Apple tops the list of Best Global Brands in 2013

Published October 1, 2013 at 2:26 pm

Apple wants you to “Think different.” Coca-Cola, as we’ve previously written, wants you to happily sigh “Ahhh” after taking a sip. So, which company has a more successful brand? According to recent research, it’s Apple.

That’s right, after 13 years in the #1 spot on Interbrand’s list of Best Global Brands, Coca-Cola has finally been dethroned by Apple, which rose from #8 in 2011 and #2 in 2012.

“Every so often, a company changes our lives, not just with its products, but also with its ethos,” states Interbrand. “For revolutionizing the way we work, play and communicate — and for mastering the ability to surprise and delight — Apple has set a high bar for aesthetics, simplicity and ease of use that all other tech brands are now expected to match, and that Apple itself is expected to continually exceed.”

According to Bloomberg, the report takes a number of factors into consideration, including a brand’s financial standing, ability to secure earnings and overall influence on consumer buying patterns.

Interbrand cites some of Apple’s most impressive figures, such as the number of Macs that are currently in use (72 million), the number of apps that have been downloaded from the iTunes App Store (50 billion) and the number of Apple iOS devices that have been sold to date (600 million). These have combined to help nudge the brand value up 28 percent to $98.3 million in 2013.

Following close behind Apple in this year’s report is Google at #2, Coca-Cola at #3, IBM at #4 and Microsoft at #5.

Will customers always choose to think different? Maybe, but either way, companies will need to keep their global, national and localized marketing fresh to have a chance at ending up on a list like this someday.