Volkswagen, BlackBerry and American Apparel top list of least engaging brands in America

  • Marketing firm Brand Keys has released their annual list of brands with the least emotional engagement in America
  • Topping the list are Volkswagen, BlackBerry, American Apparel, Così and Aéropostale
  •  Volkswagen was among the six brands new to the list this year
  • The German car manufacturer has been hit with bad press lately, with their buy back of 500,000 vehicles and fines for environmental violations 

By Ashley Collman For Dailymail.com

Published: 08:45 EST, 4 May 2016 | Updated: 10:03 EST, 4 May 2016

The makers of Volkswagen won't be hearing the words 'danke schoen' from their customers anytime soon. 

The German car manufacturer was recently named the most unpopular brand in America by marketing firm Brand Keys. 

Following Volkswagen on the list of brand with the least 'emotional engagement' in America are BlackBerry, American Apparel, Così, Aéropostale, Sears, kobo, Budweiser, Sports Authority and Whole Foods. 

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Bad Brands: Marketing firm Brand Keys has released their annual list of brands with the least 'emotional engagement' in America 

Bad Brands: Marketing firm Brand Keys has released their annual list of brands with the least 'emotional engagement' in America 

Volkswagen was actually among six of these brands that were in the top 10 for the first time, likely because of a series of bad press the car maker has received in the past year. 

Volkswagen is slated to spend billions buying back 500,000 diesel vehicles, and has also been fined for claims the company lied about the pollution its cars were putting out.

Also new on the list was Whole Foods, which was caught price rigging its own brand and Sports Authority, which entered bankruptcy protection last month. 

Clothing companies American Apparel and Aéropostale are also on the list for the first time, having suffered from poor corporate management. 

Fast-casual restaurant Così enters the list among a revolving door of CEOs, and poor sales which have caused the company to close several stores and layoff staff. 

'The fundamental reason these brands were rated so low for consumer engagement is because they were unable to meet the very high – and ever-growing – emotional expectations consumers bring to the marketplace,' Brand Keys President Robert Passikoff wrote in a press release. 

'These are the critical values consumers use to compare brand options when they shop. If you do poorly, consumer displeasure not only shows up on the list but harshly in the real-world marketplace. And shortly thereafter on profit-loss statements,' he added. 

Among some of the brands that managed to escape the list this year were McDonald's, Abercrombie and Fitch, Tylenol and Coty. 

McDonald's likely saved itself by instituting all-day breaking this year, which helped sales climb 5.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2016.

'It’s a real endorsement of what emotional engagement with breakfast, Egg McMuffins and hash browns can accomplish,' Passikoff said. 

The report was based on a survey of 42,792 Americans aged 18 to 65.   

 

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