Companies ride a red wave ahead of election
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Traditionally conservative-leaning brands saw sizable gains in corporate reputation thanks to growing trust from independents and some Democrats, according to new rankings from the annual Axios/Harris Poll 100.
Why it matters: Corporate reputations overall declined to their lowest level since before COVID. But companies such as Hobby Lobby, the Trump Organization and Fox were among the survey's best performers.
The big picture: Americans fatigued by inflation and cultural controversies "are more picky this year and holding companies to account," said John Gerzema, CEO of The Harris Poll.
- "Many independents, and even some Democrats in this year's survey are drifting rightward, which accounts for the boost in reputations of many of the more traditional or conservatively-leaning companies," Gerzema said.
- "There seems to be a move to the center on attitudes towards companies and their role in society," he said. "I feel this could be an important finding because swing voters are going to determine the outcome of the election, and as of yet are hard to pin down."
By the numbers: Nearly two-thirds of the companies in this year's survey saw their total reputation quotients decline. That figure represents how a brand ranks across seven attributes: trust, character, ethics, vision, citizenship, growth and products and services.
- Nearly three-quarters of the 89 companies that were also on last year's list saw a steep decline of half a point or more.
- The average score of the 100 companies measured was 72.8, down from 74.1 in 2023 and 74.2 in 2022.
- Only two companies — Nvidia and 3M — scored an "excellent" rating (greater than 80), the lowest in a decade.
Declines played out across sectors, with 44% of Americans saying their overall opinion of companies fell and only 12% reported improvement.
- Not doing enough to keep prices fair from inflation (26%), poor ethical behavior around pricing, wages and hiring (20%) and too much focus on cultural issues not key to consumers (18%) were the top three reasons for declines.
- Republicans (54%), independents (47%) and older Americans drove that sense of decline more than Democrats (32%) and younger Americans.
Zoom in: Only 15 companies improved more than a half-point in their overall reputation score this year. Of those, several are rooted in conservative-leaning values, including Hobby Lobby, the Trump Organization and Fox.
- Companies that respondents identified as conservative saw some of the biggest reputation score gains this year.
- Businesses perceived to be quintessentially American, such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, also saw a boost in rankings — notably from independents and Democrats.
- On the flip side, Chinese e-commerce giant Shein and TikTok fell in reputation rankings this year.
Between the lines: The data shows more Democrats and independents shifting toward right-leaning companies in terms of trust and shared values.
- The Trump Organization gained 12.4 points in terms of trust among independents.
- Hobby Lobby gained eight points in terms of trust from Democrats. More independents and Democrats this year said Fox Corporation and Hobby Lobby share their values.
Reality check: Not all conservative-leaning companies are riding the red wave. Exxon's reputation ranking fell six points year-over-year. Dollar Tree's fell 2.8 points year-over-year.
Zoom out: The data shows an overwhelming cynicism across respondents from all parties toward progressive corporate messaging.
- Companies perceived as being overly focused on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives (DEI) continued to see significant reputation declines around trust.
- Bud Light parent Anheuser-Busch saw its reputation score plummet six points following last year's right-wing backlash to a marketing campaign featuring transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
- Target's score also declined after a controversy over LGBTQ+ Pride products.
Go deeper: Full results and poll methodology
