Top 10 brands that have won Malaysians' hearts

Shopee Malaysia is the best brand in Malaysia for 2022, according to a YouGov study conducted between 28 September 2021 to 27 September 2022. The eCommerce firm had a score of 63.4. Coming in as the second-best brand for 2022 is Milo with a score of 54.9. Rounding off the top five are WhatsApp (52.1), YouTube (50.6), and Google (50.0).

Shopee has experienced its fair share of headwinds this year, having laid off employees as a result of economic challenges. The first job cuts at Shopee came in June when the company axed part of its teams in Mexico, Chile, and Argentina, and cut some roles from ShopeeFood and ShopeePay. It also pulled out from the Spain market and cut jobs in Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

A few months later, news broke that the eCommerce firm rescinded job offers due to adjustments to hiring plans on some tech teams. Shopee's spokesperson told A+M previously that most of the people impacted were based in Singapore and China, and the vast majority of cases do not involve prospective employees relocating. In the months after, the eCommerce firm also cut employees in countries including Singapore and Indonesia. Just last week, Shopee was reportedly laying off more staff from its Singapore office again.

The rankings are based on YouGov BrandIndex’s Index score: a measure of overall brand health calculated by taking the average of Impression, Quality, Value, Satisfaction, Recommend and Reputation. The rankings show the brands with the highest average Index score between 28 September 2021 to 27 September 2022 compared to 28 September 2020 to 27 September 2021. The scores are representative of the general population of adults 18+ (some are online representative).

Brand loyalty is also relatively high in Malaysia, with 64% stating that they end to stick to brands they like. Consumers in neighbouring countries including Australia (72%), Singapore (66%), and Indonesia (66%) also shared similar sentiments. 

Ervin Ha, YouGov's head of commercial, APAC, told A+M that across many APAC markets, the countries where brands have managed to retain their “Best Brand” titles, like Australia, Singapore and Indonesia, is aligned with where brand loyalty is highest. He added that the high level of brand loyalty could be one explanation for why brands have managed to maintain a strong position in these markets.