Microsoft, Google Head Canada's Top Brands List

According to stereotypes, Aunt Jemima (maple syrup), Bauer (hockey equipment) and Ski-Doo (snowmobiles) ought to round out the top three brands in Canada. But that's not the case. A new poll by Ipsos found that Microsoft and Google actually top the list.

Ipsos, a global market research company that investigates advertising, marketing, and media content trends, regularly polls consumers to learn more about markets, from technology to tattoos. In fact, the company recently found 22 per cent of Canadians and 21 per cent of Americans have "tats".

Facebook, YouTube Join Microsoft, Google in Top Ten

In its most recent Influence Index Study, Ipsos asked 1,000 Canadians to rank one hundred different brands.

From their answers, Ipsos determined how highly they are perceived as Leading Edge, Trustworthy, Relevant, Presence, Corporate Citizenship, and Engagement, and thus how much each brand influences Canadian consumers. (Source: macleans.ca)

Topping the list was Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft, whose operating systems (Windows) and video game consoles (Xbox 360) are just as popular north of the 49th parallel as they are in the United States.

Another major tech firm, Google, ranked second in Canada, while iPhone / iPad / iPod producer Apple came in fourth. Major American websites were also well represented on the list, with social networking platform Facebook ranking seventh, and YouTube placing in the ninth spot.

Retail giant Wal-Mart, with its substantial presence in Canada for since 1994, ranked fifth.

Uniquely Canadian firms like President's Choice (which supplies many Canadian supermarkets with a wide variety of products) and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, or "CBC", which is Canada's major public television and radio network. The brands ranked third and sixth, respectively.

RIM's Absence From List Noteworthy

Steve Levy, President of Ipsos' Toronto division, says he wasn't surprised by the findings.

"It shouldn't come as any surprise that media and technology companies claim six of the top ten spots on our list," Levy said. (Source: ipsos-na.com)

"Both industries play enormous roles in our daily lives, and more and more, these brands are influencing how we gather information, how we connect with one another and how we share our own stories with the world."

The most surprising result of the poll? The total absence of Waterloo, Ontario-based Research in Motion (RIM), makers of the BlackBerry smartphone, which recently underwent a CEO shakeup.