)
The 2015 Brand Trust Report, India, comparing the 'trust' held in brands, ranks LG at the top.
The Korean conglomerate was ranked fourth last year but the report notes it had shown a consistent trust legacy (fourth in 2011, third in 2012, 10th in 2013 and again fourth in 2014). Samsung Mobiles, handset division of LG's rival and fellow Korean, Samsung, is the second-most trusted, up no less than 377 ranks over last year.
The other top-10 gainers which have scaled up the trust chart are Bajaj and Dell.
Unlike brand valuations, the report in its fifth edition, attempts to capture the trust vested in brands as recalled by 2,373 respondents of its survey across 16 cities. The report is issued annually by TRA (formerly Trust Research Advisory), a company of the Comniscient Group, a communications entity.
N Chandramouli, chief executive of TRA, reasons that LG's trust scores are "a result of the brand's tireless focus on providing consumer value and trust is the most important connection between a brand and its stakeholders".
Japanese consumer electronics giant Sony has slipped since last year. Tata, the salt to software conglomerate, is the top indigenous brand to feature.
Other notable gainers include Bata (up 134 notches to 11th), Amul (by 67, at 12th), Apple (up by 113, at 13th), Airtel (up 47 notches, at 17th) and Dabur (up by 90, at 19th). Amul leads in the food and beverage category, earlier lorded over by aerated drinks and chocolate brands.
It also has thrown up some surprises, such as Air India being more trusted than private carrier IndiGo. Among internet and online service brands, while Google leads overall, Amazon, which entered later than many other large online services, is ranked second. Amazon, along with Snapdeal, Flipkart and Jabong, have 74 per cent of the total trust pie in online services.
In automobiles, it is Honda Car India, the four-wheeler manufacturer, which has won the top spot, ahead of Maruti Suzuki. Then comes Hero MotoCorp, the two-wheeler maker. The Tata Nano leads the sub-category of hatchback cars, followed by the Hyundai Santro. The Maruti Suzuki Swift is fourth, after Tata's Indica. In SUVs/MUVs, Mahindra's Scorpio is yards ahead (with a 65 per cent gap), followed by Toyota Innova, popular with corporate buyers and fleet owners. Renault's Duster is the third-most trusted vehicle in the segment.
The big five in banking - State Bank of India (18 per cent), ICICI Bank (15 per cent), HDFC Bank (14 per cent), IDBI Bank (13 per cent) and Axis Bank (10 per cent) - have 70 per cent of the entire trust placed in banks.
Size did not matter when it came to vesting trust in brands, as the diversified category of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) shows. Emami is the most trusted, though smallest among the top four in revenue. It is followed by Nirma. Hindustan Unilever, largest FMCG entity and advertiser in the country, is third. Procter & Gamble is a distant fourth, followed by Marico.
