Familiar faces undergo reshuffle

Bankwest has returned to the top of WA Business News’ annual branding survey, replacing Bunnings at the head of the table and pushing the hardware retailer back to second place.

While BankWest and Bunnings dominated the top of the table, as they have for the past two years,  Lotterywest, RAC and HBF completed the top five, which has remained intact for the four years the survey has run.

RAC, in its century celebration year, slipped from third to fourth. HBF dropped a position from fourth to fifth, while Lotterywest gained two places from fifth to third.

BankWest has held top spot in three of the four surveys.

BankWest’s top placing came as no surprise to several branding experts, including David Kemp from national brand strategy firm the Right Group, who said the company had “made a noise, spent money on advertising and had been very successful”.

“They have successfully made inroads into interstate markets with the support of HBOS Australia and they have seen the results on the bottom line as well,” he said.

“BankWest is selling its product but also its brand at the same time.”

Mr Kemp said the branding survey returned similar results to those for 2004 and 2003 because most of the companies were consistent performers, financially and corporately.

“Bunnings and BankWest are all strong financially but they are also well managed,” he said. 

But are the highest-ranking companies there as a result of good branding or big advertising budgets?

Marketforce chairman and chief executive John Driscoll said a big budget did not always translate into good branding.

“There are a number of organisations that have spent a lot of time on branding and what their brand means,” he said.

“Good companies are taking more care in branding and how their brand is reflected in advertising. To be success-ful, branding has to be consistent.”

But 303’s managing director Jim Davies said people would not see a change in the most recognised brands rankings or in the corporate arena because of the major companies’ big budgets alone.

“Until companies and advertising agencies start treating brand separately to advertising and marketing you will never make progress,” he said.

The West Coast Eagles and The West Australian stayed in sixth and seventh positions this year but there was movement among those brands making up the rest of the top 10.

Red Rooster and Chicken Treat remained in the top 10, albeit in different positions, while Rick Hart made its debut this year.

The 2005 list of emerging brands was a combination of the old and the new. In the mix for the third year in a row was Jesters Jaffle Pie Co, back at number one after dropping to second last year from its top position in 2003.

It also ranked 19th in the 2004’s most recognised brands.

Some advertising agencies questioned whether you could still call Jesters (which started five years ago and has now become a franchise Australia-wide) an emerging brand.

But managing director of Core Marketing Yvonne Renshaw, who looks after Jesters’ branding nationally and internationally, said the company was still establishing and spreading itself and therefore could justifiably be considered an emerging brand.

“Just because it has been around for a few years does not mean it’s not an emerging brand,” she said.

“There is no theoretical line which says a brand is emerging or established.

“It has gone from a single shop in Claremont [six or seven years ago] to 60 stores in Australia and 12 or 13 in New Zealand in the last two years.”

Little Creatures Brewing Pty Ltd in Fremantle jumped from 13th last year to number two in this survey, followed by Western Force, Bethany, and the Mead Group.

For his part, Dick Baynham from Baynham Ross said he didn’t believe there were any stand-out new emerging brands this year.

“So few companies are able to give birth to an emerging brand because they require more time in development and that is the nature of the beast.”

A new focus in this year’s branding survey was on the state’s most successful corporate brands – those that have recognition in commercial markets but may or may not be well known to consumers.

Multiplex, Wesfarmers and Woodside led the most successful corporate brands poll, with BGC, Austal Limited, Alinta, Mirvac Fini, Argyle Diamonds, WA Newspapers, Bunnings, Australian Finance Group, Tradelink and Rentsmart, also in the top 10.

The challenge for corporate branding, according to Mr Kemp, is combining a strong business foundation with clear messages and market leadership.

Mr Kemp used Wesfarmers as a good example of corporate branding.

“Financially they are a powerhouse; it is a well-managed business,” he said.

“The Wesfarmers board make sure its subsidiaries are managed along the same guidelines, they have good corporate citizenship and good market leadership.

“And to quote Michael Chaney: ‘People like to do business with good businesses’.”