Emirates chosen as top brand by women in UAE, Apple tops Saudi list

Dubai airline Emirates has emerged as the top brand for women in the UAE for the third time in a row, according to the latest survey by YouGov.

The carrier received the highest positive impression score of 70 among women in the UAE, the survey found.

WhatsApp also retained its second position this year, while Carrefour moved up one place in the list to third, replacing Apple.

The rankings were compiled using the impression score from YouGov’s daily brand tracker, BrandIndex, by asking respondents, “Which of the following brands do you generally have a positive/negative feeling about?” over the past 12 months.

Emirates released a video last year on International Women’s Day called ‘Superwomen flight‘ showcasing an all-female crew operating the flight from UAE to San Francisco, which ‘created a lot of noise and was received positively’, the report said.

Another brand that moved the rankings this year is Samsung, which went to fifth from eighth place last year. Dairy brand Almarai also improved its perception among women moving up one place to ninth. Baskin-Robbins made an entry into the list at sixth position this year, while Facebook exited the rankings.

“The past year has been difficult for technology brands, with each of those present in the top 10 list showing declining scores year-on-year,” the report said.

YouGov also revealed the 10 brands that made the largest improvement to their impression scores over the past 12 months. Coca-Cola topped the list, followed by Netflix, and fast-food brands KFC and McDonald’s.

In Saudi Arabia, the YouGov survey found that Apple beat Almarai to become the top brand for women.

“Amidst the launch of the new iPhones and Apple watch last year, the brand generated a lot of noise and has strengthened its appeal among women. Apple’s smartphone brand, iPhone, has likewise seen great improvement and places in second,” the report said.

Fast food restaurant chain Al Baik has climbed from seventh place last year to third this year.

“Last year was a tough one for dairy brand Almarai. The rise in the price of milk by the brand generated substantial resentment among consumers and they took to social media to boycott the brand. Almarai’s perception among women in Saudi Arabia has declined subsequently, pulling it down from first to fifth place this year,” the report explained.

In Saudi too, technology brands seem to have had a rather difficult year with both WhatsApp and YouTube seeing a decline in their ranks.

In terms of the 10 brands that made the largest improvement over the past 12 months, Saudi payments network mada topped the list, followed by food and beverage brands Maestro Pizza and Coca-Cola.