The global media agency Mindshare has recently released a report with a somewhat provocative headline “Digital Culture and the Digital Normal Index,” which defines the level of the so-called digital “normalness” or “abnormalness” by country. Put simply, it gives a deep insight into what drives us to chat online, listen to music, watch movies, blog or play games on the Internet. 

The adopters of the famous Greek fabulist Aesop’s approach, the namesake London-based agency has conducted a comprehensive research among 1530 18+ U.K. residents to reveal the top 10 ‘storytelling’ brands, referred to as those that are “engaging, memorable, with unique character and personality, with a clear sense of purpose/vision, authentic and believable,” among other storytelling credentials.

Nielsen, a global consumer insights company, has conducted a survey to define the differences in the behavior of modern shoppers across the globe. The «New Wealth, New World» study, based on opinions of more than 29,000 online respondents in 58 countries, shows that in different regions people are driven by different factors (sometimes, opposite ones) when choosing consumer goods.

Brands deliver tons of products and services across the globe, but do they really contribute to making people’s lives brighter? In June, Havas Media released its annual Meaningful Brands index (MBi) outlining a positive impact of brands on people’s lives. The study comes as a unique framework to “analyze and track the connections brands have with our quality of life and well-being,” as the global media expert explains it.

In its third annual Cultural Traction™ 2013 report, the brand development and marketing consultancy Added Value has ranked a total of 160 brands from 15 industries to measure their cultural vibrancy and define which of them better used the culture-led marketing strategies to stay more relevant to consumers. By culturally vibrant brands Added Value’s experts mean those brands that are perceived to have the most Visionary, Inspiring, Bold and Exciting (VIBE-index).