In May, LMD released its 2024 Brands Annual special edition, unveiling its readership’s ‘Most Loved Brands’ based on a survey conducted by PepperCube Consultants on behalf of the magazine.

The Managing Director and CEO of PepperCube Consultants Atheek Marikar highlighted several key observations about the survey findings on a recent edition of LMDtv. “Communication is key and size matters,” he asserted, referring to the size of the organisations and brands that feature in the rankings.

He continued: “We also saw that res­pondents differentiated between corporate brands, and product and service brands. You might have a very strong product but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll automatically be seen as a strong corporate brand – or one that’s loved.”

Marikar also pointed out that there was a “long list of nominations” for the 34 categories surveyed, ranging from corporate brands to specific product and service brands, across various sectors such as automotive, aviation, banking, beverages, healthcare, retail and tele­communications.

“This shows that there’s a plethora of choices for consumers. And that’s going to be challenging for most brands,” he opined.

The 2024 edition of Brands Annual was released in the midst of innumerable uncertainties and a marketplace governed by volatility. Commenting on this, Marikar observed: “We saw people moving to day-to-day products and services over luxury items, because they had to manage their funds and expenditure.”

“And there were certain segments of the population who had higher liquidity and increased cash flows because of the changes that took place in the country,” he said, adding that these customers spent more on luxury items.

He referred to this phenomenon as “indulgence or revenge shopping” whereby people who were restricted from enjoying specific experiences due to the devaluation of the Sri Lankan Rupee – for instance, going overseas – decided to spend on luxuries here at home.

Lifestyle choices also had a role to play in this year’s study, according to Marikar. He explained that changes in lifestyles that took place in Sri Lanka over the past two years became a reason for people to nominate certain brands over others.

Another highlight was the focus on local brands. “Local brands are gaining momentum,” he observed, noting that “customers felt they needed to buy locally; and therefore, they needed to support local brands.”

Adding to this observation, he noted that “banks and telecom companies also performed well,” pointing out that this could be due to the digital drive that these categories have pushed from 2020 due to COVID-19 or because “banks and telcos advertise more than others, and we’re still seeing the impact of that.”

When asked about the mantra for being a most loved brand, Marikar stressed the need for “a unique brand proposition.”

He explained: “If you don’t have a unique brand proposition, you’re not going to be a brand that will be loved by the general public or your consumer. You also need to have a differentiated product and service offering.”

“If you’re just another brand, or you are offering a product or service that’s no different from somebody else’s, there is no reason for someone to love your brand more than the other – because then you’re equally loved,” he maintained.

This year’s ‘Most Loved Brands’ list was based on a unique study conducted among LMD readers to capture their preferences. Marikar noted that this segment of the population upholds the need for brands to be sustainable in order to be loved: “The LMD readership is slightly different to the general public; and for this segment, sustainability is extremely important.”

Along with having a unique brand proposition and being sustainable, he stressed the importance of brands “staying relevant” especially during challenging times. “If you’re not seen as relevant to the consumer, you are going to lose the race,” he summed up.