Emirates secures the 2nd position in the brand intimacy ranking. 

Despite Apple being a beloved brand among UAE residents, a recent study released on Sunday showed that automobile brands had dominated the list of the top 10 most intimate brands for 2019. 

The Brand Intimacy 2019 Report by MBLM reveals that Emirates has climbed four positions to become the second most intimate brand in the UAE and the only UAE-based brand featured in the top 10. The other brands on the list include Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Microsoft, Nescafe, Lexus, BMW, and YouTube. Meanwhile, while Google, Facebook, and Samsung have a strong presence in the UAE, they still needed to secure a place in the top 10 most intimate brands for 2019.  

The term ‘brand intimacy’ refers to the emotional connection a customer has with a brand, which can lead to higher customer loyalty and willingness to pay more for the product. 

According to the MBLM survey results, Apple’s brand performance decreased from 87.5 in 2017 to 73 in 2019. However, 32% of UAE residents still believe they cannot live without it. Meanwhile, Emirates saw an improvement in its brand performance, rising from 51.1 in 2017 to 70.3 this year, with 21% of its users claiming they cannot live without the airline. 

The survey also found that 9% of Ford users, 8% of Mercedes-Benz users, 11% of Audi users, 11% of Lexus users, 10% of BMW users, 20% of Nescafe users, 24% of YouTube users, and 29% of Microsoft users cannot imagine their lives without these brands. 

According to William Shintani, managing partner at MBLM, the Emirates brand excels by providing exceptional service and quality that surpasses expectations, particularly within its key demographic. The brand’s fulfillment archetype, associated with delivering superior services, is its strongest attribute. Additionally, Emirates outperforms its competitors in every archetype within the travel industry. 

The study revealed that brand intimacy levels in the UAE and Mexico were considerably higher than in the US, with the gap slightly increasing since the previous year. While the percentage of intimate consumers in the UAE remained stable, Mexico saw an increase from 33% to 35%, compared to 21% in the US.  Based on 56,000 brand evaluations across 15 industries, the survey collected responses from 6,200 US, Mexico, and UAE consumers.