Overcoming the '3 High' Wave... Large Automobile and Bakery Brands Shined

[2022 NBCI] Efforts to Enhance Corporate Brand Competitiveness Bear Fruit Amid Economic Crisis
Competitiveness Index of 243 Brands in 70 Industries Rises Compared to Last Year

Despite the complex crisis of the three highs (high inflation, high interest rates, and high exchange rates) and low growth this year, the competitiveness of domestic companies' brands has been found to have increased compared to last year. In manufacturing, large automobiles had the highest brand competitiveness, while in the service sector, bakeries ranked first.

According to the Korea Productivity Center (Chairman An Wanki) on the 13th, the National Brand Competitiveness Index (NBCI) was surveyed for 243 brands across 70 domestic industries this year. The average score of all surveyed brands was 76.1 points, an increase of 0.5 points (0.7%) from last year's 75.6 points. NBCI is a representative domestic brand competitiveness measurement index announced since 2004, aimed at spreading a management mindset centered on brand value and enhancing national brand value. Now in its 19th year, NBCI accurately captures the current brand value level as perceived by consumers and provides meaningful information to companies and consumers to predict near-future market conditions. The Korea Productivity Center organizes the survey, supported by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

Looking at the NBCI scores by industry this year, excluding newly surveyed industries such as dishwashers, clothing care devices, app cards, and budget phone services, among 66 industries comparable to last year, 32 industries showed an increase in NBCI compared to the previous year. Twenty-five industries recorded the same score as last year, and the number of industries with a decline was nine, fewer than last year's ten. The Korea Productivity Center explained that the increase in NBCI in nearly half of the industries indicates that domestic companies' efforts to enhance brand competitiveness are bearing fruit with consumers.

Specifically, the average NBCI score for 37 manufacturing industries and 118 brands was 76.3 points, up 0.5 points from the previous year. Dishwashers and clothing care devices were included in the manufacturing survey for the first time this year. Large automobiles scored the highest with 80 points, followed by smartphones, compact cars, tablets, and TVs, all scoring 79 points. Laptops, cordless vacuum cleaners, bottled water, dishwashers, and electric rice cookers followed with 78 points.

Among the 35 manufacturing industries comparable to last year, 16 industries saw an increase in NBCI, with bottled water (4.0%), smartphones (3.9%), apartments (2.8%), cigarettes (2.7%), mid-sized automobiles (2.7%), and large automobiles (2.6%) showing significant growth. Twelve industries, including men's dress shoes, ramen, drinking fermented milk, beer, air conditioners, women's cosmetics, and water purifiers, remained stagnant. Washing machines, refrigerators, electric rice cookers, gas boilers, soju, dehumidifiers, and air purifiers declined. Among individual brands, the apartment sector's ‘The Sharp’ (6.0%), ‘e-Pyeonhansesang’ (2.9%), ‘Prugio’ (2.8%), and ‘Lotte Castle’ (2.8%) showed notable increases, while bottled water brands ‘Baeksansu’ (4.1%) and ‘Jeju Samdasoo’ (3.8%) also rose significantly compared to last year.

The overall rise in manufacturing NBCI this year is attributed to balanced increases in key evaluation factors such as brand awareness, image, and relationships. Sectors influencing the overall manufacturing NBCI increase included portable electronics, lifestyle and preferences, automobiles, food and beverages, and fashion and clothing, which showed significant growth in brand awareness.

The average NBCI score for the service sector, covering 33 industries and 125 brands, was 75.9 points this year, up 0.4 points from last year. Bakery brand competitiveness was highest at 79 points, followed by premium outlets at 78 points. Large supermarkets, rental cars, multiplex cinemas, duty-free shops, department stores, mobile communications, online bookstores, electronics specialty stores, high-speed internet, fast food, IPTV, and TV home shopping all scored 77 points. Among the 33 industries, including two new sectors, 16 industries showed an increase, with general hospitals (2.7%) and duty-free shops (2.7%) showing relatively large gains compared to last year. Conversely, 13 industries, including personal parcel delivery, large supermarkets, rental cars, and multiplex cinemas, remained at the same level as last year. Department stores and smart learning sectors saw slight declines.

When dividing the service sector survey targets into five major categories, logistics, finance, lifestyle and culture, and distribution rose compared to last year, while telecommunications showed a downward trend. The rise in NBCI levels in the service sector was driven by increases in brand awareness and relationships, which rose by 0.7% and 0.4%, respectively, while brand image increased by 0.3%.

The Korea Productivity Center stated, "The overall increase in NBCI for both manufacturing and service sectors this year can be analyzed as a result of many industries and brands effectively delivering customer benefits and value." They emphasized, "In the future, companies will need to focus more on efforts to promote their brands, effective communication, and feedback activities with customers amid a fierce management environment flooded with various channels, content, and information."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.