The UKs top brands according to 1824s

R E P O R T 2 0 1 2
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Introduction
Contents
The Youth 100 is something new and unique
for the marketing community. Its the UKs
most loved and liked brands, as decided by
over 1,000 young people who took part in
surveys and focus groups this year.

Perhaps a question to answer up front is
this: why? Why research 18-24-year-olds
favourite brands, create a table and then invite
the analysis of marketing experts, industry
journalists and agency professionals?

The reasons I think are best revealed in the
pages that follow, as sentiment towards the
brands in young peoples lives is explored,
category by category. But that does not
explain what originally inspired The Beans
Group to take on this project and commit to
updating it year after year.

Young people are important. On an
economic level, they are key to numerous
markets, from mobile, fashion and
technology to alcohol, snack foods,
entertainment and more. Imagine the
somewhat maligned British high street
without them and youll picture many more
empty shops. The youth audience spends
money. In the case of students alone, who
account for around half the UK youth
population, they contribute an estimated
20 billion to the UK economy every year.

On a societal level, 18-24s are inuential.
Highly social, open-minded, aspirational
and ambitious, young people are full of
energy and enthusiasm, exploring a life
that surprises them every day.
Do you remember the rst time you
bought a car, gained entry to a
casino or went on your rst date
in a proper restaurant? Life is
full of novelty when youre
18. Young people are taking
the rst hit of adult life and
sharing their experiences
through word-of-mouth
and expression. They
have the capacity to
propel ideas into the
mainstream.
Many of the top-performing names in this
report leverage both these factors, identifying
the passions of youth - music, lm, sports
to name a few - and nding a role for their
brand within them, while understanding the
dynamics of youth spending.

So young people are important
now, but theres also the future to
think about. Students are the next
generation of ABC1 consumers.
Capture their interest and
commitment today and youll
secure a relationship for life.

Some of the value of this
Youth 100 research will
be realised over the
long term. We will
get to monitor the
performance of
these brands,
many of
which have
INTRODUCTION
MEET THE CONTRIBUTORS
YOUTH 100 RESULTS
FAST FOOD
FOOD & SNACKS // FOOD
FOOD & SNACKS // SNACKS
DRINKS (ALCOHOLIC)
DRINKS (NON-ALCOHOLIC)
ENTERTAINMENT
TECHNOLOGY
RETAIL
BANKS & FINANCE
ONLINE SHOPPING
HEALTH & BEAUTY
FASHION
TRAVEL
MEDIA, WEBSITES & APPS
MOBILE PROVIDERS & ISPS
CHARITIES & CAMPAIGNS
12
14
16
18
20
22
24
26
28
30
32
34
36
38
40
42
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06
10
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been relevant to youth for a decade
of more, on an annual basis. We
can judge the impact of their
work and the changing mood
of young people.
Yet many insights are
immediate. Youre closer
to young peoples hearts
if youre a website
brand or app than
if youre a mobile
provider or
ISP (contract
haggling and
tech issues
spoil the
chance
of romance). Those of us outside the
demographic may think Vice magazine
and American Apparel are hip, but most
18-24s have more love for Primark and the
Metro. Sleazy snack brand Pot Noodle, long
considered a nutritional staple for students,
comes nowhere in this research; Innocent and
its healthy smoothies are what students want.

So how did we arrive at this list of 100
brands that young people like most?

The project began in July 2012. We initially
collated a list of around 400 brands that
are relevant to the everyday lives of UK
18-24s, based on those they use, those who
evidently market to them, those discussed
in forums and social media, and those
young people referenced in face-to-face
conversations with around 30 individuals
from the demographic. We then worked
to narrow this down to around 220 brands
that we could practically present to young
people. The shortlisting process was like
any other: it was based on the judgement
and opinion (of those working in youth
marketing) and with the aim of creating a
diverse list that included a mix of best-
selling brands, rising brands and in some
cases brands that would provide an
interesting contrast.

For example, it wasnt feasible to
include every UK supermarket,
but we did include Waitrose
and Lidl for contrast. From
earlier discussions we were
aware that including
every supermarket
would not provide any
noteworthy response.

With a list of 220 brands, all of which you
will nd within the pages of this report, we
then created an online survey to measure
sentiment. This was promoted by email in
August 2012 to The Beans Groups database
of 250,000 current UK students. We received
1034 responses over a four week period.

The survey had to be simple and user-
friendly for the amount of data we were
looking to collect. For each brand shown to
the young person, they could choose their
feeling towards it: Love, Like, No feeling,
Dislike, Hate. It was as simple as that: an
instinctual, gut emotion when presented
with the brand in front of them.

To calculate the top brands, we looked at the
combined scores of Love and Like. Those
with the highest overall scores made it into the
Youth 100.

Once we had all the data, we invited around
25 students from all across the UK into our
ofces. They literally came from all regions,
and we even ew over a young woman
from Northern Ireland. We spoke to them
throughout a day about the results and
we sought to dig deeper into some of the
reasons behind them. Their comments
were given to the expert commentators who
feature throughout this report.

Its worth outlining how the approach
described is diferent to something like
Coolbrands, a popular annual list and probably
the closest in concept to the Youth 100.
Like our research, Coolbrands involves a
council of experts who initially identify the
shortlist brands. But those experts are also
responsible for deciding the nal selection,
with only a 20% weighting of public opinion
added. Its tting that a list of cool brands
should be decided by a small and exclusive
set of opinion-formers from fashion, music
and advertising.

But this is where the Youth 100 is diferent.
Once the shortlist of over 200 brands
was agreed, it was down to young people
themselves to rank them. These results
are weighted 100% by UK 18-24s. And
this is something we at The Beans Group
are passionate about. Too often in youth
marketing the talk is of whats edgy. For a
long time the trends that have inuenced
marketers and the work that has been
celebrated has been the kind that appeals to
those at the margins or involves sub-culture.
What about regular young people? What
about the millions of youngsters who watch
the X-factor, work part-time in Asda, enjoy
nights out at Weatherspoons and Nandos,
shop on the high street and love their mum
and dad? We are interested in them, because
they represent the majority.

A nal word on some of the prominent
names that didnt make the Youth 100. For
some, like Red Bull, the issue was that
they cause strong feeling. There are young
people that love them and those that hate
them, but not many in the middle. Most
brand managers would agree its better
to generate a mixed response than no
response at all. Red Bull do great work and
will not be concerned to miss out in a survey
of this kind. The brands that should be
concerned are those that achieve high no
feeling scores. STA Travel, with 70% neutral
sentiment, should be disappointed. They
could argue they operate in a fairly functional
niche and are less likely to generate strong
emotion; but look at services like National
Rail and National Express who managed to
sneak into the top hundred.
I hope you enjoy reading through these
results and the comments from our diverse
array of expert professionals. They have
brought sector insights to each category and
the report has added value because of it.

Once digested, let me know your thoughts
on Twitter and LinkedIn. I look forward
to coming back to you next year with an
update of these brands fortunes.
Luke Mitchell
Head of Youth Strategy, The Beans Group

t @thebeansgroup
l the-beans-group
6
Mark Stringer
Founder, PrettyGreen
Mark founded PrettyGreen on 4th July 2008
as a way of fullling his entrepreneurial
dream of helping create and own new
brands and after being convinced by one
particular client that it would be fun (whilst
also realising that he wasnt quite ready
to retire). With over 15 years of client and
agency experience, across a broad spectrum
of clients, hes an integrated thinker who
loves bringing brands to life, and currently
works with clients such as Nandos, Red
Bull, All About Food, Cadbury, Electronic
Arts and Under Armour. He also sits on the
Board of C4 Britdoc and is a co-founder
of Metropolitan Spirits, helping create and
launch La Maison Fontaine, an Ultra
Premium Absinthe, which is now the most
awarded Blanche Absinthe in the world.

Craig Butcher
Senior Editor,
MSN Food and MSN Him

MSN UK reaches 19.9 million unique users
per month, two-thirds of all online users
in the UK. Craig has extensive online
experience launching and relaunching
websites including Channel 4 Food
and delicious magazine, along with
communications and PR experience for
print magazine Sainsburys Magazine and
delicious. He is also a freelance food, drink
and travel journalist contributing to titles
including the London Evening Standard,
The Guardian online, The Sunday Times
Travel Magazine, Esquire and GQ.com. Craig
is also a commercial copywriter for brands
including Grants whisky and Haagen-Dazs.

Meet the contributors
Antony Welfare
Retail Expert & Author,
www.retailpotential.com

Antony is a passionate retail expert and
author, with over 20 years experience in
the industry, including 15 years learning
from the large retailers (Marks & Spencer,
Sainsburys, Dixons Retail) and experience
of smaller retailers, including the set-up
of a very successful online retailer and the
development of a TV shopping channel
business. In July 2011 Antony published
the highly-regarded The Retail Handbook:
Helping you achieve your Potential in Retail.



Sean Pillot de Chenecey
Marketing Consultant,
Captain Crikey

With over 15 years experience working for a
range of leading brands on an international
basis, Sean is a marketing consultant who
specialises in trend analysis, consumer
insights and brand/marcoms strategy. His
USP is that in addition to consulting with
companies at board level, he combines
this with street-level research, alongside
interviewing key social/cultural experts.
Frequently quoted in the media in the US,
Asia and Europe; he also gives speeches
around the world to agency and client-side
audiences, and is a visiting lecturer (on
cultural/social trends) at Central St Martins
and the London College of Fashion.


Lucy Dartford
Managing Director,
Lucy Dartford PR

Lucy Dartford is the owner and director of
Lucy Dartford PR, a boutique PR agency that
represents a selection of beauty, fashion,
health and lifestyle brands. Lucy Dartford has
worked in PR for over 8 years specialising
in consumer and lifestyle PR, celebrity
endorsement and media event management.
Lucy has worked at both large and small
public relations agencies . Prior to setting
up Lucy Dartford PR Ltd, she worked as a
consultant for various high-prole brands
and individuals. Lucy wanted to open up
an agency that echoed her same values
and achieved the same high prole PR
campaigns that she is known to achieve. She
now runs a successful agency that continues
to grow in size.


David Price
Editor, iPad & iPhone User


David has been writing and blogging about
the technology industry for a little over a
decade. He is the editor of iPad & iPhone
User magazine and a regular contributor
to macworld.co.uk, but hasnt always
viewed things from the Apple side of the
fence; he was previously managing editor
of PC Advisor and has also worked for
the industry journal CRN. David has also
reported on technology developments for
Channel 5 News and annually presents IDG
Communications Macworld Awards event.

David Kisilevsky
Sub Regional Director,
McCann Erickson

David is a senior marketing professional
with more than 30 years client and agency
experience, building strong brands and
delivering successful business results
across multiple territories. He is currently
employed by McCann WorldGroup (MWG)
as regional director for Central and Eastern
Europe. In this capacity, hes responsible
for all aspects of operational performance
of MWG ofces in CEE. Prior to joining
McCann, David spent 4 years at Burger
King, initially as senior marketing director
Northern Europe and subsequently as vice
president of marketing Europe, Africa and
the Middle East, overseeing a total marketing
and communications spend of 70 million.
David led successful turnaround plans in
the UK and Germany, reversing negative
sales and trafc, improving brand image
and restoring the condence and belief of
franchisees, shareholders and employees.
He spent 19 years at Leo Burnett where
he was responsible for the McDonalds
business, presiding over a period of
sustained growth which saw annual sales
increase from 262 million in 1987 to
1.3 billion at the end of 2005. David
has experience in advertising, design,
marketing, PR, experiential, branding and
digital. Hes worked across diverse business
categories, including food, retail and nancial
services and is an experienced public speaker
having spoken frequently at conferences and
events in the UK and Europe.
8
Richard H Harris
Founder, Ensygnia


Richard H Harris (@TelecomGuru) is a
serial technology entrepreneur, with a
track record of building and transforming
early-stage technology companies. He
has been involved in various high-prole
enterprises, operating at Board-level to assist
companies such as Authenticon, Mobix,
Swivel Secure, Flasma and Clearswift. He
currently holds board positions with the
Young Entrepreneur Society, Authenticon
and Flasma and has invested in a number
of early stage companies such as the award
winning SAVortex. In his spare time, as well
as enjoying playing guitar, glass-blowing,
Ceroc & scuba diving, he mentors Carly
Ward, founder of The Young Entrepreneur
Society, and Nicholas Fearn, a young man
with Aspergers who created gadgetxpert.
co.uk. He is currently 100% focussed on
building his new security technology start-
up: Ensygnia and has recently been granted
a patent for using encrypted QR codes to log
into websites by simply scanning them with
a mobile app.


Chrystyna Chymera
Marketing Manager,
Anthony Nolan

Chrystyna is leading the charitys drive to
reach an increasingly younger audience.
Chrystyna has a background in large-scale
education campaigns including the
Electoral Commissions hugely successful
campaign to help voters understand the 2011
referendum on the voting system. Having
come from a students union background,
Chrystyna is uniquely placed to understand
the ins and outs of campus life and the best
way to get the attention of students.

Katrina Drake
Fashion Blogger, Carousel
Diary

Katrina Drake is 21 and from Leigh-on-Sea
in Essex. She runs the popular fashion,
beauty and lifestyle blog Carousel Diary. In
her day job Katrina works in a role which
incorporates marketing, websites and
social media for a rm of solicitors. She is
dedicated to growing her blog and sharing
reviews, stories and coverage with more
readers. A keen user of Twitter, her handle is
@carouseldiary and shes keen to share her
keen interest in fashion and beauty with like
minded people.

Lee Hayhurst
Head of News,
Travel Weekly Group

Lee has reported on the UK outbound leisure
travel industry for the last seven years and
for the last two years has also been editor of
Travolution, Travel Weeklys publication for
the online sector. Travel Weekly is the leading
publication for the UK travel industry both
online and in print with 40 years heritage
covering the sector. In 2009 the title was
bought from Reed Business Information by
industry entrepreneur Clive Jacobs, founder
of Holiday Autos, and now operates as an
independent business from ofces in central
London.

Oliver Brann
Editor, studentbeans.com



Oliver Brann is a specialist in the creation
of youth focused content, products and
marketing principles. He has been working
online for over 12 years at Lycos, Espotting,
Hotcourses and currently as the Editor of
studentbeans.com. At Hotcourses, Oliver
was the Editor/Product owner of Whatuni.
com leading the transformation of the site
into the UKs leading university comparison
destination, growing trafc by a factor of ten
in a two year period.
As Editor of studentbeans.com, Oliver has
overhauled the sites editorial ofering and
navigated a meteoric rise in trafc numbers
through the channels Easy Money, Student
101 and World Weird Web. Whats more Oliver
promises that studentbeans.coms unique
content mix will continue to produce ever
more useful, original and super viral hits.

Oliver is potty about dogs and skiing and
lives in Victoria Park, London.

Graham Charlton
Editor, Econsultancy


Econsultancy blog attracts more than
250,000 unique users per month. Graham
writes about all aspects of digital marketing,
specializing in mobile marketing,
e-commerce and SEO. He has also written
and contributed to Econsultancys Best
Practice Guides on mobile and e-commerce.
Econsultancy is a global community-based
publisher, focused on best practice digital
marketing and e-commerce, and used by
over 400,000 internet professionals every
month. It has 130,000+ members worldwide
from clients, agencies and suppliers alike
with over 90% member retention rate. You
can connect with Graham on Twitter (@
gcharlton) or LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.
com/graham-charlton)


Rees Hitchcock
Brand & Digital Manager,
Beatwax
Rees has been lucky enough to work with
some fantastic brands such as Disney, Warner
Brothers, Twentieth Century Fox, H&M,
Virgin Media, Sony, Hagen-Dazs and Nissan
on a variety of national and international
campaigns. In the past 18 months hes run
experiential events in New York and Dubai.
Rees has witnessed rst hand the strength
of engaging with consumers through
experiential events through the eyes of an
agency and brand, but it also wasnt too long
ago that he was a student at Bournemouth
University, so hes well placed to judge what
works well with the youth market and what
can fall at on its face.
10
Youth 100 results
The UKs Top Brands According To 1824s
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7 . A T > F
GREGGS 2 10 9 46 33 79
DOMINOS 2 9 11 41 37 78
MILLIES COOKIES 0 2 20 46 32 78
PIZZAEXPRESS 1 8 16 51 24 75
KRISPY KREME 2 8 17 39 34 73
SUBWAY 3 15 14 48 20 68
NANDOS 5 8 23 30 34 64
MCDONALDS 8 21 15 43 13 56
WAGAMAMA 1 9 41 25 24 49
BURGER KING 7 29 16 31 17 48
KFC 11 23 21 33 12 45
GBK 1 8 46 26 19 45
PREZZO 2 5 58 28 7 35
SHAKEAWAY 0 4 65 21 10 31
The results of the survey show that, in spite of clamours for tighter
regulation of the fast food industry to counter the threat of rising obesity
levels, fast food continues to play an important role in young peoples lives.
under-playing one of its greatest assets.
Burger King has more reasons than most
to be disappointed with the ndings of the
survey. After years as an also-ran in the
UK fast food market, the brand appeared
to have done a great job in developing a
credible and compelling challenger brand
positioning. Amidst much gnashing of teeth
from its competitors, Burger King became
the rst fast food brand to voluntarily pull
out of TV advertising targeted at children
and was the rst hamburger chain to
introduce 100 per cent certied Angus
beef.It seemed as if the brand was ready to
mount a serious challenge to McDonalds
and KFC.
However, the last couple of years have seen
a return to an emphasis on short-term
tactical promotion and its no surprise to see
a low level of genuine brand enthusiasm.
A compelling brand proposition is a pre-
requisite for success in any market. For
Burger King, already at a signicant price
disadvantage to its competitors, the absence
of such a clearly dened proposition
could prove terminal.
David Kisilevsky
Sub Regional Director, McCann Erickson
One of the most interesting trends has
been the emergence of Greggs and Subway
as serious challengers to the traditional
domination of the Big 3: McDonalds,
Burger King and KFC. While Greggs is
experimenting with new, more modern
and aspirational store designs - no doubt
with the goal of pulling the brand away
from its traditional image as a purveyor of
cheap gut-ll food - Subway has continued
to leverage its positioning as a lighter and
healthier alternative to traditional fast food.

The Big 3 continue to polarise opinion.
McDonalds has struggled to convert its
superior restaurant footprint and marketing
muscle into positive brand empathy.
For a brand which not that long ago was
described by one national newspaper as
as British as sh and chips, its a little
surprising that McDonalds still generates
a high level of dislike and a relatively low
level of love. Successful international
brands often struggle against the curiously
British phenomenon of resentment of
success. However, McDonalds seemed to be
making inroads here and, while they have
worked hard to change their image as an
ugly American and their UK business has
contributed signicantly to the companys
global turnaround, its clear they still face an
uphill struggle to win the hearts and minds
of the British public.

Neither KFC nor Burger King made it into
the Top 100 brands and both have struggled
to dent McDonalds domination of the UK
fast food market. KFC has attempted to cast
of its junk food associations through menu
diversication and its So Good re-branding.
I may be wrong, but this feels to me like a
strategy driven by research ndings rather
than genuine insight into its customer base.
KFC is essentially an indulgent treat and by
trying to sanitise its menu and broaden the
brands appeal, I fear the company may be
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HATE
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NO FEELING
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LOVE
M
DISLIKE
T
LIKE
F
OVERALL SCORE
OUR RATING SYSTEM EXPLAINED
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I think we all have a stereotypical view as to what students like and dont
like, rooted in a belief and a memory of what our student days were like.
Poor, hungover, and buying value lines to enable us to be able to drink
more down the students union.
7 . A T > F
HEINZ BEANZ 9 10 11 38 32 70
HELLMANNS MAYO 7 13 11 42 27 69
UNCLE BENS RICE 3 9 25 47 16 63
BIRDS EYE FISH FINGERS 3 14 24 40 19 59
COCO POPS 3 13 28 39 17 56
JELLY BELLY 0 7 42 26 25 51
SPECIAL K 3 13 40 30 14 44
due with the addition of mayo Uncle Bens,
interestingly has smashed Tilda out the
park. The ght for microwave pouches,
clearly has Uncle Bens front and center.
Years of advertising hasnt managed to sway
the youth that basmati rice is better than
American long grain, with many students
simply existing on the new microwave meal
of rice pouches.

And theres no surprise that Coco-Pops
romps home as a cereal making the Top
100, its everyones favourite and the guilty
pleasure of adults, it may no longer be just
like a chocolate milkshake only crunchy,
but it still rocks, but interestingly Special K
makes a surprise appearance. Obviously
dropping a dress size is important, and
body-conscious students, guilty of all the
over indulgence, love another Kelloggs
product. Surprised that Tony the Tiger
didnt make it.

However the focus group quotes around
food brands are quite telling: Heinz Beanz
you notice the diference, theyre not
watered down and the beans look better,
and I cant cook, so I think if I buy quality
brands my meals taste better.

Heinz is probably the one food brand on
this list that has actively targeted students,
with clever below-the-line activity to raise
the prole of Heinz Beanz, the others have
used the more classical Housewives with
Kids approach. But given that a lot of these
ads run during day-time, its probably no
surprise that students see a lot and are
heavily inuenced by these messages.
Mark Stringer
Founder, PrettyGreen
But when it comes to brands that students
love, its not necessarily about what goes
in their shopping basket everyday, its
about brands that they desire, not brands
they always buy, and this list is made up of
premium power brands, who have spent
millions and years in NPD, marketing, and
creating in-store experiences: Cadbury,
Heinz, Kelloggs, Hellmanns, Uncle Bens.

What this list doesnt tell us is whether
students see these brands as the
unobtainable desired food and snacks, or as
brands of everyday choice. Theres no own
label, M Label, Sainsburys Everyday or Tesco
Value, which maybe isnt that surprising.

To many we regard these items as relatively
low interest categories, and everyday
items, but for students, named brands are
treats. They could buy 10 Tesco sh ngers
for 0.60p or could buy 12 Birds Eye Fish
Fingers for nearly 2.00 more. They would
prefer, naturally the Omega 3 rich ones
(whatever that is) straight from the
Captains Table.
Its about buying perceived quality, rather
than actual quality for many, but you also
have to remember that most students have
just left home and have spent years eating
named brands, with no regard to price.
Some are still given food parcels, and a
privileged few have online orders arranged
and paid for by their parents.

You could look at this list and say its a
classical student diet of chocolate, crisps,
washed down with beans on toast, a few sh
ngers and a bowl of cereal after a night out.

Students dont like cooking (it leads to
washing up), but these food brands are
all quick x meals, and multi-meal items.
A jar of Hellmanns Mayo can be used for
pasta, sandwiches, baked potatoes etc. And
its the added value treat to go with cheap
quick meals that can be made to taste great
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The snack brands make for interesting reading, brands that make the list
all make it in the top 1/3 of the list, outperforming most other categories.
Demonstrating that theres a real love for snacks amongst this group.
7 . A T > F
CADBURY 1 3 4 37 55 92
DORITOS 1 4 8 43 44 87
PRINGLES 1 5 12 45 37 82
KETTLE CHIPS 0 5 14 38 43 81
HARIBO 1 6 12 39 42 81
MCCOYS 1 7 16 44 32 76
WALKERS 1 6 18 56 19 75
POT NOODLE 16 27 25 24 8 32
GINSTERS 8 27 42 17 6 23
would say Pot Noodle. But no more. It would
appear the shine has gone from this 1970s
classic. It doesnt make the Top 100, and as
many Hate comments as Ginsters, which
is probably not surprising. Students want
cheap snacks, but students are also much
more health conscious, and aware of what
they are putting in their bodies.
Whats great for marketers is that todays
students want named brands, and they
are tomorrows high income earners with
higher disposable income, and will be
higher basket spenders, but with average
student fees topping 9000 per year,
students are cutting back. Only 22% say they
drink more than 11 units per week (not sure
I believe that) and 50% change their diet due
to nancial hardship, so maybe next year
well begin to see a changing list. One that
has more value products, ofering great
products at great prices.
Mark Stringer
Founder, PrettyGreen
Cadbury not only tops the list but is literally
three points away from being the number
one youth brand. Its the biggest chocolate
brand, the nations most loved chocolate
brand, and this report has it as a top three
youth brand.

Some would argue its the ubiquity of being
in every CTN (Confectioner, Tobacconist
and Newsagent) and every supermarket, but
theres no Mars or Nestle. What you could
deduce from this is on the one hand its the
strong product development, bite-size,
blocks, count-lines that has enabled
Cadbury to ofer a treat for everyone,
combined with strong in-store presence.
However marketeers would also say that its
the high-prole marketing that has made
the biggest diference. Notably for two
years, Cadbury has been relatively single-
minded around being the Ofcial Treat
provider for London 2012, outspending and
outperforming its competitors. What often
also gets forgotten is that Cadbury Dairy
Milk also outperforms its competitors when
it comes to taste tests.

Interesting to see Haribo as the highest
performing sweet. Many of us would have
expected to see Maynards Wine Gums,
Nestles Rowntrees Randoms, Natural
Confectionary Company claiming a place,
but Haribos vast product range, pricing,
distribution and advertising looks like its
paid real dividends. But watch out for Jelly
Belly, denitely the cooler kid in the block.
Doritos, Pringles, Walkers and McCoys are
an everyday snack for students, and fairly
consistent clever marketing from these
brands continues to keep them front and
center for most students. More interesting
is Kettle Chips. Not a brand associated with
students, more middle England suburban
dinner parties, but obviously the aspirational
quality speaks volumes.
Which leads us onto Pot Noodle. Ask anyone
what students eat, and whats the brand
of choice in this category and everyone
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Theres evidently been a signicant shift in tastes away from established
or mainstream cider brands such as Strongbow and Magners towards
upstart brands such as Kopparberg, Brothers and Rekorderlig. This despite
ongoing signicant marketing spend by the Strongbow brand, which
appears to have done little to lift its poor ranking. 7 . A T > F
KOPPARBERG 2 9 21 34 34 68
BROTHERS 2 8 40 32 18 50
BUDWEISER 5 20 25 31 19 50
CORONA 4 21 26 34 15 49
REKORDERLIG 3 4 56 17 20 37
DESPERADOS 0 8 55 24 13 37
STELLA 8 18 38 26 10 36
GUINNESS 14 19 34 22 11 33
CARLSBERG 11 30 30 26 3 29
STRONGBOW 13 27 32 20 8 28
COORS 5 19 52 20 4 24
7 . A T > F
JGERMEISTER 4 8 21 39 28 67
MALIBU 9 14 18 37 22 59
SMIRNOFF 6 13 24 39 18 57
BAILEYS 7 17 19 37 20 57
BACARDI 6 13 26 44 11 55
WKD 11 22 15 41 11 52
JACK DANIELS 9 21 24 29 17 46
VK 7 21 38 29 5 34
BOMBAY SAPHIRE 2 14 53 22 9 31
GORDANS GIN 8 22 41 18 11 29
JACOBS CREEK 8 14 51 22 5 27
RED SQUARE 4 13 58 20 5 25
BAREFOOT 2 4 84 8 2 10
this sector. One brand had quite a good ad
campaign, I think it features a band, it seems
cooler than beers, suggesting that brands
associated with music are cooler.
Other spirits brands to do well included
Malibu and Smirnof, with vastly difering
marketing spends. The popularity of gin
brands witnessed in older age groups is
not reected in the Youth 100, with both
Bombay Sapphire and Gordons faring badly.
Rum and vodka are in favour in this age
range, gin and whiskey are not. Ubiquity
can not entirely explain the results, nor can
price points, since cheaper brands such as
WKD and VK performed to middling efect.
Its possible that favoured brands including
Malibu, Smirnof and Baileys divide along
gender lines, being much preferred
by females.
Looking forward, I dont see wine brands
making serious in-roads into this age
range and a continued poor perception of
established beer brands including Stella
Artois, Carlsberg and Guinness (though the
latter will improve in autumn and winter).
The explosive growth of perry and cider
brands including Kopparberg and Rekoderlig
will slow. Mainstream spirits brands
including Malibu and Smirnof will continue
to be liked.
Craig Butcher
Senior Editor, MSN Food and MSN Him
Its also likely that the diverse avour ranges
of Kopparberg, Brothers and Rekorderlig -
ofering diferent fruit avours - gives the
brands wider appeal. Comments from focus
groups included: Kopparberg is a drink girls
can enjoy, Kopparberg provide a better
variety of avours and I love Kopparberg.
These brands, with their more underground
vibe positioning and Scandinavian-
leaning brands benet from being seen as
alternative, spontaneous, urban, pop-up
and chic.
Given the timing of the survey and summer
predilections for ciders and American-style
easy-drinking beers, the strong showing
of Budweiser, Corona and Desperados is
unsurprising. While seasonality does explain
the poor showing of Guinness, it can not
entirely explain the the weak results for
Carlsberg and Coors. Coors sufered from
respondent indiference, perhaps because
of low marketing spend and restricted
availability in bars, while its likely Carlsberg
has sufered from failing to evolve the brand
in recent years. Its possible that those most
prevalent beer brands, particularly those
available on draught in bars and pubs such
as Stella Artois, Carlsberg and Guinness, lost
out to brands more associated with bottled
drinks and at-home consumption.
Spirits and wine brands are dominated
by the out-of-home spirits brands.
Jgermeister performed well owing to
ubiquity with nights out and Jgerbombs.
Its popularity seems entirely out of kilter
with its limited marketing activity, but
benets from being deeply entrenched
with big nights out among this age range.
Comments included: Every time someone
says Jgermeister I just smile, I cant
help it, Jgerbombs are often on ofer
and Jger have a good brand reputation
with their music sponsorship. The theme
of brands being closely-tied with music
events, and beneting thereby, permeates
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The most striking aspect of the results is the dominance of cafeinated
drinks brands. Of the top ve brands, only Innocent reects a range of
drinks without cafeine. Of the top 10, seven are cafeinated, another is an
energy drink. Just two - Innocent and Frijj - would be considered healthy
options, sugar content aside.
7 . A T > F
COSTA 1 6 11 56 26 82
STARBUCKS 5 13 8 43 31 74
COCA COLA 5 8 15 39 33 72
INNOCENT 0 5 28 35 32 67
CAFE NERO 1 6 28 50 15 65
PEPSI 7 16 21 43 13 56
NESCAFE 4 14 27 43 12 55
FRIJJ 2 11 35 28 24 52
RED BULL 10 20 19 32 19 51
LUCOZADE 8 23 21 36 12 48
IRN BRU 6 17 36 25 16 41
LAVAZZA 1 9 68 17 5 22
NOURISHMENT 2 8 69 14 7 21
SNAPPLE 1 7 73 14 5 19
ALIBI 1 6 88 4 1 5
to have had minimal impact on this age
group. A refocusing of the brand ethos and
attempts to personalise the service may
have contributed to positive perceptions. Its
important to note the above-average dislike
scores, ofset by strong likes. One focus
interviewee commented: Starbucks is the
best cofee. Respondents did at least have
an opinion about the brand. Its also possible
that brands such as Starbucks, Costa and
Cafe Nero, all ofering afordable, accessible
social spaces in these chastened times, are
able to ensure perceptions of their brand are
more positive, even more grateful, perhaps.
Costas particularly high likes may well
have resulted from the edgier refurbishment
of cafes that has taken place over the last
two years.
Coca Colas contrary approach, of huge
investment in high-level sponsorship of
the Olympics, for example, along with vast
marketing spend, have ensured a very good
result for the brand in this busy year for
events. Its likely their involvement in these
feel-good events has had a halo efect on
the brand itself.
Its likely that cafe brands will continue
to be successful, provided prices are
kept moderate and their interiors evolve
towards a more independent look and feel.
Established energy drink brands such as
Lucozade and Red Bull may well sufer to
newer brands with more alternative brand
identities and lower price points.
Craig Butcher
Senior Editor, MSN Food and MSN Him
This reects the growing trend towards
tired Britain, reliant on cafeine hits and
energy drinks, often without a strong
correlation with sports activity. Strong brand
associations with adventure activities and
edgier attitudes, for example Monster are
more associated with rock music, seem
more prevalent. While the normalising of
activating energy and cafeinated drinks
into mainstream consumption, regardless of
the time of day, seems to have continued.
Additionally, more established energy drink
brands including Red Bull and Lucozade
seem to be losing ground to new rivals,
including Monster and supermarket own-
labels. Comments included: Supermarkets
have released their own versions, which
are cheaper, Red Bull is drunk by younger
teenagers and energy drinks - there are so
many choices now, you can get bigger cans
for less price.
It appears perceptions may reect the more
sombre, borderline angry, economic times,
with more relaxed brands such as Alibi
and virtuous eco-brands such as Snapple
sufering. Similarly, some respondents
may be trading down to cheaper brands,
one comment stated: Its very rare now to
be served Red Bull in a bar because its so
expensive and they know youd rather pay
for something the same but cheaper. It is
possible that the unusually high number
of Red Bull hates relates to perceptions of
premium expense. Additionally, the rather
tired cartoon advertising may have reached
its use-by date.
The dominance of the big corporate
brands, with Costa, Starbucks and Coca
Cola at the top, is unsurprising. Their ever-
presence on UK high streets ensures wide
recognition, though Starbucks is notable
for not pursuing television advertising.
The brand has sufered some setbacks
over the last three years, but this appears
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The youth market is very much receptive to brands that are able to provide
an experience, but more than ever these experiences need to represent value
for money. 18-24 year-olds have disposable cash to play with, but there are
countless brands and events seeking to have them as paying consumers.
7 . A T > F
ALTON TOWERS 0 5 19 40 36 76
WETHERSPOON 2 6 16 40 36 76
THORPE PARK 0 5 25 33 37 70
CINEWORLD 1 4 27 46 22 68
ODEON 0 7 29 51 13 64
VUE 0 3 45 38 14 52
MINISTRY OF SOUND 5 12 31 40 12 52
GO APE! 0 3 54 28 15 43
WALKABOUT 1 12 48 29 10 39
OCEANA 7 11 48 24 10 34
TENPIN 2 4 66 25 3 28
SCREAM PUBS 1 5 67 13 14 27
LADBROKES 13 22 49 13 3 16
JONGLEURS 1 3 88 6 2 8
Entertainment brands will always have
very good opportunities to engage with
the youth market and despite 18-24s being
very adventurous and open to various types
of marketing, they are also very clued up.
If they do not feel an experience is worth
the money, then they are likely to seek
an alternative. Brands in this category
should always look to keep assessing and
ultimately refreshing their marketing
eforts (this doesnt mean just making an
app!). Communication channels should
be suitably managed, with all touch points
between the brand and the consumer key.
Especially with 18-24s now choosing Twitter
and Facebook as the initial choice of contact
with a brand, they will react according to
the way they are treated and word of mouth
is the strongest marketing tool available to
entertainment brands in relation to
this demographic.
Rees Hitchcock
Brand & Digital Manager, Beatwax
From the list Ladbrokes is the one brand that
sticks out, which you would say goes against
that premise of value for money. In the most
case, bookies are the overall winner and
the high number of negative votes shows
that young people will not forget if they are
stung nancially.

Despite the high rankings Cineworld, Odeon
and Vue were subject to criticism in the
focus group, however as an experience
cinema still resonates highly with the youth
market. A key aspect of this is likely to be
cinemas strong partnership with Orange
through the fantastic Orange Wednesdays
promotion. The ofering this brand
partnership has created will denitely sit
well with 18-24-year-olds by allowing for
an extremely cheap cinema experience and
thus positive brand proling in this report.

Wetherspoons marketing strategy is
very much geared towards its simple but
signicant strength as a brand: the cheap
prices. No matter where you are in the
country you can count on a Wetherspoon
to be amongst the cheapest bars or pubs in
town, however they also manage maintain a
set level of quality of service throughout and
this is reected in the standings.
Alton Towers and Thorpe Park manage to
connect very well with young people by
providing desirable, engaging experiences
despite being considered to be relatively
pricey. They are both able to be creative with
their brand partnerships and destination
events, as they provide a platform to
connect directly with a range of ages. Fright
Nights, Scarefest, Ministry of Sound ride
and club nights specically ofer unique
experiences for consumers which are aimed
solely at the 18-24 demographic. The strong
performance in this study is a clear sign
that their relevant marketing strategies
are working and hopefully they will keep
on evolving and planning strategically to
ensure that strong connotations
are maintained.
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As might be expected from the most valuable corporation in the world,
Apples shadow lies heavily across the technology category. The California
tech giant nished top of the survey with a love rating almost 70 per cent
higher than that of the second-placed brand (Microsoft), and the vast
majority of participant comments in this category concerned the iPhone
maker. Apple is the tech brand that young people are talking about.
7 . A T > F
APPLE 3 8 12 38 39 77
SONY 1 4 19 59 17 76
MICROSOFT 2 10 14 51 23 74
SAMSUNG 1 6 23 50 20 70
SKULLCANDY 5 17 31 34 13 47
DELL 2 16 40 30 12 42
HTC 3 14 43 29 11 40
BEATS BY DRDRE 13 18 30 25 14 39
BLACKBERRY 12 32 27 22 7 29
G-SHOCK 1 10 76 9 4 13
types who spend their computing time on
spreadsheets.

But this strategy has taken a knock recently,
as Apples increasingly muscular use of
patent law against its mobile tech rivals
makes its executives seem less like the hip,
blue-jeans-clad hippies of Steve Jobs day
and more like bullying corporate lawyers.
Apple enjoyed the best of its recent legal
battle with Samsung in California, but its
public image sufered.

Samsung itself did respectably in this
survey, nishing fourth, and certainly has
a stronger brand image among young
consumers than HTC, another of Apples
smartphone rivals. The aggressive strategies
previously mentioned have succeeded in
creating a public persona for Samsung as
an alternative to Apple, whereas HTC and its
lower-key marketing have made less of an
impression. It seems likely that many of its
users would identify themselves as users of
Google Android rather than HTC.

Microsofts strong showing in the survey,
meanwhile, was mildly surprising, since
the brand has historically been thought of
as somewhat middle-aged, as is reected in
the Apple attack ads mentioned previously.
But Microsoft appears to have improved its
image, aided by glossy and youth-oriented
adverts for Windows 7 and its phone
software, and for Internet Explorer 9.

The companys commitment to mobile
technology the next version of Windows is
substantially optimised for tablet computers
is also likely to be helping it to get away
from the desktop accountancy image;
compare the performance of Dell, still seen
as a desktop PC player, which had around
half the love ratings as Microsoft.
David Price
Editor, iPad & iPhone User

dont want to be the same as everyone else,
proclaimed one.

Various rival companies have attempted to
exploit this minority spirit, which is relatively
strong among young consumers, by using
explicitly anti-conformity marketing. In
2006 SanDisk promoted a portable music
player using a campaign called iDont,
which compared iPod owners to sheep.
More recently (and more memorably) rival
smartphone maker Samsung has run a
series of adverts parodying the stereotypical
Apple fans unquestioning adoration of (and
willingness to queue for) the latest model of
iPhone.
These strategies, ironically enough, echo
those pioneered by Apple itself in earlier
eras. The company has consistently
cultivated a youthful, alternative image
by setting itself in opposition to stufer,
commercially dominant rivals. In one
iconic TV commercial Apple went so far as
to compare IBM to Orwells Big Brother; in
later years Microsoft would be the target,
its users parodied as drab middle-manager
Apple was referred to as trusted, ahead
of innovation and just considered to be
the best, and young people described the
companys wares as easy to use, the way
forward and products that everyone wants
to have.

Apple has worked hard to achieve this
perception. It focuses its marketing eforts
into a relatively small number of expensive
adverts in high-prestige environments,
and largely ignores specialist technology
publications, knowing it is a big enough
draw in terms of reader interest that they
will write about it regardless.

But Apple remains an opinion divider of a
company, as was clear from its score for the
middle-of-the-road no feeling answer (just
13 per cent: the lowest in the category), and
the number of participants who went out of
their way to tell us that they do not subscribe
to Apples values. The strongest message
coming from anti-Apple commenters was
a sense of rebellion against the dominant
force on the market. These young people see
Apples disciples as brainwashed acolytes. I
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Young people like and love brands that scream value and innovation.
This is what the results of the Youth 100 Brand survey tell me. The survey is
based on the retailers that they actually use (i.e. the visit and buy products
from them) and that brings up a few nice surprises within the retail world.
7 . A T > F
H&M 1 4 11 49 35 84
IKEA 1 5 22 49 23 72
NEW LOOK 3 11 19 39 28 67
RIVER ISLAND 2 12 20 48 18 66
PRIMARK 7 15 13 36 29 65
OFFICE 0 4 31 49 16 65
MORRISONS 0 10 26 45 19 64
SCHUH 1 7 29 45 18 63
LIDL 1 14 22 44 19 63
WATERSTONES 1 5 32 47 15 62
TK MAXX 3 19 16 50 12 62
PAPERCHASE 0 3 36 37 24 61
TOPMAN 2 15 22 47 14 61
HMV 0 10 32 44 14 58
WAITROSE 1 16 25 41 17 58
ZARA 2 13 28 37 20 57
TOPSHOP 2 12 30 37 19 56
ARGOS 1 11 33 48 7 55
WH SMITH 2 7 37 49 5 54
ACCESSORIZE 5 17 24 35 19 54
MISS SELFRIDGE 4 12 34 34 16 50
URBAN OUTFITTERS 3 12 35 28 22 50
FRENCH CONNECTION 2 19 32 36 11 47
FOOT LOCKER 2 22 38 29 9 38
JD SPORTS 7 31 25 33 4 37
TONI & GUY 4 17 45 29 5 34
AMERICAN APPAREL 4 15 51 23 7 30
SOLE TRADER 2 9 69 17 3 20
Four of the top ve brands are in the fashion
sector - this is as I would expect from a
retail brand survey. All generations spend
a lot of time choosing clothes, and brands
are particularly important in the buying
decision within the youth market.
At the top of the list is H&M. Why? What
H&M does extremely well is ofer good
value clothing, but adds the celebrity
endorsements and great marketing. It uses
celebrities to promote ranges and creates a
buzz and a following in the youth market,
which is clearly acknowledged in this survey.
IKEA is number 2 in the list! A big surprise
for me - I did not expect to see a furniture
store in a survey of 18-24-years-olds.
However, it is no surprise that the brand is
so well loved and liked - who does not like
shopping there and eating the meatballs?
Young people know a good deal, and though
they may only buy the candles now, soon
enough their rst home will be full of IKEA
furniture.
It is interesting the see Morrisons above
Waitrose and Lidl. They have set out to
diferentiate themselves and focus on
freshness and quality. The results imply that
young people are looking for more than price.
Waterstones in such a high position is a
surprise. They have a massive challenge at
the moment, as competition from online
is eating into their markets - the fact that
young people like them so much could be a
sign that young people do want a bookshop
on the high street after all!

We all love a good deal, and young people
want the same, but they also value quality
and diference. This survey reects the need
for quality and diference in the brand.
Antony Welfare
Retail Expert & Author, www.retailpotential.com
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The Youth 100 research makes for interesting reading, with Visa coming in
as Financial League Champions and Virgin Money heading for relegation.
7 . A T > F
VISA 0 1 18 65 16 81
POST OFFICE 0 10 17 62 11 73
THE CO-OPERATIVE 0 10 18 58 14 72
PAYPAL 2 3 32 45 18 63
COMPARETHEMARKET 3 11 35 46 5 51
MONEYSUPERMARKET 3 5 55 29 8 37
HSBC 1 12 51 31 5 36
LLOYDS TSB 3 11 50 29 7 36
NATWEST 2 6 59 23 10 33
VIRGIN MONEY 0 9 75 15 1 16
way to get ahead, unless theyre one of the
privileged minority that can aford to take
on endless unpaid internships - another
harsh choice when employers are looking
for relevant work experience rather than
just a degree.

So when dealing with these young people,
nancial brands are facing a complex
consumer facing a plethora of hard reality
issues, most of which have a distinct
nancial angle to them. Hence a rock solid,
clear, useful and friendly source of advice
that demonstrates an understanding of their
genuine needs being so sought after, in a
sector where clear points of diferentiation
remain elusive. (As several respondents
stated in the report I dont think banks
do anything interesting when it comes to
young people, they are all pretty bland.)

But for all the negative issues that young
people face, its always worth repeating loud
and clear that this generation also possess
some incredibly positive attributes that
are too often forgotten: theyre pragmatic,
open-minded, highly informed and ethically
aware. Hence taking into consideration
those values when making brand adoption
choices i.e. the Co-ops ethical values makes
them stand out. Media discussions afect
things, and were are looking for something
diferent to the big banks.

Elsewhere, on a tactical level, practical
promotional ofers remain a core student
favourite: So many of my friends changed
banks to get the NatWest railcard is a typical
quote, whilst elsewhere, and despite all the
new attitudes and behaviour shown by this
generation, some things remain absolutely
the same, as shown by several quotes which
simply stated that Visa came top because they
give you lots of money and The only thing
Im interested in is the size of the overdraft.

So perhaps JP and his Fresh Meat
housemates arent so unrealistic after all
Sean Pillot de Chenecey
Marketing Consultant, Captain Crikey
The results follow recent coverage of
youth issues at the main political party
conferences, each keen to show they
understand young people and each facing
the same key brand issue of trying to build
and maintain an emotional connection
with youth.

This generation face hard times and are
being forced to make hard choices, at a time
when the very notion of youth and youth
culture is being called into question. Banks
as much as brands in any other sector now
nd the archetypal understandings of
youth and youth tribes are outmoded and
unrepresentative of the real youth of 2012.

Earlier this month, the BBC stated that the
teen rebel may be a dying breed, and asked
where have the sub-cultures gone? In an
era where adolescent identity is dened
more by the use of social media than the use
of illicit drugs; with texting and messaging
and Facebook providing the exclusive amity
once provided by gangs and musical
sub-cultures.

Meanwhile, young people are illustrated in
the media by stereotypes like the farcical
Inbetweeners, a menacing hoody in a
sink-estate or posh-boy JP from Fresh Meat;
whilst youth insight teams fall back into a
default mode of viewing youth through a
static prism of Converse trainers, Xfm and
the V Festival.

But a more realistic picture begins to
emerge when you consider the context in
which young people are growing up. The
harsh reality is that this generation are
facing a situation where cost of education,
non-existent job prospects and a lack of
afordable housing are putting them into
a really harsh Catch-22 situation. One that
leaves many of them absolutely powerless
and lacking clear direction at a highly
catalytic point in their lives.

With job prospects being so tough, this
generation see that being self-starting
and having an adaptable approach is THE
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Online retailers, pure-plays anyway, dont feature very heavily in this list,
which perhaps reects the fact that people are more likely to identify with
products and services rather than retailers themselves.
7 . A T > F
AMAZON 1 2 11 42 44 86
ASOS 1 3 43 32 21 53
IWANTONEOFTHOSE.COM 1 4 57 28 10 38
BOOHOO.COM 1 8 55 26 10 36
FIREBOX.COM 0 2 66 21 11 32
M & M DIRECT 1 6 74 16 3 19
NET A PORTER 2 6 83 8 1 9
None of the seven online retailers featured
here is particularly aggressive in its ofine
marketing activities, though some are
making good use of social media marketing.

For example, ASOS uses social media very
efectively and has built up strong followings
on Facebook and Twitter which should help
the brand reach this younger demographic.
It seems that, while there is some love for
Amazon and ASOS, the survey respondents
are relatively ambivalent about the other ve
online retailers. However, there is no real
sign of any strong dislike of these brands,
so I think the results say more about the
lack of awareness of brands like Firebox
and Boohoo.com among this demographic,
rather than any problem.

Firebox, for example, is a diferent brand with
lots of fun products and great interactivity
within its site. Shoppers frequently leave
their own product videos, and are very active
in rating and reviewing products.
However, Firebox does very little marketing
and hasnt built the kinds of followings that
other brands have on social media, though
both its Facebook and Twitter pages are fun
and engaging.
Graham Charlton
Editor, Econsultancy
What the seven e-commerce websites featured
here have in common is that they all help
support under 24s with their lifestyle, ofering
fashion and fun products at competitive
prices with fast and often free delivery.

Its an interesting mix of brands. Amazon,
Boohoo.com and M&M perhaps appeal to the
more price conscious shopper, though the
same cannot be said of ASOS and Net A Porter,
while Firebox and Iwantoneofthose provide
fun and original gifts and gadgets.

Of the seven online retailers, only Amazon
features in the top ten, and is liked or loved
by a majority of respondents. This reects its
position as the major force in online retail,
and from the comments left; it is a mixture
of range, convenience and reliability which
inspire admiration, rather than having a
cool brand.

Still, it is interesting that a brand like Amazon
can attract such positive sentiment by simply
meeting customer expectations and being
easy to use and reliable. There is a lesson there
for other online retailers.

Another key trend is that ve of these top
seven sites have well-optimised mobile sites,
which helps young people shop for the items
they want from wherever they are, and helps
the brands in question to target such a tech-
savvy demographic.
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A consumers sentiment towards certain health and beauty brands in
my opinion boils down to the golden equation a high quality product
wrapped up with a clear and consistent brand identity and an eye-
catching and unique PR and marketing strategy.
7 . A T > F
BOOTS 0 0 13 62 25 87
DUREX 1 2 37 44 16 60
LUSH 1 7 33 42 17 59
MAC 4 7 30 32 27 59
BODY SHOP 1 5 40 42 12 54
BENEFIT 0 3 54 23 20 43
BARRY M 1 7 50 27 15 42
GILLETTE 1 4 54 37 4 41
REVLON 1 6 52 32 9 41
ORIGINAL SOURCE 1 2 69 21 7 28
MAC does make the mark with high prole,
clever and relevant celebrity endorsement
and brand ambassadors.
Interestingly, Original Source has come out
with the least likes and the highest number
of No feeling. In my opinion, indiference
to a brand is more damning than dislikes as
it shows lack of awareness. This is where the
power of PR comes into play. Used wisely
and efectively, pound for pound, PR is the
most powerful and cost-efective marketing
tool available to make a brand stand out
from the crowd.
Lucy Dartford
Managing Director, Lucy Dartford PR
Boots is seen to come out ahead of all other
health and beauty brands included in this
study with the most likes and loves. Boots
is, in my opinion, is an iconic brand and is
a national treasure born and bred in the UK.
Boots is a trusted brand and easily accessible
with an outlet found on nearly every high
street. Consumers go to Boots to purchase
medicines, health and lifestyle products
so there is a sense of getting looked after
teamed with a sense of we care. Boots could
almost be considered as more of a lifestyle
choice with all a consumers health and
beauty requirements found under one roof.
Boots also place an emphasis on rewarding
their customers with numerous deals and
an advantage card, which can also be a large
factor in why they sit above other brands in
this study. Its also interesting that this is an
umbrella brand that houses various brands
- some of which are included in this
same research.
Although Boots has come out on top, the
brand Durex is not far behind with only
one hate. Thanks to powerful marketing
and PR, teamed with excellent branding,
I believe Durex has become the generic
word for condom - similar to the Hoover-
Vacuum Cleaner description. Durex has
morphed beyond its product functionality
and has a sense of cool surrounding it.
Linking the brand to the likes of boy band
JLS has certainly helped boost this brands
reputation among a younger market. Durex
has also expanded their product line, which
will have a substantial efect on these results.
Another noteworthy result can be taken
from the MAC data. MAC has the highest
level of hates within this study, yet also the
highest number of loves beating Boots,
making this the Marmite brand of the list.
This love/hate split result could be down to
the fact that it is predominately targeted at
women only. MAC provides an accessible
yet higher end form of make up. Perhaps
considered pricey by this younger market,
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It comes as no surprise to me that Converse was voted so highly by this
demographic. As it is promoted so often by celebrities and fashion leaders
alike, those between the ages of 18-24 are instantly going to become
attracted to them. Their prices also aid this popularity as they are fairly
reasonable, especially considering the fact that theyre longer lasting than
many of their counterparts.
the money paid. I think there is also
anxiety about designer labels within this
demographic, something I face myself is the
attempts of others to outdo each other and
impress with their array of labels.
There is the danger of the popularity of an
item ruining its own popularity however; I
think this can be shown with Abercrombie
& Fitch and Jack Wills. They have each
got 17 hates, despite having been quite a
popular brand and one to be seen in. My
feelings are that this is because they have
been over-worn; people do not want to be
seen in something that is so popular with
others. Despite their love of designer brands
they still want to keep their originality. Quite
often the clothing by these companies is
emblazoned with the companys name
also, which puts some people of. Having
spoken to other 18-24s, despite their love of
designer clothing they do not want to shout
about it with the products being covered
in the label.
Overall I think results in this category are
positive. It shows that this demographic
reject a throwaway approach, preferring
products that will last and not quickly
become outdated. The brands that seem
to be the most popular are mostly classic
brands and I am sure they will long remain
favourites with both this demographics
and others.
Katrina Drake
Fashion Blogger, Carousel Diary
The focus group comments support
this stating that Converse is viewed as
mainstream and a worthwhile investment.
They have been a long-standing trend and
so for those with a low income they are a
perfect purchase as they will not go out as
quickly as they have come in.

I am surprised to see a brand such as Chanel
rated so highly within the fashion category.
Although I know this is a very popular
brand, seen as highly luxurious and often
very coveted across the world, it is also
very expensive and not something I would
expect the demographic to be able to readily
purchase. It is, however, often seen as a
wishlist purchase; something those that I
have spoken to will support.
Miss Sixty has long been a popular designer
label with those of this demographic, their
jeans especially are often seen as a highly-
coveted item and their price tag is not that
high compared to other designer brands.
The jeans are well tting and long lasting,
something that is important to those of
this age group because they cannot usually
aford to be replacing a pair of designer jeans
too often.
Lacoste and Ralph Lauren are a popular
choice among the males of this age range,
they are on-trend and as these brands are
readily worn by celebrities within the UK and
US they gain instant popularity. Similarly to
this, Calvin Klein has long been a top choice
for males to purchase their underwear. I
believe that this is because their products are
long lasting and durable; they have also been
on-trend for so long that they will survive
the various trends of each season.
What I think these statistics prove is
that those people of this age are greatly
concerned in purchasing clothes that
will be long lasting, durable and be worth
7 . A T > F
CONVERSE 1 5 11 41 42 83
VANS 1 8 20 43 28 71
LEVIS 0 13 30 41 16 57
CALVIN KLEIN 3 10 39 36 12 48
ADIDAS 7 17 31 33 12 45
DIESEL 2 14 41 32 11 43
CHANEL 4 13 41 27 15 42
NIKE 6 21 32 29 12 41
LACOSTE 5 23 32 32 8 40
TOMMY HILFIGER 4 22 35 29 10 39
SUPERDRY 9 23 32 28 8 36
KURT GEIGER 1 9 54 19 17 36
RALPH LAUREN 7 16 44 25 8 33
HOLLISTER 13 27 32 17 11 28
MISS SIXTY 2 19 55 20 4 24
ABERCROMBIE & FITCH 17 26 35 14 8 22
JACK WILLS 17 23 41 12 7 19
DICKIES 1 10 79 9 1 10
CARHARRT 1 13 80 5 1 6
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From the perspective of the UK outbound travel industry it is overall very
disappointing, and not a little worrying for the industry, that travel brands
fare so poorly in the top 100.
7 . A T > F
NATIONAL RAIL 4 14 18 48 16 64
NATIONAL EXPRESS 2 7 39 45 7 52
EASY JET 1 12 36 40 11 51
MEGABUS 3 7 46 32 12 44
THOMAS COOK 2 11 48 33 6 39
RYANAIR 10 18 33 32 7 39
CAMP AMERICA 1 5 69 20 5 25
STA TRAVEL 1 5 70 18 6 24
AA DRIVING SCHOOL 3 10 68 16 3 19
TREK AMERICA 2 5 75 14 4 18
BUNAC 1 5 84 7 3 10
has sought to create a vibrant online
community. Its Trek America Live social
portal is a hub in which its customers and
potential customers can meet, share, discuss
and have their questions answered before,
during and after their trips. With around 60%
of its customers opting to interact with the
brand, its a prime example of what can
be achieved.
As the web moves to a more personalised
ofering, powered by the possibilities of Big
Data, it points to what travel rms will be
expected to ofer. And this takes us back to
the original disappointment over travels
general performance in this survey.
Holiday rms are fond of saying how they
sell the dream, making it a highly emotive
purchase, not to say a major nancial
commitment. But too often theyve gone down
the price comparison route and so customer
loyalty in the sector is an all-too-scarce
commodity. However, many travel rms,
through use of rich content in all consumer
interactions, are devising all sorts of ways to
woo, and ultimately own, the customer.
Mass market travel possibly has a
fundamental issue in that among young
people today environmental and social
factors arguably mitigate against it. But
if it is to have a future it must nurture
the travellers of tomorrow by exploiting
emerging technologies.
As bandwidths and the processing power of
consumer devices increase exponentially
in coming months and years expect to see
travel brands featuring more and more
highly in this survey.
Dont bet against travel brands joining
the like of YouTube, Google, Wikipedia,
Skype and Amazon in the top 10 brands for
Generation Z.
Lee Hayhurst
Head of News, Travel Weekly Group
The verticals top two National Rail
and National Express represent a more
functional form of travel than the leisure
travel industry that the titles in the Travel
Weekly Group tend to focus on.
And yet the travel industry is one of the
more fun, exciting and digitally aware of all
the retail sectors suggesting it ought to be
on the radars of the demographic.
Indeed, the sheer scale of travel related
transactions and interactions online puts
the sector up there with the very biggest and
yet where is travels Google, Facebook
or Amazon?
Putting the overall performance aside,
the travel category has some interesting
inclusions that do point to what it takes
to become a top brand for todays young
people. The top four are all very much in the
budget travel sector, no doubt reecting the
focus group comment about travel
being expensive.
Its something of a surprise to see Thomas
Cook so high up - the traditional package
holiday operator having struggled in the
online channel amid its well-publicised
nancial woes. No doubt this underlines
the sheer power of a brand people have
traditionally associated with and what a strong
high street presence can still do for you.
But the two rms Id pick out as of particular
interest are STA Travel and Trek America.
Clearly the latter benets from its student
roots, despite the fact it has been putting
greater eforts in recent years into
expanding its market footprint. But just like
Trek America, STA is known for its approach
to social media, and while this hasnt really
translated into as many likes or loves as
you might expect this can only grow.

While STA has exploited the power of social
media in a series of innovative marketing
campaigns, Tui Travel-owned Trek America
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The top ve media brands are noticeable in that theyve all proven
consistently forward-thinking in terms of their digital ofering. The Beans
Groups research identies that students watch as much TV on their
laptops as they do traditional TV.
7 . A T > F
BBC 1 3 7 54 35 89
CHANNEL 4 0 2 19 56 23 79
E4 0 3 18 46 33 79
THE GUARDIAN 1 5 37 47 10 57
METRO 1 6 41 40 12 52
COSMOPOLITAN 2 11 38 32 17 49
DAILY MAIL 18 27 24 28 3 31
GLAMOUR 2 9 59 19 11 30
THE ECONOMIST 2 6 63 25 4 29
THE SUN 26 27 29 14 4 18
VICE 1 8 81 7 3 10
7 . A T > F
YOUTUBE 0 1 4 40 55 95
WIKIPEDIA 0 2 5 37 56 93
GOOGLE 0 1 8 39 52 91
SKYPE 1 3 8 51 37 88
FACEBOOK 3 8 9 39 41 80
SPOTIFY 1 8 20 42 29 71
TWITTER 7 14 26 30 23 53
INSTAGRAM 6 15 27 35 17 52
TUMBLR 3 14 35 29 19 48
RAPIDSHARE 1 5 66 21 7 28
ZYNGA 3 10 76 9 2 11
ROVIO 1 5 84 7 3 10
It follows that companies who lead the way
in providing usable solutions in this area
- the iPlayer and 4OD - are the most valued
and positively perceived. The Guardians
and Metros early adoption of online and
exploitation of its potential, sees them also
reap the rewards of popularity amongst
student users.
The top ve in websites and apps, have
played a part in, and are also markers of,
signicant social and cultural change which
has formed a huge part of students lives.
Whats more, these brands have all achieved
and maintained a position as the dominant
face of their respective areas of change.
The Beans Groups research shows that 95%
of students spend more than ve hours a
week on the internet with 31% spending
more than 20 hours. They spend more
time on the internet than out with friends,
watching TV or reading print. Furthermore,
all these brands provide a free service in the
traditional sense.
The revolutionary impact of Wikipedia,
Facebook, Skype and Google are recognised.
The impact and signicance of YouTube can
sometimes be underestimated. Not, of course,
in terms of volume of content or views but in
terms of considering it as simply a repository,
with utility, of a media that already existed.
YouTube, in actual fact has heralded a new
form of media language - bite size, user
generated, re-appropriated, re-invented,
mashed up, democratised content.
YouTube has morphed video into a
conversation between creators, writers,
producers, audience and those roles have
become uid. YouTube has provided a
framework and platform where the humble
video has been transformed through the
essence of the online revolution and is a natural
number one, not just in the website and apps
category, but for the whole of the Youth 100.

Oliver Brann
Editor, studentbeans.com
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Media
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It is very clear that the younger members of society are becoming more
connected online. Twitter and Facebook enable viral spread of the joy of
receiving a brilliant service or the irritation at being fobbed of with a less
than perfect experience yet again. Even if that viral spread is localised to
small social groups rather than the world at large it is signicant.
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7 . A T > F
SKY 2 12 24 40 22 62
BT 4 12 22 40 22 62
O2 2 7 34 44 13 57
CARPHONE WAREHOUSE 2 13 33 46 6 52
VIRGINMEDIA 5 11 34 40 10 50
ORANGE 3 14 46 30 7 37
VODAFONE 4 19 44 25 8 33
GIFFGAFF 5 6 64 16 9 25
3 8 21 48 16 7 23
T-MOBILE 4 21 55 16 4 20
OVIVO 1 4 89 6 0 6
If someone calls me from a mobile provider
call centre I just tell them exactly what I want
and they go out of their way to match it, but
then you get annoyed if you see another
ofer thats better somewhere else. And:
I always go through the Im leaving you
speech and then in the end you have to go
through to the loyalty team and thats when
you get what you want.
Why make your customers go through
that rigmarole? Its very easy to pre-empt
this! Its interesting to note that with BT,
Carphone Warehouse (Talk Mobile) using
Vodafones network, Gif Gaf (one to watch
on the social media front) using O2 and
Virgin using T-Mobile the diference in how
much people love these brands is clearly
related to their overall brand positioning
and spend as well as how they interact,
communicate, retain and deal with issues
rather than the underlying service.
Brands like BT & Sky obviously leverage
their wider appeal and awareness across
many years and more than just mobile or
broadband. But the winner for me out of
the ISP mobile companies is actually O2, as
with six times as many students loving or
liking them as opposed to hating or disliking
them they are clearly doing something
right! Priority gig tickets for the O2 arena,
best ofers for local services e.g. Dominos
pizza, and investment in apps have certainly
helped. But all ISPs and mobile providers
ranked well down the list in general. Only
Boots was universally loved, with You Tube,
Google, Cancer Research and VISA not far
behind, it would be well worth marketers
looking more closely into the reasons as to
why that is.
Richard H Harris
Founder, Ensygnia
An ISP or mobile provider can easily be
in direct e-communication with their
customer and prospects (or should be)
and they also have a lot of data about what
they do, the question is: can they use it
efectively to enable real-time individual
and permission based marketing?
Traditional demographics are fairly arbitrary
aggregations of customers and prospective
customers such as age groups. With modern
data collection demographics become more
useful when viewed as a combination of
behaviour and the ability to communicate
with the individuals exhibiting that
behaviour; for example all people who value
unlimited data as the most important aspect
of their mobile package. Age demography
is actually a bizarre way to approach wooing
your target customer, especially when you
consider that its efectively segmentation by
manufacturing date.

That said lets have a closer look at the 18-24
year olds in the UK student market.
When you start to analyse what excites or
annoys individuals within a particular age
group, you see that on an individual basis
they have many of the same basic drivers as
other market segments; for example a desire
for good customer service or to get what
you pay for. This study showed that these
drivers are actually what are most important
and some brands fall short of the mark. This
is illustrated by one focus group comment
in particular, which actually I can personally
relate to: Virgin Media customer service is
rubbish. Were paying for 50 Meg but we can
only get 25 Meg. They charge a premium
rate but they cant do anything.
Reliance on traditional marketing and
reactive (rather than proactive) customer
retention can also lead to signicant
irritation and potential churn. This study
revealed comments like: Im not surprised
that networks dont rate highly. People
expect a lot from them these days.
42
What do these gures say about the brands? The brands are doing what
they set out to do the majority of the organisations listed proactively
target student audiences.
7 . A T > F
CANCER RESEARCH UK 0 1 14 43 42 85
NUS 1 5 27 44 23 67
OXFAM 1 4 32 45 18 63
AMNESTYINTERNATIONAL 1 3 50 32 14 46
GREENPEACE 3 6 51 28 12 40
PEOPLE & PLANET 1 2 74 17 6 23
ACTIONAID 0 1 79 17 3 20
VINSPIRED 0 4 84 9 3 12
schools a fantastic feeder system of future
campaigners and fundraisers.
Oxfam deserves a mention too. As well as
general high brand awareness across the
board, Oxfam have worked hard to build
their youth marketing though their festival
presence and Oxjams.
VInspired has done a fantastic job in six
years to gain such recognition among the
audience it is targeting. Again, ofering
young people an opportunity to do
something that doesnt necessarily just
mean handing over cash has been a popular
and logical approach to the audience. Their
language, their brand, their campaigns have
been very focused though they still have a
way to go to really establish themselves.
NUS seems to have evoked some mixed
reactions and students only real connection
with it is with the logo on their discount card
or a couple of high prole protests and not
much else.
Young people love these brands mainly
because they are there; they have a presence
in young peoples lives.
Chrystyna Chymera
Marketing Manager, Anthony Nolan
There is a clear split between organisations
that have general high brand awareness
across a broad age range and demographics
(Cancer Research) and those who work hard
to target young people (Vinspired). As one
young person said about Cancer Research
UK: Im surprised theyve come where they
did because theyre not really something you
associate with students. Their presence is a
reection of their excellent all-round brand
presence in every aspect of life rather than
a specic young person target. Of course,
there is a notable absence of some other
well known charities including NSPCC and
RSPCA and so its a testimony to their broad
appeal that these charities appear on the list.
The notable pattern is the prevalence
of campaigning organisations those
ofering young people a way to engage
with a charity that doesnt necessary
mean giving money. Is there any obvious
correlation with their marketing activity?
Greenpeace and Amnesty have carved
themselves a fantastic niche in the youth
market. Greenpeaces presence at festivals is
notable, their volunteers are young and hip
and their gimmicks appeal to young people.
They are a cool brand who deserve to be on
the list who didnt love the Stormtroopers
stunt and what young person doesnt want
to waste time in Photoshop making spoof
Shell adverts? Greenpeace know what will
get them not only press coverage but even
more important for this audience, what has
viral power.
On campus, going to a debate or a talk
organised by Amnestys local student branch
is a popular thing to do and campaigns and
protests are innovative, vocal and visual.
They have a long-established presence
across many universities with most having
an Amnesty club or society. This peer-led
approach is an extremely powerful tool
both in terms of constant brand presence
but also in providing an army of innovative,
energetic young campaigners. Of course, all
of this is underpinned by their presence in
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