• by Tanya Gazdik , April 23, 2022

Disney ranked first for the second time since 2019 in MBLM’s Brand Intimacy study, which examines the emotional connection consumers have to brands. 

For the first time, the crypto and gaming industries are included in the study, with Cardano (a public blockchain platform) in 26th place and Bitcoin in 30th. It’s notable that crypto brands outperformed traditional financial services brands, per the study, now in its 12th year.

Three technology brands (Apple, Sony and Android) are featured in the top 10, up from two in 2021. Three media and entertainment brands (Disney, YouTube, and Netflix) are also in the top 10. 

Netflix now ranks eighth, up from 14th place last year. Trader Joe’s (7th) represents the only retail brand, and Sega (9th) is the only game brand among the top 10.

Mercedes-Benz (6th) is the remaining brand in the top 10. 

The enhanced study applies MBLM’s brand Intimacy model with AI to analyze more brands and data, assessing how consumers bond with the brands they use and love.  

Leveraging big data and artificial intelligence “takes the emotional science behind brand performance to the next level,” says Mario Natarelli, managing partner, MBLM. “This new methodology gives us broader and more real-time insights. We are now able to assess more authentic and vivid sentiment from consumers.”  

Media and entertainment brands continue to thrive, likely boosted by the need of providing escape, comfort and instant gratification, he says.

"Disney’s rise to the top displays the resilience of the media and entertainment industry in unprecedented times,” Natarelli says in a release. “The brand has demonstrated its ability to continue to resonate with consumers, and form deep intimate connections and relationships, even in a fragmented media landscape.”   

The Brand Intimacy 2022 Study included more than 600 brands.

The company scores each brand on a "Brand Intimacy Quotient” using artificial intelligence, text analytics, natural language processing, sentiment and measures of intensity, archetypes and stages.

The quotient is a composite measure that combines the intensity, prevalence, and character of the relationship between consumers and brands. The higher the quotient score (from 0 to 100), the more intense the emotional relationship with a brand.