The challenge for the largest, most established brands like Microsoft is staying relevant and continuously innovating.
Graham Staplehurst, director of thought leadership, Kantar BrandZ
Citing Microsoft’s strong pricing power and its ability to consistently deliver superior cloud, software and hardware products, Traci Smith svp and client partner for North America insights at Kantar, said its leading role in AI adoption and integration within its tools is an important contributor to the strength of its brand value.
And already, Microsoft has turned to advertising to heighten awareness of its AI proposition and the role it can play in people’s lives.
The “Make Your Holidays a Masterpiece” campaign from longtime agency partner McCann features a series of films with transmedia artist Ellie Pritts that aim to show people how they can use AI to amplify their holiday creativity and make their memories feel new.
The battle for brand dominance
Other leaderboards highlight Microsoft’s ascent. It returned to the top three of the world’s most valuable brands after a three-year absence in Kantar’s annual BrandZ list in August, with a valuation of $502 billion. However, it was still behind the more prolific ad campaign producers Apple, with a valuation of $880 billion, and Google with $578 billion.
That ranking was released before Microsoft’s most recent financial results in October, which saw revenue of $56.5 billion (+13%) for the period. The company will announce earnings later this month.
According to another brand valuation ranking, Interbrand’s Best Global Brands report for 2023, Microsoft was the second most valuable brand, growing by 14% to $317.7 billion but lagging significantly behind Apple in first place with a valuation of more than $500 billion.
Similarly, consultancy Brand Finance placed Microsoft in second behind Apple in its annual Brand Value ranking, released this month. Microsoft recorded a value increase of 78% to $340.4 billion, again dwarfed by Apple’s $516.6 billion (+74%) valuation.
