Carat Report Reveals Google, Samsung And Microsoft Are The Top Brands With The World’s Highest EQ Scores
Brands with higher emotional intelligence (EQ) are outperforming stock market indices and growing faster than competitors. This is one of the key findings from ‘Brand EQ’, a new global research report launched recently by Carat, a dentsu company.
This second edition of Carat’s analysis of how emotional intelligence drives accelerated brand growth, has expanded its scope to assess 51 brands and takes in the views of 15,000 respondents across 15 markets including Australia. The original study, launched in 2020, looked at how better human understanding can drive brand performance and ranks some of the world’s most emotionally intelligent brands according to five key Brand EQ drivers: Empathy, Motivation, Self-Regulation, Self-Awareness and Social Skills.
Carat’s research showed that achieving high EQ makes clear business sense for brands, with the findings revealing an even stronger correlation between high EQ and high growth. The report found that the top 20 brand EQ performers massively outperformed in terms of the increase in shareholder value when tracked against notable indices, such as S&P 500 and the FTSE 100. In the first Brand EQ report, the gain in value was +682 percent, from 2010 to 2020. By extending this by another year, the gain increases to +910 percent. Google, Netflix and McDonald’s saw the highest shareholder value increases, demonstrating that the most emotionally intelligent brands grow faster.
Sue Squillace, Carat Australia & dentsu Media CEO, says: “Through our Brand EQ study, we found that more emotionally intelligent brands grow faster than their competitors. In our latest global findings, released today, this demonstrates this trend is only increasing and something all brands should focus on for growth.”
The second wave of research also found that brands that have been set up to create value for people score more highly on EQ. In 2020, Carat discovered successful brands have a strong sense of purpose and are connected to culture. The new research has shown even stronger evidence of this during the pandemic, with high EQ brands acting with confidence and creativity to help people adapt to new ways of living. Examples of this included Disney’s fast rollout of Disney+ to keep people entertained at home, and Mastercard’s rapid shift to digital to help shoppers and retailers adapt to new ways of living.
Importantly, the research found the biggest determinant of emotional intelligence is a brand’s Social Skills. Within this EQ driver, ‘insight and integrity’ scored highest, overtaking ‘clear and meaningful communication’ in 2020. Self-Regulation and Empathy are also now stronger drivers of overall EQ. This is not surprising, given the world has just endured a pandemic, and it further highlights the need for brands to act in an emotionally intelligent way before communicating with consumers.
Those under 25 years old were found to feel most strongly about brand EQ, with the newer companies such as Netflix and Uber scoring higher among this audience. These younger respondents were also found to equate convenience and flexibility with humanity more strongly than their older siblings and parents.
Looking at the performance of individual brands, Google comes out on top, jumping 14 places from two years ago, and thriving as the go-to brand during the pandemic. Seeing a huge leap in self-awareness, Google showed technology and innovation can have a human face, with 79% of its brand associations being deemed positive.
One of the more surprising findings from Brand EQ was Samsung’s EQ category dominance. Despite the fact Apple is the more valuable company, Samsung ranked ten places higher in terms of emotional intelligence, taking the number two spot, up from eight in 2020. Samsung’s biggest gains came in ‘this brand behaves with honesty and integrity’, and while its devices may not sell at the premium Apple can command, it is clearly doing a brilliant job of producing products and services its customers love.
Two of the world’s biggest ecommerce brands, eBay and Amazon, prospered during the pandemic. However, their differing EQ scores point to market changes for these two retail giants. While Amazon maintained a similar position – moving from 7th to 10th place – eBay fell from 24th to 39th, arguably in line with the fall in its number of active buyers. eBay fell across all EQ measures, but particularly in ‘knowing what it stands for’ and ‘trying hard to deliver a good experience’. In contrast, Amazon saw increases in these two areas. Amazon is actively expanding into new areas, such as online groceries, and also maintains high control over the experience.
Building on the findings from Brand EQ, Carat has devised six steps to help brands boost their emotional intelligence and in turn benefit from faster growth:
- Be purposeful. Creating higher EQ experiences starts with having a clear sense of where brands can add value to everyday life.
- Manage your story. Speaking with a clear voice and showing social skills are essential attributes of brands with high EQ.
- Distinguish insight from data. Brands must convert data into meaningful insights in order to have true empathy and deliver high EQ experiences.
- Build dynamic journeys. Motivation is a key driver of EQ, so it’s critical for brands to keep improving the experience people have with them.
- Do good in the world. Invest in activities that promote social and environmental good. These must be authentic and connect back to purpose.
- Build experiences through high EQ teams. High EQ environments enable marketing teams to have greater empathy with their audiences.
Danni Wright, Chief Strategy Officer, Carat Australia adds: “We believe that for all marketers, an accelerated path to growth lays in the ability to really understand people and use media to deliver more emotionally intelligent experiences within a connected consumer journey. To achieve this, it is critical for us to continually ask the question ‘where is the value for the consumer?’ as it is within these answers we can truly design for people.
To learn more about how emotional intelligence drives brand success and to read the full findings of the research, please download Brand EQ here.
Latest News
Sydney Comedy Festival: Taking The City & Social Media By Storm
Sydney Comedy Festival 2024 is live and ready to rumble, showing the best of international and homegrown talent at a host of venues around town. As usual, it’s hot on the heels of its big sister, the giant that is the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, picking up some acts as they continue on their own […]
Global Marketers Descend For AANA’s RESET For Growth
The Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) has announced the final epic lineup of local and global marketing powerhouses for RESET for Growth 2024. Lead image: Josh Faulks, chief executive officer, AANA Back in 2000, a woman with no business experience opened her first juice bar in Adelaide. The idea was brilliantly simple: make healthy […]
Is Meta’s New AI Chatbot Too Left-Wing?
Meta's chatbot accused of being left-wing after being caught wearing a Che Guevara T-shirt & listening to Billy Bragg.
TV Ratings (23/04/2024): Why Did No One Tell Angela That Farmer Wants A Wife Is Set On A Farm?
As wonderful as this headline is, let's face it, we all know an 'Angela', don't we?
PubMatic Unveils New AI Partnership To Turn Social Posts Into Ads For Any Digital Channel
Here's some nifty tech for turning social posts into ads. Assuming said posts aren't one-star character assassinations.
Intuit Mailchimp Makes A Splash With Its First Australian Brand Campaign
Ever laugh along at a gag you didn't get so as not to appear dumb? Get ready for more feigning with this new work.
GumGum’s Rob Hall: Advertisers Can No Longer “Rely On Binary Descriptions” Of Consumers
If anyone's got their finger on adtech's pulse, it's Rob Hall. He also avoids using the good paper in the office printer
Mastercard Nabs Florencia Aimo From Marriott International
Marriott International's Florencia Aimo jumps from the hotel business to the exploitative credit card one.
Bastion Agency Appoints Cheuk Chiang As New ANZ CEO
Cheuk Chiang takes the reins over at Bastion Agency. But not the rains down in Africa.
Spotlight On Sponsors: Major Sponsorship Wins After A Disappointing Week In Sport
B&T continuing our deep dive into local sport sponsorships & that's despite not a single offer of a free ticket as yet.
Macca’s Marketing Director, Samantha McLeod On Big Mac Chant: “What Was Once Old Is Now Cool Again”
Macca's using the power of nostalgia in latest Big Mac campaign. Well, only for those who've ever eaten one sober.
World Premiere Of Midnight Oil: The Hardest Line To Open Sydney Film Festival 2024
Oil's biopic to open Sydney Film Festival. Here's hoping Molly Meldrum will take his pants down at the premiere.
Entries Are Now Open For The 2024 Brandies, IntelligenceBank’s Annual Brand Marketing Awards
The Brandies are, of course, a prestigious marketing gong and not the mystery tipple favoured by nannas everywhere.
The Fred Hollows Foundation Appoints Ardent For PR
Yes, we all like to have a joke at PR's expense. But sometimes it does important work, like this.
AI, eCommerce & Marketing Specialists Are In Increased Demand By Businesses, New Data From Fiverr Shows
Has your philosophy & anthropology degree left you with nothing but a huge HECS debt? Here's what you should've studied.
Perth’s First 3D Anamorphic Billboard Arrives Courtesy Of oOh!media
Do you love a buzzword? Now you can add anamorphic to the list as it relates to billboards, not a colleague's ears.
MasterChef Australia & Crown Resorts Launch Unique Dining Experience With ALUMNI
A pop-up restaurant staffed by MasterChef contestants! That's fine dining prices for first-year apprentice chef cuisine!
Amanda Laing Announces Resignation From Foxtel Group
Foxtel's chief commercial & content officer heads for the exits. Read nice things the bosses said about her right here.
The Lost Letters From Our Diggers: News Corp Unveils ANZAC Day Special
It's nice when brands respectfully acknowledge ANZAC Day.
Howatson+Company Acquires Akkomplice
Large indie acquires a slightly smaller indie. Much like a shark eating a tuna, just with less thrashing and blood.
Google Delays Third-Party Cookie Deprecation Again
In good news for the sale of picture library biscuit photos, Google continues to tease over the end of cookies.
Education A Low Priority For Aussies More Concerned With Cost Of Living Forethought Study Reveals
Study finds Aussies cutting back on education due to cost of living. Booze & Uber Eats sales remain largely unaffected.
“I’m Still The Same Person That I Was”: Rikki Stern Says “Fucc It” To Cancer Stereotypes
B&T always happy to promote the anti-cancer cause. Even brands that massively overdo it with the hot pink.
The Unapproved Climate Certification Allegedly Causing Mass Greenwashing
Are you left flummoxed in the canned tuna & free range eggs aisle? Just wait till this green certification gets up.
TV Ratings (22/04/2024): Fans Mock “Over The Top” Reaction To New MasterChef Judges
MasterChef returns for its 2024 season. B&T stands by putting peppercorns in Gravox & no one will be any the wiser.
Dentsu Restructure: Muddle, Harvey & Johnston Take Leadership Baton As Bass & Yurisich Exit
A large broom has swept through Dentsu's local ops this morning, taking with it some big names & the air con's cobwebs.
Industry Shares Trends Shaping The Industry This International Creators Day
B&T's asking adland creators to reveal their top trends. And it's not good news for your Jenny Kee cardigan collection.
Mable Extends HOYTS Sensory Screenings Partnership
Mable has extended its HOYTS sensory screening partnership. Vigorously defends its two-star Oppenheimer review.
Orphan Launches ‘They Need Our Help. We Need Yours’ For Children’s Cancer Institute
Anything to do with childhood cancers has B&T's 110% support. That said, we do ignore the red meat & alcohol warnings.
Smile Team Orthodontics & Keep Left Collaborate On Smile-Inducing Campaign
As parents would attest, given the cost of orthodontics you'd expect this campaign to be a lavish production indeed.
Opinion: How Video Calls Neglect Learning Diversity
Need an excuse to duck out of a video call this arvo? Show this to your boss.
DoubleVerify Achieves First-Of-Its-Kind Responsible AI Certification From TrustArc
DoubleVerify receives responsible AI certification. However, not its robotic vacuum that's been seen menacing the cat.
Smile For A Good Cause: The Social Media Campaign Giving Back To The Community
Are you known as the office Austin Powers? More for you teeth than shagability? Get snappy new fangs with this news.
Elon Musk Mocks Albo After ESafety Wins Court Injunction Against X
Albo's 2024 from hell continues - Rabbitohs in crisis, down in the polls and now feuding with world's richest man.
Real Estate Developer In Hot Water Over “Sexually Exploitative” OOH Campaign
Real estate agents again tops in the 'least trusted profession' polls, nudging used car salesmen & ad creatives.
Epsilon’s Shane Hanby: Post-Cookie Era Relies On “Teamwork” Between Brands, Marketers & Tech
This pro predicts more "teamwork" in a post-cookie era. Which spells bad news for the uncooperative or plain stubborn.