Vodafone named most powerful British brand

by Darren Davidson, Brand Republic 21-Apr-08, 09:00

LONDON - Vodafone has been named the most powerful British brand for the third year in a row, having increased its brand value by 75% in the last 12 months, according to Millward Brown's annual global brand ranking.

The survey, now in its third year, gave the telecommunications company a value of $37bn, a 75% increase in brand value compared with last year.

Vodafone launched a slew of heavyweight ad campaigns last year created by Bartle Bogle Hegarty under the strapline "Make the most of now", with some featuring British Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton.

Tesco was the next most valuable British brand in the survey, followed by HSBC, Marks & Spencer, Barclays, Standard Chartered Bank, BP, Royal Bank of Scotland, Asda and NatWest.

Although only six British brands meet the criteria of being a Top 100 global power brand, their combined value rose 33% to $127,220bn in 2007, compared with a rise of 21% for the Top 100 as a whole.

Warwick Nash, chief executive of Millward Brown for the UK and Ireland, said: "The results this year highlight the strength of those British brands that have global clout and are leveraging their brands to help aid their growth.

"But this ranking is a wake-up call for companies to invest in the power of their brands if they want to grow their business or sustain it in tougher times."

The global list of top brands was once again led by internet giant Google, with a brand value of $86.1bn, followed by US technology and services conglomerate GE with $71.4bn, and software firm Microsoft in third place with $70.8bn.

The survey, which covers January to December 2007, ranks the most powerful brands by their dollar value. It is based on an analysis of consumer opinion and publicly available financial data.

Top 10 British brands
Brand/Value in $m/Global Rank