Brand love - Why is Lego the most loved brand in the UK?

Image is everything in the world of branding. Quite literally. Yes, it’s great to have a moral compass and all that but even the most benevolent brand in the world would still be a failure if it didn’t take the time to press the flesh. This is particularly true in an age of minuscule attention spans and disposable-by-design entertainment.

In such as world, what kind of brands are going to engender not just desire and respect in their consumers, but actual admiration and even love? Probably the ones that look the best on the surface, at least you’d think. This is probably why six of the top ten “most loved brands” in the UK are beauty and fashion brands.

But why then, is Danish toy block manufacturer Lego currently the most “loved” brand in the country?

Brand love 2022

Talkwalker and Hootsuite, recently released their Brand Love 2022 report, which analyses over 1,500 brands across 20 industries to discover which brands consumers “love” the most. Beneath Lego, L’Oréal and Olay came out on top respectively as the most loved brands amongst UK consumers, while Asics, Illy and Colourbar Cosmetics ranked the highest globally. 

In fact, both in the UK and around the world, beauty and fashion brands score highest on average, making up almost a third of the top 50 loved brands globally, with six featuring in the UK’s top 10. Media, Sports & Entertainment brands outperformed the global top 50 average passion score, but they fell short when it came to trust. 

Conversely, retail and e-commerce brands massively outperformed the average top 50 on trust. Given that 86% of consumers spend more on the brands they love, this brand love is not to be taken lightly.

But what does this tell us about the brands that people love and the brands they merely tolerate? For that, we need to look not only at the results but how they were collected.

It’s all about trust

The Talkwalker methodology that was used to come to these conclusions moves beyond quantitative analysis to incorporate three qualitative scores - The Passion Score, The Customer Satisfaction Score, and The Trust Score. The brands in this year’s top ten supposedly nailed all three. 

The report analysed 2.6 billion conversations from social media, news, blogs, and reviews, to identify the brands consumers really care about. Every single ranking brand focused on environmental, social, or economic sustainability, with the top 50 loved brands seen as leaders in these fields.

Perhaps the thing that stood out in the beauty and fashion sector was the industry’s considered move towards greater sustainability over the last 12 months? The past year saw an increased focus on sustainability, particularly on what impact brands are having on a social, economic, or environmental level. The report found that aligning with customer values, delivering emotional experiences, and acting on their beliefs is now expected of brands. 

From 9 months to 99 years

As brands focused on image, above all else, beauty brands are obviously going to go out of their way to appear not only… well… beautiful but morally superior. But then there are the outliers in the group - Nando’s at number 6, Hasbro at number 10 and, most notably, Lego at number 1. 

While Lacoste, Lush and L’Oréal trade on perfect skin and beautiful people, Lego trade on the unbridled joy, creativity and discovery of childhood. According to Talkwalker, Lego not only excels at cultivating a feeling of nostalgia (just look at the Friends, Simpsons, Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog Lego sets) but performs well in customer service, engages actively with influencers, and shares considerable user-generated content on TV shows and social channels.

In short, Lego has become a brand that not only appeals to kids but adults too. It’s also a brand that treats its employees well and treats its customers even better and one that has managed to cultivate a personality for itself that’s authentic and creative without being exploitative or cynical.

Somebody to love

So what’s the secret to eternal brand love? Look good, appeal to as many people as possible and don’t do anything nefarious? Pretty much. Of course, this is easier said than done but if you are able to cultivate genuine affection for your brand it can be an incredibly powerful thing. Because, while you might cheat on a brand you just “like” you would surely never cheat on a brand you loved… right?

UK: Top 10 most loved brands

1. Lego
2. L’Oréal
3. Olay
4. Land Rover
5. Head & Shoulders
6. Nando’s
7. Oral-B
8. Lacoste
9. LUSH
10. Hasbro

Global: Top 10 most loved brands

1. Asics    
2. Illy
3. Colorbar Cosmetics
4. Nuxe
5. Maisons du Monde
6. Bonduelle
7. Jimmy Choo
8. Kewpie
9. Fjållråven
10. MUJI

Header image by Luke Toddfrey