Interbrand announced the 2017 Best Global Taiwan Brands at an event hosted by the Industrial Development Bureau and Ministry of Economic Affairs, and organized by the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research.
For the fifth consecutive year, Asus—a multinational computer hardware and consumer electronics company—has been named #1 on the Best Global Taiwan Brands list. The brand continues to expand its impact on the business, dominating the the chart with a brand value of USD1,678 $m.
Cathay, leading financial holding company and provider of financial products, joined the list for the first time at #7, showing outstanding performance on its debut.
The brands featured on this list were ranked using Interbrand’s accredited methodology, the same brand valuation system that is used to assess Interbrand’s Best Global Brands.
The gradual relaxation of regulatory policies has enabled brands in the financial industry to make it into the ranking. This year, through its outstanding performance in expanding businesses abroad, Cathay secured a position in the ranking, claiming 7th place. This feat demonstrates the Taiwanese financial brand’s capabilities in the global market.
In the retail realm, the cafe and bakery chain 85? demonstrated strong growth this year by strengthening store services, promoting the transition of retail shops, and enhancing the customer experience in stores. It showed outstanding performances in both brand value and ranking.
This year’s Best Global Taiwan Brands survey featured representatives from a diverse array of industries, including: consumer electronics (Asus, HTC, and Acer), sports and health (Giant, Merida, and Johnson), IT (Advantech, Delta, and MediaTek), financial services (CTBC, Cathay, and Chailease), food and beverages (Want Want, 85?, and Uni-President), and Cosmetics (CHLITINA). Due to recent trends, including market saturation and a slowdown of the development of both PC and smartphones, there has been a visible decrease in the individual brand values of brands in consumer electronics and related accessories. As a result, the overall growth of brand value showed signs of slowdown; however, three Global Taiwanese brands still exhibited double digit growth, including 85? (ranked #8, with brand value growth of 16%), Advantech (ranked #6, with brand value growth of 11%), and Delta (ranked #15, with brand value growth of 11%).
According to Interbrand, which is responsible for conducting the evaluations, despite the late start of Taiwan’s Internet and software development compared to the other countries, the country’s IT industry has already caught up with the wave of hardware and software integration, and is preparing for a future that includes migration to platforms that will enhance their respective brand competitiveness. Among these, Asus announced that it will focus on big data, artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, 3D printing, and Industry 4.0 in order to optimize the consumer experience. It also seeks to join hands with other major enterprises across different sectors to accelerate the expansion of its business. In the process of continual upgrade and innovation in VR technology, HTC Vive has become a leading brand for high-end virtual reality products, as well as applying VR technology to the field of health and medical care. The company seeks to provide more accurate medical products and services through technology developments in the fields of VR/AR, big data, and AI. Furthermore, with the growing demand of the global e-sports market, HTC has set up Vive Studios to strengthen the development of additional virtual reality content and introduce a number of major games.
Interbrand also noted that numerous Taiwanese technology firms are working hard to connect with users and other members of society, using the power of their brands to proactively strengthen the influence of their respective technologies. For example, MediaTek has boosted its overall brand visibility through active interactions with communities over major social networking and media platforms. It also seeks to locate new customers in different product areas to increase the company’s market share. Transcend also focuses on cultivating community groups. Having established Facebook fan pages in 36 nations, it actively maintains amiable interaction with its fans, and has adopted local marketing strategies tailored to different markets.
The decline in global demand for traditional electronic products such as computers and smartphones this year is reflected in an overall drop in sales. Compounded by the ongoing transition of Taiwan’s electronic consumer products and related accessories, it is highly unlikely to see significant sales growth in the near future. As a result, Interbrand discovered that various brands have been experimenting with new business models. Product companies and service providers are attempting to transform themselves into platform solution providers, hoping to leverage the opportunity to reconstruct the industry chain and realize new breakthroughs. For example, Acer announced this year that it is officially launching a new generation platform service, aBeing Cloud. The company’s current Acer abSignage is the only commercialized comprehensive cloud service solution achieving the scope of global deployment within the existing smart signage industry. As for Advantech, the company is proactively working on the deployment of a comprehensive IoT industry structure based on “hardware + software + platform” and the brand vision of “Enabling an Intelligent Planet,” seeking to assist the respective industries in speeding up the pace of smart operations.
Interbrand’s survey also found that a large number of consumer industry brands are working on comprehensive changes to product, services, and experiences. For example, 85? hastened its steps to transform retail stores and enhanceme in-store services to realize the restructuring of the brand, in addition to researching and developing health food products catered to customers around the world with new ingredient-selection mechanisms and formula designs. Taiwanese food manufacturer, Want Want group, introduced “non-fried” health food in an effort to transform ready-to-consume food as well as add value to such products.
Interbrand also pointed out that the growing demand for sports and health-related products has driven sports and fitness brands to boost their brand images and consumer experience by integrating new technology. For example, Johnson, maker and purveyor of fitness equipment, introduced the Passport World Sceneries Interactive Entertainment System, which uses VR techology to allow consumers to experience the thrill of running in different destinations around the world from inside their own homes. In addition, Johnson responded to the rising need among consumers for social interaction by developing the Viewfit Cloud Health Record Manager this year. Beyond monitoring workouts, the service enables friends to compare workout results or conduct competitions, making it very popular among members of fitness and workout communities who thrive on social interaction. Cycling brand Giant unveiled its RideLife system last year, which integrates big data and IoT. The services announced for the first phase includes the digitization of a storefront bicycle pickup service, the RideLife APP, and ARS Bluetooth alarm sensor. Through the comprehensive upgrade of services via mobile digitization, the company supports a new cycling lifestyle that creates stronger connections among customers, bicycles, and stores.
Based on the results obtained by this year’s survey of the Best Global Taiwan Brands, Interbrand reminds the country’s corporate brands that with the continued growth and expansion of Taiwanese brands across the world, the next issue that regional businesses need to resolve is how to transition from the globalization of their industries to the globalization of their brands. Interbrand suggests that brands and businesses figure out ways to clearly convey brand concepts and value propositions, as well as conduct frequent reviews to inspect the adequacy of their brand structures. It’s also important to ensure that products, services, and experiences across different regions are consistent when they arrive in new markets around the world. Finally, a comprehensive brand management mechanism is necessary, one which can track and control brand services around the world. At the same time, the corporations should consider how to take advantage of their brands’ strength to drive continual growth of their businesses, while evolving into true international brands with powerful influence.
The Best Global Taiwan Brands survey focuses on companies whose brands operate in global markets. The survey combines a quantitative corporate financial analysis with a qualitative study of the position and strength of each brand. This survey provides a concrete evaluation of the value of Taiwan’s international brands, helping to identify their respective competitiveness in the global market.
