brands

The ten most heavily used Web brands in the UK have it pretty good.  Insanely good, as a matter of fact.  A new report from Nielsen Online indicates that these ten brands (which were looked at along with 7,625 others) account for 45 percent of all UK Internet time.

In 2008, Eric Schmidt called the Internet a cesspool and said that brands were the way to sort it out. Popular blogger Michael Gray aka Graywolf says that big brand media sites are "the real cesspool of the Internet."

Digital brand management agency Electric Artists is tracking the most popular brands, celebrities, media outfits, and television networks based on category, handle, latest tweet, and number of followers. They also include short notes about how each is using Twitter. The brand category is host to a pretty diverse group. The top ten based on number of followers consists of: 1. Zappos 2. Whole Foods 3. Jetblue 4. Starbucks 5. NBA 6. MTV 7. Southwest 8. Comcast

This article's going to lead off with two admissions: yes, 2008 ended a while ago, and sure, the majority of Murdok readers don't live in the UK.  A list from Hitwise names the 10 most searched-for brands from that year and in that region, though, and since it's quite new and rather interesting, we're delving into it. 

Some people are bound to find this list a little disappointing; UK companies didn't rank either first or second among the UK's top 500 business brands.  Instead, for better or for worse, Google and Microsoft got those honors.

Even though Google doesn't want to be an advertising agency, the goals they have for their clients mimic what Madison Avenue tries to accomplish each day.

Ok, it’s been a while since I’ve disagreed with CNET’s Elinor Mills–something that rarely happens, as she’s a fantastic journalist–but here goes.

Google’s the best brand!  Well, to be more accurate, it’s the favorite online brand.  And to add still more qualifications, it’s the favorite online brand of about 36 percent of the people who took part in a JupiterResearch study.