Quarterly Buzz Report Highlights Changing Consumer Perceptions Across Leading South African Brands

The Quarterly Buzz, powered by YouGov’s BrandIndex platform, continuously tracks public sentiment across more than 200 brands in South Africa. The tool measures 16 different metrics spanning the entire marketing funnel, with the standout “Buzz” metric capturing whether consumers have encountered positive or negative brand information in the past two weeks. Scored from +100 to -100, these rankings offer a real-time pulse check on brand performance relative to competitors.

The big movers

Takealot’s return to pole position marks the second consecutive quarter of improvement for the brand, and a recovery to where it stood at the same time a year ago. Having held the top spot in Q1 2025, the brand slipped over the following two quarters before beginning its rebuild, moving from third to second in Q4 2025, and now reclaiming first place in Q1 2026.

The Food, Groceries and Consumables sector continues to dominate the top 10, with four brands featuring in Q1 2026. Woolworths Food holds its fourth place ranking with consistency, while Shoprite maintains sixth place and has recorded a significant improvement in its reputation metrics compared to the previous quarter. Woolworths Clothing has moved up one position to seventh.

KFC is one of the quarter’s standout performers, moving up three ranks from fifth to second place.

FNB’s climb of six rank positions to third place is the largest single-quarter improvement amongst all top 10 brands this quarter. The bank is the only brand from the banking sector to feature in the top 10.

MTN entered the top 10 at tenth place in the previous quarter and has maintained its upward trajectory, gaining five ranks to reach fifth place.

Engen makes a return to the top 10 for the first time since 2024, claiming tenth place. The brand’s re-entry is supported by consistently stronger metric performance, with a notable shift in its current customer metric – up from 38% to 42% in the last quarter.

Both Checkers and Pick n Pay have given ground this quarter. Checkers, which held the number one position just a quarter ago, has dropped eight places to ninth. Pick n Pay has moved down five positions to eighth – both brands retain their top 10 standing in a highly competitive field.

In the broader sector rankings, Momentum has shown upward movement in Financial Services (Insurance), while Mr Price Home, Makro and Pep Home have each softened in General Retail.

Channel spotlight

Digital, TV and Social Media continue to anchor the top three channels across most sectors, but there are clear movements beneath the top three. The defining theme of Q1 2026 is the reconfiguration of mid-tier channels, particularly around in-store and brand representative touchpoints, word of mouth, and rewards programmes. In-store touchpoints are gaining traction in experience-led categories, while word of mouth is showing a more mixed picture across sectors. The data continues to reflect strong omnichannel behaviour, with different sectors leaning into different supporting channels beneath the top three.

Source: KLA YourView Consumer Panel, Omnibus, 1 January – 31 March 2026, n=1,706

Banking: Channel hierarchy remains entirely unchanged quarter on quarter. Stable, trusted, broad-reach formats continue to deliver consistent recall with little disruption, reinforcing the importance of these established touchpoints in a credibility-driven category.

Insurance: Digital has risen to become the most recalled channel this quarter. The sector is largely stable overall, with minor lower-tier reshuffling and phone calls from the brand gaining two places. The general picture is continued reliance on a consistent mix of broadcast and direct engagement channels.

Quick Service Restaurants: In-store and brand representatives have entered the top five, indicating a growing role for in-person and experience-led touchpoints alongside strong digital dominance. Word of mouth has dropped to seventh but remains in the mid-tier.

Clothing and Footwear: In-store and brand representatives continue to show strength, maintaining fourth place. Radio improves slightly within the mid-tier while billboards drop into the lower tier, suggesting increasing importance of assisted, in-store influence in the path to purchase.

Food and Groceries: Digital overtakes Social Media to become the second ranked channel. Rewards programmes have softened from fourth to seventh, reinforcing the importance of broadcast and physical touchpoints in everyday shopping behaviour.

Home: In-store and brand representatives have moved into the top three – a clear upward shift from Q4 2025 – while Social Media has dropped out of the top three channels. This highlights a shift toward guided, in-person and influence-driven decision-making in this category.

Telecommunications: The top three remains unchanged. Word of mouth and pamphlets have improved in the mid-tier while billboards have softened, suggesting a broader mix of environmental and informational channels supporting recall.

Fuel: The category remains broadly stable. Word of mouth softens slightly while radio strengthens within the mid-tier. Rewards programmes remain prominent, indicating a continued reliance on habitual, passive and loyalty-driven channels.

Three key takeaways for marketers

1. Embrace omnichannel strategy – the data confirms that South African consumers engage with brands across multiple touchpoints. Different categories are leaning towards different supporting channels beneath digital, TV and social media. The winners are those who understand how to orchestrate them.
2. Invest in in-store and experiential touchpoints, as in-store and brand representative channels are climbing the rankings in QSR, Clothing and Home. For brands operating in experience-led categories, physical presence and the quality of in-person interaction are increasingly influencing how consumers recall and engage with brands.
3. Loyalty mechanics are context-dependent. Rewards programmes remain prominent in the Fuel sector but have softened in Food and Groceries. The lesson is not that loyalty doesn’t work, it’s that its salience varies by category and consumer mindset. Brands need to calibrate their loyalty investment to where it actually moves the needle.

Q1 2026’s results confirm that the marketing landscape continues to evolve, and that no brand’s position is guaranteed. The brands rising in the Buzz rankings this quarter – whether through broad funnel improvement, reputation gains or a return to form – share a common thread: consistent investment, adaptability and a clear understanding of how each channel contributes to their brand story.

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

About KLA

KLA is the exclusive partner for YouGov in sub-Saharan Africa, providing consumer insights and brand tracking services to help businesses understand and respond to market dynamics.