Samsung, Ford ahead of Nokia, Maruti in social media:NM Incite

Samsung mobile and Ford have emerged to be more popular than illustrious rivals like Nokia and Maruti Suzuki, respectively, on social media platforms in India, according to findings of NM Incite, a Nielsen-McKinsey company.

As per a study by NM Incite, Samsung mobile is on top of consumers' mind on various social media, including Facebook, Twitter and other on line sites, ahead of other brands as they discussed about the Android platform.

Interestingly, the Apple Inc's iPhone came at 61st position in the study, which stated: "As per parameters, one key criteria was fans and followers on official social media pages, and it was observed that the iPhone did not have an official page to accurately measure this number."

Ford India is ranked second in the overall list ahead of five other brands--Maruti Suzuki (3rd), Mahindra & Mahindra (6th), Volkswagen India (8th), Hyundai Motor India (11th) and BMW India (19th)--that figured in the top 20 position.

"Automotive's prominent showing is driven by large number of followers on social media platforms, lots of product reviews and consumers sharing photographs and tips related to their experiences," the survey said.

Ford India enjoys very high positive sentiment than other auto brands. Ford enjoys lot of positive response from consumers on social media, especially with reference to the company's after sale services.

The telecom sector overall also registered a strong presence in the list of top 20 brands creating positive buzz with popular names like LG Electronics (7th), Sony Ericsson (10th), Nokia (13th) and HTC (17th), the study said.

Telecom service provider Airtel was at 14th position, followed by Vodafone (15th) and Tata Docomo (16th). Despite that the brand made it to the top 100 list, purely on the basis of conversation in other forums and blogs etc, it added.

The first ever Social Media Brand Equity Ranking (SMBER) index by NM Incite ranked Nike and Flipkart on number fourth and fifth respectively. Sportswear maker Nike ranked fourth on the index on the basis of positive sentiment and cross-platform buzz for its 'Bleed Blue' campaign for the ICC World Cup (2011).

E-commerce platform Flipkart, ranked at number 5, has a high buzz volume on on line social forums, Facebook and Twitter, giving it a distinctive edge over similar sites in India.
Channel V made it to the 9th position on the SMBER, and is the only brand from the media entertainment industry.

In the FMCG segment, only Nestle's Maggi scored 12th position. The SMBER analysis covers the social media buzz from the period of 1st January to 31st December 2011 for 400 brands in India.

"The SMBER index answers some critical questions for a brand, based on engagement with company owned social media platforms, as well as the consumer's conversation on the brand across the platforms," Nielsen Media (India) Managing Director Farshad Family said.

The survey incorporates all the metrics that define a brand's social media presence. Interestingly brands in sectors like banking and financial services, insurance, airlines, and quick-serve restaurants did not make it into the top 20 ranking due to high levels of dissatisfaction with customer service voiced on social media forums.