Oman Establishment for Press, Publications and Advertising (OEPPA) has recently announced the results of its 2016-2017 Top Brands survey. As many as 30 brands — including both Omani and foreign brands — were considered for the current survey, which involved face-to-face interviews with a highly representative cross-section of the public comprising both Omanis and expatriates aged 18 and above, and across governorates of Muscat, Al Batinah, Dakhiliyah, Dhahirah, Sharqiyah and Dhofar.
The survey conducted in collaboration with Oman’s leading research firm, SIMPA Marketing & Research, focused on finding the most popular brands in the Sultanate, from the perspective of end customers.
“The government and the industry in Oman have long recognised the importance of branding and the value of promoting domestic products. Development of a strong Omani brand in the domestic market can also have an immediate impact on economic development and job creation,” said Saif al Mahrouqi, Acting CEO OEPPA, while releasing the survey results.
Promoting the development of domestic industry through a national branding initiative can play a significant role in the economic development of Oman, he said.
“Although we have taken maximum care and sincere efforts to cover all the areas while doing the survey, OEPPA welcomes any constructive criticism and suggestions so that we can do better in the coming years,” he added.
The survey used a structured questionnaire covering individual perceptions, degree of satisfaction, ease of recall, loyalty and trust, attitudes and other parameters related to brands. The sample size was limited to 1,000.
Muscat was given the highest representation with as much as 35 per cent of the respondents based there, followed by Al Batinah (25 per cent).
Dhahirah was the least represented with 2 per cent of the respondents. Females constituted 36 per cent of the participants, and 68 per cent of the participants belonged to the 24-39 age group. Also there was a 34 per cent expatriate participation in the survey.
Samsung emerged as the clear winner, with 40 per cent of the respondents voting for it as the brand that they are most aware of. Apple and Toyota followed with 30 per cent and 25 per cent approvals.
Here are some of the results of the survey:
In the airlines industry, Oman Air conquered the skies and minds, with survey results showing as many as 87.4 per cent of the respondents being knowledgeable about the brand, while Emirates and Qatar Airways recorded scores of 82.7 per cent and 80.8 per cent.
In the banking sector, Bank Muscat turned out to be the most aware bank with a score of 81 per cent. NBO gave a tough fight with 79.7 per cent being aware of the brand, followed by Oman Arab Bank and Bank Dhofar at 79 per cent and 78.8 per cent respectively. HSBC scored 76.9 per cent.
Omantel ranked first in the telecom sector with 89.7 per cent of the survey participants indicating a thorough awareness about the brand, closely followed by Ooredoo (86.2 pc), Renna (73.2 pc) and Friendi Mobile (69.2 pc).
The fuel sector narrated a different story with all the three fuel brands scoring more or less the same points. While Shell took the lead with 83.9 per cent of the respondents being aware of the brand, Oman Oil and Maha respectively registered 83.7 per cent and 83.2 per cent awareness levels.
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