You can understand a lot about corporations by studying their vision and the purpose of their existence. Their product portfolio, annual revenue and brand equity also disclose much about the brand. Among all the factors, brand equity is the most important. It determines the brand’s total value and market worth. It defines its standing among the consumers as an asset. Interbrand is a marketing consultancy specializing in brands and brand management. By using its data of the yearly change in top brands’ equity from 2001 to 2019, we can observer some interesting insights. In 2001, the Coca Cola Company had the highest brand equity with $68,945 million. It was followed by Microsoft, $65,068 million, and IBM, $52,752, million. Both are technology companies. The other seven companies in the top ten list were General Electric (GE) (conglomerate), Nokia (telecommunications, IT, and consumer electronics), Intel (technology), Disney (conglomerate), Ford (automaker), McDonald’s (fast food) and AT&T (conglomerate). During the next 18 years, a pattern was seen among companies from various sectors. Until 2012, Coca Cola was leading the top 10 companies with the most brand equity. In 2011, Apple Inc. was at the eighth spot with equity of $33,492 million. By 2013, it gained the top spot with equity of $98,316 million, sending Coca Cola in the third place ($79,213 million). Google, which entered the top 15 list in 2008, became the company with the second-highest brand equity in 2013 ($93,291 million). Out of the top ten companies from 2001, only four managed to retain a spot in this list by 2019. They were Microsoft ($108.8 million: 4th spot), Coca Cola ($63.4 million: 5th spot), McDonald’s ($44.53 million: 9th spot) and Disney ($44.3 million: 10th spot). The companies with the highest brand equity are the ones that fulfil consumers’ specific needs. These include the need to communicate and use tools to facilitate communication The six companies that were added to this list in 2019 were Apple Inc. ($234.2 million: Technology: 1st spot), Google ($167.7 million: Technology: 2nd spot) Amazon ($125 million: Technology: 3rd spot), Samsung ($61 million: Telecommunications: 6th spot), Toyota ($56.2 million: Automotive manufacturer: 7th spot) and Mercedes ($50.8 million: Automobile manufacturer: 8th spot). Interestingly, GE and AT&T that were renowned brands of their time and were part of the top ten brands with the most equity during the 2000s could not sustain their legacy and are listed in the top 20 brands. They both are conglomerates. GE has been working in the sectors including aviation, healthcare, power, renewable energy, digital industry, venture capital and finance and lighting. AT&T, on the other hand, has been offering products related to satellite television, cellular and fixed-line telephones, Internet services, television production, publishing among others. Although Disney is also a conglomerate, it retains a spot in the top ten brands with the highest equity. Disney is also a conglomerate that focuses on mass media and entertainment. A pattern is seen by looking at the operations of GE, AT&T and Disney. While GE and AT&T pursued to operate in several domains, Disney followed a focused brand positioning which it has been following since its inception in 1923. According to thewaltdisneycompany.com, “The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to entertain, inform and inspire people around the globe through the power of unparalleled storytelling, reflecting the iconic brands, creative minds and innovative technologies that make ours the world’s premier entertainment company.” Disney found a niche and concentrated its efforts on delivering products and services based on this niche. It remained connected to their corporate goal. GE and AT&T perhaps added too many niches and diluted their brand positioning. We also see another pattern when observing the top five brands having the highest brand equity. Until 2011, three out of the top five brands were technology companies. From 2014 to 2019, the top four companies have been technology companies. They are Apple, Google, Amazon and Microsoft. While Microsoft has been part of the list since 2000, Google, Apple and Amazon entered the list in 2008, 2011 and 2014 respectively. Apple, Google, Amazon and Microsoft did bring disruptive innovation in their respective fields and evolved exponentially. They have been carefully gauging consumer behavior and marketing factors to adjust their operational, product and marketing strategies. This list for 2019 also reveals another pattern. The companies with the highest brand equity are the ones that fulfil consumers’ specific needs. These include the need to communicate and use tools to facilitate communication (Apple, Google, Microsoft, Samsung). Moreover, consumers need a market place to buy and sell goods (Amazon), they need to quench their hunger and thirst (McDonald’s and Coca Cola); individuals need to commute while companies need to ship cargo (Toyota and Mercedes) and children need entertainment and families require recreation (The Walt Disney Company). As the world has become connected digitally, the top four companies in this list may as well retain their spot for years to come. The writer is an independent researcher, author and columnist