Consumer insights consultancy, KLA, reveals the Quarterly Buzz results for Q2 2025

The Quarterly Buzz leverages the YouGov BrandIndex tool, a dynamic platform that consistently evaluates public sentiment of over 200 brands in South Africa across eight categories. Through the BrandIndex tool, the top ten performing brands across sectors are highlighted, with the top five brands respectively named within each category.

Employing a comprehensive framework of 16 metrics that span across the marketing funnel, the BrandIndex tools’ Buzz metric takes the spotlight. This metric evaluates consumer perception, gauging whether individuals have encountered positive or negative information about a brand in the preceding two weeks. Operating on a scale of +100 to -100, a net score is derived, offering a view of a brand’s performance relative to its competitors. These scores are accumulated over a 3-month period, forming the basis for the Quarterly Buzz results, with the latest results being measured from 1 April to 30 June 2025.

The top performing brands across all sectors in Q2 of 2025 are:

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The second quarter of 2025 reflects the continued dominance of the Food, Groceries and Consumables sector within the top 10, in line with historical trends. While the overall ranking has remained relatively stable, notable shifts include Woolworths Food climbing two positions to secure the top spot, with KFC and FNB moving up, into third and fourth place respectively. Two brands also made strong comebacks this quarter: Mr Price Home entered at #5, and MTN returned to the top 10 in 10th position. By contrast, takealot.com (Fuel, Auto Parts, and Services sector), Checkers, and Clicks softened in performance, slipping in rank to second, sixth and ninth place.

At the helm, Woolworths Food showed a gradual uplift across nine metrics, strengthening both top visibility and bottom reaction metrics, which fuelled its continued growth. FNB, despite a modest 2.5-point increase in Buzz, recorded significant improvement across ten metrics, particularly in middle-funnel resonance measures, reflecting stronger consumer sentiment in this quarter. Mr Price Home saw sharp gains in Buzz and Attention, indicating positive consumer word of mouth, while MTN recorded significant growth across seven metrics, predominantly in top funnel visibility metrics, Impression and Reputation. These movements, combined with a softening in Buzz for some competitors, explain the rank shifts seen this quarter.

When delving deeper, sector specific results for Q2 of 2025 are as follows:

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Sector specific results for Q2 of 2025 highlight a relatively stable top five within each sector, with a few new entrants across the eight sectors tracked, notably, Mr Price and Nando’s in their respective categories.

In the latest report, specific brand performance reflects dynamic trends in the South African market.

Woolworths Food: Quality, innovation and sustainability drives positive buzz

Woolworths Food continues to generate strong consumer buzz. The retailer’s commitment to quality and innovation was celebrated when its Mascarpone with Fig & Pecan Nuts was crowned Product of the Year at the 2025 South African Dairy Championships – an accolade that reflects Woolworths’ reputation for exceptional, differentiated food offerings.

At the same time, Woolworths is driving positive conversation through its leadership in sustainability. The brand remains the only retailer in South Africa offering exclusively pole-and-line caught canned tuna, while also expanding its responsibly sourced seafood and eco-friendly ranges. Further, supporting small-scale fishers thus empowering coastal communities. These initiatives positions Woolworths in meeting consumer demand underscored by a focus on everyday sustainability offering customers high quality products that are also environmentally conscious.

MTN: Driving innovation and accessibility

MTN is enjoying heightened consumer Buzz, fuelled by a combination of innovation, accessibility, and network leadership. The launch of its new African streaming platform in partnership with Synamedia positioned the brand at the forefront of digital entertainment offering consumers 'a unique opportunity to transform video consumption in Africa with high-quality, accessible and relevant content'. Further, its bold initiative to roll out affordable 4G smartphones has been widely praised for tackling the digital divide and giving millions more South Africans access to faster connectivity. MTN’s phased approach to offering customers 4G smartphones in the country in gearing up to switch off 2G and 3G technologies, offers MTN an opportunity to take proactive steps to connecting as many South Africans as possible.

At the same time, MTN’s ongoing investment in network quality has reinforced its reputation as South Africa’s best-performing mobile provider. With major infrastructure upgrades across provinces such as KwaZulu-Natal, the brand has been recognised as the country’s leading network in independent quality scores, further boosting positive word of mouth. Even in the face of challenges, such as addressing a recent cybersecurity incident, MTN’s transparent communication and swift response helped build trust. These moves highlight MTN’s dual commitment to innovation and inclusion, resonating strongly with both consumers and industry observers.

Advertising

With the importance of omnichannel marketing strategies well established, KLA tracked the most recalled channels across various sectors, conducting a study with a nationally representative sample of South Africans to identify the channels that remain top of mind this quarter.

Source: KLA YourView Consumer Panel, Omnibus, 1 April – 30 June 2025, n=1821

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The latest channel recall rankings show that the top three channels remain consistent across sectors, with Digital, Social Media, and TV continuing to dominate. This underlines the enduring influence of mass-reach digital and broadcast platforms as the most powerful touchpoints for consumer engagement.

Notable shifts within categories reveal how consumer behaviours are evolving. In the food and groceries sector, social media has moved up two positions to claim the top spot, reflecting the growing role of peer influence and online conversations in driving brand recall. By contrast, in the telecommunications sector, TV has overtaken digital, highlighting the continued power of broadcast advertising in categories where trust and visibility remain key.

In banking, the top five channels remain unchanged, but the lower half of the ranking has seen shifts. Word of mouth, newspapers, and phone calls on behalf of a brand have all climbed in importance, with the latter two specifically experiencing significant growth in recall in this quarter. Rewards programmes have slipped to 10th place suggesting the necessity of this channel within this sector – while customers are less inclined to recall this as a prominent channel, it does have a detrimental impact if not available to leverage. This suggests that direct interaction and a human element are increasingly valued alongside traditional media.

The clothing and footwear sector also shows interesting changes. While the top four channels remain stable, billboards and pamphlets now play a greater role in recall, while magazines significantly declines and word of mouth softens resulting in a drop in rank position. As a result of a significant decline in rewards programme recall, Apps have also entered the ranking for the first time, pointing to a more digital-driven engagement in this space.

In home décor, newspapers have risen in importance, climbing from 10th to fifth place, with billboards and word of mouth also featuring more prominently. Meanwhile, in the fuel sector, in-store brand representatives have become significantly more influential, jumping from 10th to sixth place, alongside the addition of pamphlets – highlighting the critical role of the forecourt experience in shaping consumer perception.

The shifts highlight a dynamic and increasingly hybrid media landscape where traditional mass-reach channels remain vital, but consumer-driven and human touchpoints are growing in influence. While digital, social media, and TV dominate across sectors, the rising importance of word of mouth, in-store representatives, and even newspapers shows that consumers value authentic, trusted, and contextually relevant interactions alongside broad advertising exposure.

This evolving mix underscores that brands can no longer rely solely on top-of-funnel awareness through digital and broadcast media. Instead, they need to balance scale with personalised, credible, and on-the-ground experiences that resonate in specific categories. The data shows that peer influence, customer service, and real-world brand presence are becoming just as critical to driving recall and positive sentiment as big-budget media campaigns.

Overall, the findings point to a shifting media landscape where broad-reach digital and broadcast channels remain essential, but authentic, human, and context-driven touchpoints are gaining ground. Trust and meaningful engagement increasingly drive brand recall and positive buzz. For brands, the opportunity lies in striking the right balance between mass visibility and credible, personal connections that resonate within their category.

For more information about the Quarterly Buzz or KLA’s YouGov Offering (BrandIndex and Profiles) visit www.kla.co.za or contact az.oc.alk@neehkar.