THE curse of ITV appears to have struck Friends Reunited, according to new research on consumers’ perceptions of leading brands. The website, acquired by ITV for £120m, is one of the sharpest fallers over the past year, according to the Brand Index produced by YouGov, the online pollster.

Brand Index — which measures people’s perceptions of 1,100 consumer brands on a daily basis, rating them for general impression, “buzz”, quality, value, corporate image, customer satisfaction and whether respondents would recommend the brand to a friend — has now been running for a year. Each day 2,000 people take part in the survey.

Now YouGov has produced its list of the top 10 risers and fallers over that period. The star is Innocent, which makes smoothies. At a time of heightened consumer concern over nutrition and health, its index rating has risen by 8 points.

Next is Magners, the Irish cider company. Barely known a year ago, when its product was available only in Scotland and London, it is up 7 points. Aldi, the discount supermarket, is also up 7 points, although from a low position and with overall impressions among consumers still negative.

The two other significant gainers are Marks & Spencer, its corporate turnround being matched by a rise in brand perceptions of 5 points. Green & Black’s, the organic chocolate firm, is also strong, up 4, and has not been hit by its acquisition by Cadbury Schweppes.

The biggest loser is British Gas, easily the worst-performing brand as a result of higher energy prices. Its ranking has plunged 17 points, from an already low -9 to -26.

Cadbury, which suffered a salmonella scare this year, is down from 49 to 37 points. Tesco has also fallen, mainly due to concerns about its expansion, dropping from 43 to 32. Friends Reunited had an 8-point drop and a significant loss of buzz.

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