Guess which brand is most positively talked about among Saudi millennials?

Saudi Arabia’s state airline Saudia has emerged as the most favourably discussed brand among Saudi youth, while iPhone is next in line as the second most popular brand among millennials in the country.

This is according to YouGov BrandIndex’s ranking of 10 most positively talked about brands in each of the three countries in the Middle East, namely UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, released on Monday.

BrandIndex considered the opinions of respondents aged between 18 and 34, collected online over the past year, to discover the 10 brands they’ve talked about the most positively with friends and family, whether in person, online or through social media.

Apple was ranked third in Saudi Arabia, ahead of rival brand Samsung that came at 8th position. Banking and travel are also proving to be engaging topics of discussion among Saudi youth, with Alrajhi Bank ranking high as the 4th most positively perceived brand for millennials in Saudi Arabia, while Egypt Air was ranked 5th.

YouGov also looked at brands that have experienced the biggest uplift in positive word of mouth over the last year. Aquafina has seen the biggest uplift in their word of mouth among millennials in Saudi Arabia.

“The dominance of technology brands in the rankings suggests that youth today are constantly engaging with technology and these brands have been able to build a positive image among the digital natives. The appearance of the airline, banking and quick service restaurant brands in the top ten indicates that these brands have rightly used their marketing strategy to charm the youth that has led to positive chatter among the Middle East millennials,” said Scott Booth, Head of YouGov BrandIndex in MENA.