Reputation and brand management are extremely important to companies. Managing a corporation’s reputation is an increasingly fraught task in today’s divisive political and business climates. A company’s values and mission play a large role in its reputation among consumers.
A recently released Harris Poll report analyzes the “Reputation of America’s 100 Most Visible Companies.” The poll measures a company’s reputation based on the perception of 23,000 Americans. Six categories are used: Social Responsibility, Emotional Appeal, Product and Service, Vision and Leadership, Financial Performance, and Workplace Environment. The Reputation Quotient (RQ) for this year has 17 of the 100 most visible companies earning an “excellent reputation” and 34 companies received “very good.”
The top 10 highest-ranking companies are:
- Amazon
- Wegmans
- Publix
- Johnson & Johnson
- Apple
- UPS
- Walt Disney
- Tesla
- 3M Company
According to the study, the biggest risks are intentional wrongdoing or illegal actions, lying or misinterpreting the facts about a product, and intentional misuse of financial information for financial gain.
Big losers this year included a significant drop for Wells Fargo by 20 points, and the lowest ranking company is air bag manufacturer Takata.
What companies do you admire (or not)?
Group Activities and Discussion Questions:
- Discuss the importance of corporate reputation in marketing and branding.
- Poll students: Which companies do they thing would be ranked as high, and which as low?
- View and discuss the Harris Poll report: http://www.theharrispoll.com/reputation-quotient/
- Divide students into team. Have each team select a low ranked company and devise a program to help improve their reputation.
- Or, have students analyze why the top companies were ranked at those levels.
Source: Harris Poll
