Cadbury Dairy Milk, Tayto and An Post have emerged as the top 3 ‘emotionally connected’ brands in Ireland, according to a Red C omnibus survey of 1,000 adults.
The research company’s Brand Reaction survey measures which brands have the highest emotional connection with consumers.
Survey participants were asked: ‘As quickly as possible after you see each brand, I want you to select which of the following faces most closely represents how you immediately feel about that brand?’
The eight facial reactions spanned surprise, happy, neutral, fear, contempt, disgust, anger and sadness.
The resulting Brand Reaction Index score was collated from the survey results.
The Red C test was also conducted in 2019, and the latest index suggests that Irish brands have not escaped the challenges of a post-Covid, post-Brexit, war in Europe era, with several noting a significantly weaker emotional connection vs. 2019 levels.
On the whole, however, emotional connections are stronger now compared with three years ago as consumers recognise the emotional and functional benefits that some brands deliver, according to Red C.
Associate director Geoff Tucker explained that looking at the brands that featured in 2019 and again in 2022, there is a net improvement in emotional connections (+3 points).
“Visa (+13 points) and Mastercard (+16 points) benefited from increased contactless habits borne during Covid that delivers greater levels of ease to the customer and retailer alike,” said Tucker.
Not surprisingly, fast moving consumer goods brands which advertise consistently on television dominate the Brand Reaction Index top 10.
RedC also credits TV ads for the National Lottery’s improvement in the index.
Irish Life has improved its BRI score by 12 points and is now ranked #27, placing itself and its health sub-brand, Irish Life Health (ranked #31) firmly within the leading brands in Ireland.
Major grocery retailers Lidl, Aldi and SuperValu all recorded reduced levels of emotional attachment with consumers vs 2019.
Tucker commented: “It prompts the question of whether the current financial squeeze has negated all the positive initiatives activated by these retailers during the pandemic. Are shoppers that quick to forget?”
Not one of Ireland’s customer facing energy suppliers makes it into the top 100 emotionally connected brands.
In Tucker’s view, strong emotional connections are vitally important as one of the key shortcuts to deliver brand choice.
“The higher the BRI score, the more likely a brand is to be chosen over competitors,” he said.