Hilton Hotels and Resorts, W Hotels, Hampton Inns, Homewood Suites and Disney Cruise Lines all named to The Harris Poll® 28th annual EquiTrend Study, which reveals the strongest brands based on consumer response.
Measuring brands' health over time, the EquiTrend Brand Equity Index is comprised of three factors – familiarity, quality and purchase consideration – that result in a brand equity rating for each brand. Brands ranking highest in equity receive the Harris Poll EquiTrend® "Brand of the Year" award for their respective categories. This year, more than 97,000 U.S. consumers assessed more than 3,800 brands across nearly 500 categories.
Click here to see the complete list of Harris Poll EquiTrend Brands of the Year.
"Consumers form impressions of brands long before they ever use them, based on their perceptions and what they may know from trusted sources," said Joan Sinopoli, vice president of brand solutions at Nielsen, which owns The Harris Poll. "This high level equity is the gateway to eventual purchase; it also helps to protect brands from the consequences of an occasional misstep. The strength of a company's brand equity can have direct business and financial outcomes."
The Harris Poll EquiTrend Brand Equity Index has been academically vetted1 twice, showing that strong brand equity is associated with strong financial performance, even during a financial downturn, such as experienced in 2007-2010.
The 2016 Harris Poll EquiTrend Brands of the Year: Travel
|
Industry |
Award Category |
Brand |
|
Travel |
Full Service Airline |
Delta Air Lines |
|
Travel |
Value Airline |
Southwest Airlines |
|
Travel |
Economy Hotel |
Microtel Inn & Suites |
|
Travel |
Extended Stay Hotel |
Homewood Suites by Hilton |
|
Travel |
Full Service Hotel |
Hilton Hotels & Resorts |
|
Travel |
Luxury Hotel |
W Hotels and Resorts |
|
Travel |
Mid-Market Hotel |
Hampton Inn & Suites |
|
Travel |
Cruise Line |
Disney Cruise Line |
|
Travel |
Online Travel Service |
Expedia.com |
Methodology
The 2016 Harris Poll EquiTrend Study is based on a sample of 97,120 U.S. consumers ages 15 and over surveyed online, in English, between Dec. 22, 2015 and Feb. 1, 2016. The survey took an average of 30 minutes to complete. The total number of brands rated was 3,837. Each respondent was asked to rate a total of 40 randomly selected brands. Each brand received approximately 1,000 ratings. Data was weighted to be representative of the entire U.S. population of consumers ages 15 and over based on age by sex, education, race/ethnicity, region, income and data from respondents ages 18 and over were also weighted for their propensity to be online. Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Poll surveys. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in our panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
The Brand Equity Index is the keystone to the EquiTrend program, providing an understanding of a brand's overall strength. A brand's Equity is determined by a calculation of familiarity, quality and purchase consideration. Brand of the Year is determined by a simple ranking of brands.
These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.
About The Harris Poll
Over the last five decades, Harris Polls have become media staples. With comprehensive experience and precise technique in public opinion polling, along with a proven track record of uncovering consumers' motivations and behaviors, The Harris Poll has gained strong brand recognition around the world. The Harris Poll offers a diverse portfolio of proprietary client solutions to transform relevant insights into actionable foresight for a wide range of industries including health care, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer packaged goods. Nielsen acquired Harris Interactive, Inc. (which operates The Harris Poll) in 2014.
Harris Poll EquiTrend study results disclosed in this release may not be used for advertising, marketing or promotional purposes without the prior written consent of Harris Poll. All third party trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Use of such trademarks does not constitute or imply any sponsorship or endorsement.
1 The Harris Poll EquiTrend methodology has been validated by academic business experts in the Journal of Marketing Research (1994) and International Journal of Research on Marketing (2012).
2 A mid-sized bank that has a significant presence in a geographical region across multiple states.