Aldi tops Siegel+Gale’s global brand simplicity ranking

The global brand strategy and design firm’s 2017 study, based on an online survey of more than 14,000 respondents across nine countries, ranks 857 brands on their perceived simplicity.

Aldi, Lidl and Google secured the top three places in the index – this is the fourth year in a row that Aldi has held the top spot. In the UK and Germany, Amazon topped the rankings.

Among the reports findings are that 64% of consumers are willing to pay more for simpler experiences; 61% are more likely to recommend a brand because it’s simple and a stock portfolio of the simplest global brands outperforms the major indexes by 330%.

Howard Belk, co-CEO and chief creative officer, Siegel+Gale, said: “Our seventh Global Brand Simplicity Index demonstrates more powerfully than ever that brands that embrace simplicity are more profitable.

“The research shows that businesses that haven't been providing a simpler customer experience have left an estimated $86 billion on the table. Ignoring that kind of ROI is crazy."

Other brands that moved significantly in the 2017 report compared to the previous year include Yahoo! dropping 37 places; Hilton moves up 50; Dollar Shave Club and Jet.com make it into the top US Disrupters and AXA is the most complex brand for the second year running.

David Srere, co-CEO and chief strategy officer, Siegel+Gale, said: “Disrupter brands possess a common characteristic – they place simplicity at the core of their customer experience. The recent billion-dollar acquisitions of Dollar Shave Club and Jet.com are further proof that simplicity drives brand loyalty and financial gain.”