company’s values or the company supports good causes) - Trajectory
Includes a company’s growth prospects, vision for the future, and product and service offerings (whether they are innovative, and of high quality) - Trust
Does a consumer trust the brand in the first place?
Once these dimensions are taken into account, the final scores portray how these “visible brands” rank in terms of their reputation among a representative sample of Americans:
- Score range: 80.0 and above
Reputation: Excellent - Score range: 75.0-79.9
Reputation: Very Good - Score range: 70.0-74.9
Reputation: Good - Score range: 65.0-69.9
Reputation: Fair - Score range: 64.9 and below
Reputation: Poor
Companies with a Very Poor reputation (a score below 50) didn’t make it into the list. Here’s how the 100 most visible companies stack up in terms of brand reputation:
While the ranking itself highlights well-respected and poorly-viewed brands overall, another perspective is to look at which brands shot up in the list, and which ones plummeted.
Fastest Risers in Brand Reputation
Unwavering and bold commitments to the environment has helped Patagonia to top the charts as the #1 brand, rising 31 ranks since 2020. From funneling 1% of sales into environmental donations to ensuring ethical supply chains, Patagonia’s culture, ethics, and citizenship all align with its business model in consumers’ eyes.
With over 33 million COVID-19 vaccine doses administered daily around the world, Pfizer’scontribution to the ongoing immunization progress is undeniable. As a result, its overall ranking has swelled by 54 places since 2020.
| Rank in 2021 | Brand | 2021 Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| #7 | Pfizer | 80.2 | +54 |
| #1 | Patagonia | 82.7 | +31 |
| #15 | Unilever | 79.2 | +20 |
| #71 | Dollar General | 71.4 | +19 |
| #43 | Citigroup | 75.7 | +17 |
| #2 | Honda Motor Company | 81.6 | +14 |
| #24 | CVS (CVS Health) | 78.2 | +13 |
| #27 | Berkshire Hathaway | 78 | +13 |
| #50 | Ford Motor Company | 75.1 | +13 |
| #56 | T-Mobile | 74.3 | +13 |
Dollar General might seem like a surprising addition to this table, but in terms of sheer growth, discount stores are thriving. Across America, dollar stores are opening at a rate of three per day, faster than any Starbucks or McDonalds.
There’s a crucial reason for this: in many rural areas, millions rely on dollar stores for food and other essentials, as the nearest grocery store can be nearly an hour’s drive away.
Biggest Decliners in Brand Reputation
Despite steady revenue growth, Google is among a handful of Big Tech companies whose reputations are backsliding, dropping 36 places in the past year. The outsize power and influence these companies hold is increasingly coming under regulatory scrutiny.
| Rank in 2021 | Brand | 2021 Score | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| #60 | 73.3 | -36 | |
| #35 | Procter & Gamble Co. | 77 | -27 |
| #81 | Delta Air Lines | 70.4 | -24 |
| #30 | The Kroger Company | 77.5 | -21 |
| #38 | Netflix | 76.4 | -21 |
| #70 | Yum! Brands | 71.5 | -21 |
| #23 | Publix Supermarkets | 78.2 | -19 |
| #36 | Microsoft | 76.8 | -17 |
| #58 | The Coca-Cola Company | 73.7 | -17 |
| #67 | Wendy’s | 72.1 | -17 |
Although Netflix pioneered the world of streaming, it is now facing stiff competition from emerging subscription services. Amazon’s latest acquisition of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM Studios) will especially bolster the content catalog available on Prime Video.
Building a Brand Reputation Doesn’t Come Easy
Near the bottom of the 100 companies leaderboard, the struggles of mainstream media and modern information dissemination are strongly reflected. Despite their diverse audiences and established histories, brand reputations of both Facebook and Fox News have eroded in recent years.
This example highlights how the nature of a brand’s reputation can evolve over time. Building a strong and reputable brand may be subjective, but its effects on consumer loyalty are powerful.
This article originally appeared in VisualCapitalist. Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash.
