Poll: Apple has impact

A new online poll, conducted by brandchannel.com, shows Apple as having the greatest impact on the lives of global consumers, over any other company and well ahead of chief rival Microsoft. More than 2,000 students and professionals took part in the poll, and a majority recognized Apple as a "most inspiring brand," one they "couldn't live without," according to Reuters.

"Apple has clearly captured the hearts and minds by leading across most categories. Others, such as the USA nation brand, which ranks highly as most in need of a rebrand, requires help according to our readers," says brandchannel editor Jim Thompson.

On the subject of Apple, an anonymous survey respondent is said to have commented that there is "never a dull moment" with the company, and that it is "reinventing itself all along and providing, over and over again, a new perspective on what we thought was carved in stone." Conversely, another participant is said to have described Microsoft has having "gone from innovative and bold to stodgy and follower."

The survey does not however take into account opposition to branding, and Reuters notes that it also ignores the economic value of a brand, a factor which has regularly placed Coca-Cola in the number one position.

by MacNN Staff