Surfing the internet rather than snacking on the couch seems to be the Aussie thing these days. Vegemite, Tim Tams and Coca-Cola have given way to technology companies Google, Apple and Sony as the nation's most loved brands, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
The Herald quoted a study into consumer attitudes towards products and services by Brand Asset Consulting which has been surveying the Australians for 17 years on what they think about brands.
The latest Brand Asset Valuator study charts Australian’s waning affections towards comfort foods, the report said.
It quoted David Evans, research director of Brand Asset Consulting, saying that technology brands are simply playing more of a role in Aussie lives.
''It's not just that we are coming to rely upon them more but because they deliver on their promises to a level that we have never experienced before. They just get better every year.''
The same cannot be said for Tim Tams, Vegemite and Coca-Cola, said Evans. ''Once you have tried that spread, yes, you might love it, but there are no surprises there.'' By contrast, the leaps in technology each year meant people had come to expect more from brands.
''Every year tech brands seem to add something new and free, so of course we love them.''
But the same study, which asks 2000 people to rate the brands they know on 48 attributes ranging from trust and how straightforward they are, also spotted big drops in loyalty.
A decade ago almost one in two adults were loyal to an individual brand in any given category; today it is one in nine.
Evans said that companies only have themselves to blame because they are not ''offering anything other than price and convenience'' and that consumers are simply moving around brands to find the best price.
The traditional brands said they were as loved as ever. Arnott's said sales in the past year have grown by 30%.
''There's no doubting Australians love Arnott's Tim Tams and the evidence backs it up,'' said Adam Macnamara, the marketing director for chocolate biscuits. -- Source: Sydney Morning Herald