The favorite Mexican restaurant of the United States is Taco Bell – what does it mean? | Business

It's not as easy to be a brand as before. In the age of social media, extremely partisan consumers are ready to republish each news in a salvo of endless cultural warfare. One day when you are at the top of the world, the next CEO of your pizza chain is forced to resign for using the word N in a media training exercise. That's before we get to all the dangers of social media, where a wandering tweet can create a media maelstrom, or unleash a boycott on the left, as we've seen with Chick-fil-A or at right, as we have seen with Keurig, Nike and the NFL, to name just a fraction.

Some brands keep things slowly and regularly. This is where Harris Poll's annual EquiTrend study comes in. Now in its 30th year, the survey attempts to measure the health of the brand over time in various consumer areas. To do this, they judge on three criteria: familiarity, quality and consideration of purchase. This year, they say, 77,000 US consumers have ranked 3,000 brands to crown a winner in each category. The results range from predictable to surprising, through strange results.

Many of the food categories are on the map. The favorite coffee goes to Krispy Kreme, who apparently serves coffee, while the country's favorite Mexican goes to Taco Bell, which apparently serves Mexican food. The California pizza chain Blaze Pizza is an innovative but not necessarily controversial choice, while Five Guys Burgers & Fries is also a respectable result. In a rare case, Panera and Subway share the first sandwich shop, although the poll was probably conducted before Subway announced the end of their 5-foot-long promotion. Brand loyalty, as the interviewees will tell you, may be fickle.

Being the biggest player in a particular field is no longer necessarily foolproof in terms of consumer satisfaction or loyalty, says John Gerzema, CEO of Harris Poll, in a statement. Consumers are more likely to align with smaller quality brands this year. There is a reason why you see the word "craft" now after all.

"The EQ study reveals that the size of the brand is no longer guaranteed by the size or the impressions of the media," said Gerzema. "It's actually a time to be" big "is the school code. As home brands and the popularity of craft products grow, brands are now differentiated by their values, their personal connection and their ability to create a community.

And not to be openly racist, it goes without saying.

The trend towards smaller names does not hold in all categories. Some of the largest companies of course retain their place of primacy. Honda tops the list of complete auto brands, while Home Depot receives top honors for hardware and home store. Verizon Wireless is the preferred wireless service provider and Visa is the most reliable way to pay for all these things.

Entertainment options are also familiar, with HBO becoming the best Pay TV network, ESPN the best for the sport and PBS the preferred network. But, and that's where things get a little weird, The Weather Channel is the main television news channel. Given the climate craze lately, a trend that seems unlikely to dissipate, perhaps it makes more sense than it appears at first glance.

The only thing more volatile than the climate itself could be the political wind when it comes to the brands' position in the cultural conversation. But if poll results are clues, online events may not be as influential as they seem. The most successful coffee maker of the year was Keurig. The best chicken restaurant? You have probably already guessed that it was Chick-fil-A.