Drugs, as anyone with more than a passing interest in global black markets knows, are big business. According to the United Nations World Drug Report of 2011, 210 million people use illicit drugs every year. That’s a huge market, and as we shall see, there are any number of criminals eager to capitalize on this demand. Join us as we take a look at 10 of the largest illegal drug trades on Earth.

10. Khat

Khat is a plant found in East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula at contains a stimulant akin to amphetamines. Estimated to be used regularly by several million people, it causes a high that can create excitement and euphoria as well as stifling the appetite. The drug, which is usually chewed by the user, is extremely popular in countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya and Yemen, where it is part of the fabric of society — and where its cultivation can generate income several times that of fruits for local farmers. In the United States and most of the Western world, however, it is a controlled illegal substance and huge profits are obtainable for dealers in the drug. According to one source, in 2006 the US street price of khat was around $700 a kilogram, compared to $1 a kilo in East Africa.

9. Temazepam

Temazepam is a potent hypnotic benzodiazepine — a group of sedatives sometimes known colloquially as “benzos.” Used as a prescription drug in anti-anxiety treatment, it also has another life as a powerful and sought-after street drug. Taken in higher doses, the effects can be similar to alcohol, with increased confidence and a lack of inhibitions shown by users. Surveys conducted in many different countries have found that temazepam is one of the most abused drugs in the world. To supply this demand, and line the pockets of drug traders, numerous illegal “jellie labs” that manufacture the drug have been set up — and shut down — in Russia and Eastern Europe.

8. Ketamine

Ketamine is a drug primarily intended for use in veterinary medicine, and although used on many different animals it is perhaps most popularly known as a horse tranquilizer. This gives an idea of how strong a drug it can be when humans make use of it recreationally. Sometimes known “K,” ketamine produces a powerful dissociative state, and its users may experience what is known as a “K-hole,” a condition which purportedly replicates schizophrenic or out-of-body experiences. Although figures are scarce on the profits generated by the illegal trade in the drug, in 2009, 6.9 tons of ketamine were seized across Asia — a haul that, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, represented 85 percent of the global total.

7. LSD

Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as LSD or simply acid, is a well-known psychedelic drug first synthesized by the Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann back in 1938. Since the ’60s, its history has been inextricably linked with notions of cultural revolution popularized in music and by figures such as Timothy Leary, who famously called on people to “turn on, tune in, drop out.” Yet a man known as William Leonard Pickard did possibly more than anyone else past or present to distribute the powerful hallucinogenic drug across the world. Following the arrest of Pickard and his partner Clyde Apperson in 2000 — the largest LSD-manufacturing bust of all time — there was reportedly 90 percent decrease in the global availability of the drug. It’s claimed the pair produced a kilo of LSD every five weeks, worth about $2.97 million to them and a quantity capable of providing tens of million of doses. Which producers and traffickers have since filled the gap in the market remains to be seen.

6. Ecstasy

Ecstasy, known as a clubbing drug and commonly taken in pill form, is responsible for $16.07 billion worth of global sales and used by 19.5 million people worldwide according to Havocscope.com, the online database of black markets (and based on findings by the UN World Drug Reports of 2005 and 2011, respectively). The production and export of “E” or “X” has for many years been associated with Europe, although the market has increasingly moved elsewhere in recent times. In fact, according to the UN’s World Drug Report of 2011, “Europe’s share in global ecstasy seizures declined from 90% in 1996 to 18% in 2009.” In the United States, meanwhile, officials are looking to stem the flow of ecstasy from Canada, with the drug selling for two to three times the price in the US as compared with north of the border. In 2010, American customs officers seized 1,460 pounds of the substance at the Canadian border.

5. Amphetamines

According to Havocscope (based on the findings of the UN World Drug Reports of 2005 and 2011) trade in amphetamines makes up $28.25 billion of the global black market, while the number of users worldwide is believed to currently stand at 35.5 million. The drug, commonly known on the street as “speed,” was used by more people (60%) in Asia than anywhere else as of 2004, but overall the manufacture of the drug appears to be centered in Europe. According to the United Nation’s World Drug Report of 2011, 44 of the world’s amphetamine laboratories were reported to the authorities in 2009; the majority were located in Europe.

4. Methamphetamine

Methamphetamine, not to be confused with amphetamines more generally, is commonly known as crystal meth and has been dubbed the “most abused drug on Earth” by the United Nations. The powerful psychostimulant drug, which produces an intense high by releasing high levels of dopamine in the brain, is also highly addictive, making it an attractive commodity for drug dealers. Time magazine has estimated the value of meth originating in Mexico from the labs of illegal drug cartels, then entering and sold on the streets in United States, at $20 billion. Meanwhile, the head of the DEA, Karen Tandy, claimed in 2006 that the users of the drug outnumber the total users of cocaine and heroin worldwide.

3. Heroin

Heroin is an opiate widely held to be one of the most destructive drugs in the world. Highly addictive, when used with sufficient regularity it can control and dictate users’ lives, leaving them quite literally desperate for a dose. Nowadays, the vast majority of the world’s heroin originates in Afghanistan: in 2007, 93 percent of opiates worldwide could be traced back to the cultivation of opium poppies in the war-ravaged country. With an export value of around $64 billion, the opiate production in Afghanistan represents a huge chunk of the global drug market (with the total value of the heroin and opium market placed at $68 billion by the UN’s 2011 World Drug Report). Another big player in the world heroin market is Myanmar (formerly Burma), which represents the hub of the “Golden Triangle” and was, until the 21st century, at the top of the tree for production of the drug.

2. Cocaine

Based on the UN’s 2011 findings, Havocscope puts the world black market value of cocaine at $85 billion, though some other sources suggest an even higher; $122 billion, estimates Morss Global Finance. Whatever the true figure, cocaine is without doubt one of the most sought-after and fought-over drugs in existence. Approximately 1.1 million kilograms of cocaine were produced (using the leaves of the coca plant) in 2009, while it was used by an estimated 17 million people. Much of the vast quantities in circulation are believed to have been traded by Joaquín Guzmán Loera, known to authorities as the biggest cocaine dealer on the planet and the FBI’s and Interpol’s most wanted man. Using trade routes from Colombia and Mexico to the United States, his Sinaloa cartel is responsible for much of the world’s cocaine sales, and the man they call ”El Chapo” (“Shorty”) is himself listed by Forbes as being personally worth $1 billion.

1. Cannabis

Cultivated worldwide, cannabis has a market value of $141.80 billion according to 2005′s UN World Drug Report, though as with cocaine, other sources estimate a much higher figure — $410 billion, say Morss Global Finance. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, America saw a marked increase in cannabis use between 2002 and 2009. The survey discovered that 16.7 million Americans aged 12 and above had taken the drug at least once in the month before the survey was conducted. However, perhaps more surprising than the numbers pertaining to the widespread use of the weed — thought to be used by 164 million people globally — are the findings of a recent poll conducted by Gallup, which discovered that half of all Americans would be in favor of legalizing marijuana.

Americans spend more and more on Halloween each year. All the costumes, decorations, candy and cards add up to big business and have given rise to a crop of Halloween pop-up stores that are able to cash in during the two months a year they are open.

Via: Business Credit Cards Blog

In today’s wacky world of advertising and rampant consumerism, a company must forever be changing in order to stay cutting edge. Attention spans grow shorter everyday, no thanks to the visual rape we are incessantly faced with; a constant barrage of billboards, taxi ads, commercials, YouTube commercials, popups on every website, and even plastered all over sporting events. Sometimes, in the race to stay ahead of the curve, companies hugely miscalculate what audiences want to see — and screw up big time. Here are 10 companies who made enormous branding mistakes.

Netflix/Qwikster

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We all know and love Netflix.  It seems like only yesterday when the company appeared from out of the abyss, simultaneously changing our lives with easy access to our favorite movies and digging the grave of such outmoded business models as “Blockbuster.”  Later, when America had deemed even Natflix’s simple mail-order design to be too complicated, the company anticipated and satiated us with “Netflix Instant Play” allowing the world instantaneous access to the world of cinema at the click of a button.

It was hard to believe that they could make any mistakes over there… until we heard about Qwikster.  The best ideas are simple ones — a principle that Netflix had exploited to great success in the past.  Qwikster represented the ultimate in unnecessary and inconvenient change.  The idea was as follows: split the company in two.  One site, Netflix, would be an Instant Play computer movie watching services and Qwikster would handle the mail order DVDs and in the commotion of new logos and log-in pages up a few prices such as video game rentals.

The people were not hesitant to point out that this was an unwanted, unneeded and kind of unfair set of changes and Qwikster was born without a breath, consigned unto the history books alongside the cold, dead corpse of Blockbuster’s glory days.

Burger King King

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We all know Burger King, and most Americans have likely indulged in their delicious fast food treats — that is, when there’s no McDonald’s in sight.  It’s no small wonder that McDonald’s has been so successful when its spokesman is a rather creepy, white-faced clown.

Burger King gets no such slack for a creepy mascot.  A number of years ago they introduced the Burger King King, a mute and giant-faced medieval King who scared most people right off their whoppers.  It wasn’t until 2011 that BK execs saw a correlation between dropping sales and the King’s off-putting silence.  Meanwhile, Ronald McDonald continues to smirk.

Calvin Klein

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Sex sells.  It’s the first thing you’ll learn in advertising school… but not the only thing.  That’s what the execs at Calvin Klein failed to realize when they spent about 30 seconds translating this cheap marketing wisdom into one of the company’s most famously failed branding attempts.

In 2009 Calvin Klein released a number of video and print ads featuring a series of bizarre sexual images resembling the later hours at a High School party most of us were never quite cool enough to attend… you know the one, where sexy hairless denim lovers of all genders rub up on each other.

The ads were provocative, yes, but for the most part too alienating and uncomfortably arousing to get anyone thinking about their next denim purchase.  They were quickly removed from the air.

Accenture

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Oftentimes it’s a desperate exec’s attempt to be hip and cool that steers a company in the direction of branding disaster.  Such desperation is never attractive or productive, and this reckless “hip” seeking when the company split from Arthur Andersen was clearly the motivating factor in turning a company called Andersen Consulting into one called Accenture.

Accenture means “Accent on the future,” but not really.  The name itself conveys no readily accessible name.  And while Andersen Consulting sounds like a company that owns a building filled with men and women who do things for people… Accenture conjures a more faceless set of images as well as other meaningless words like synergy and streamlining.

Considered to be one of the worst corporate rebrandings of all time, the Accenture name-change is estimated to have cost $100 MILLION dollars.

New Coke

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Coca-Cola, in addition to being one of the most successful brands in the country, is a deeply engrained cultural emblem symbolic of American values: of our proud past and of our bright future.

In 1985, amidst much pomp and circumstance, the company released a new version of the classic soft drink.  New Coke was supposed to be “smoother, rounder yet bolder” but Americans saw all of this as a great tampering rather than an improvement.  Would you improve the American flag?  Would you edit the Bible?  No?  Then why change Coca-Cola??

New Coke was failing to sell and consumers were selling black market cases of classic Coke for as much as $30 dollars as a case.  It didn’t take long for Coca-Cola to realize it’s mistake and go back to doing what they did best… producing the same brown sugar sludge that had rotted our teeth for decades.

Lost in Translation

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A number of major marketing blunders come from simple errors in translation.  While it’s amazing to consider that ad campaigns, those silly little business ventures that cost millions and millions of dollars, could actually overlook something as central as, you know, the meaning of the words they print in their ads.

But it happens all the time. The Coors “Turn it loose” slogan translated into a Spanish idiom for diarrhea.  Perdue Chicken’s slogan “It takes a strong man to make a tender chicken” was translated in Spanish to “It takes an aroused man to make a chicken affectionate,” and Mexican consumers read the translated “Got Milk?” as “Are you lactating?”

Microsoft Blue Screen of Death

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It should be some comfort for Bill Gates to know that Microsoft wasn’t simply buried by Apple’s innovation and superior brand appeal.  That might make him feel weak and out of control.  Microsoft was also buried by Microsoft.  Not only did they lose their ability to make their product seem comparatively hip, hot and oh-so-indispensable, but they made a crucial error during an equally crucial marketing opportunity.

Most of us are familiar with Apple’s signature “Wheel of Death”, a spinning rainbow pie that signifies the end of a computer’s functionality.  Our parents might recall a similar phenomenon called the Blue Screen of Death, a Microsoft based harbinger of frustration and doom.  When the Blue Screen of Death appears, you’re done for.

At a pre-release screening of Windows 98 for an audience of press members, stunned onlookers chortled as the Blue Screen appeared and Microsoft employees blushed as their new program crashed before their eyes.

Yesterday and Today

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This branding disaster might come as a comfort to some who are tired of hearing nothing but praise for the Beatles.  I mean, come on, they weren’t Gods among men.  Just musicians with nerdy haircuts and the ability to make mistakes.

One notable mistake was the cover of their 66 album “Yesterday and Today.”  Known as  the “Butcher Cover,” it featured photographs of the rock stars in blood smeared butcher coats surrounded by raw red meat and dismembered baby dolls.
When the public was inevitably both shocked and dismayed, Capitol Records attempted a recall, eventually shipping replacement covers to many of the 750,000 consumers who had purchased the album.

Said George Harrison of the incident: “I thought it was gross, and I also thought it was stupid. Sometimes we all did stupid things thinking it was cool and hip when it was naive and dumb; and that was one of them.”

The Shack

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Some things will never, ever be cool.  And one of those things is Radio Shack.  Don’t get me wrong.  We all love Radio Shack, the strip mall fixture which has dutifully provided us with batteries and clock radios throughout our lives, but it’s never going to be a very glamorous shopping experience.  There are too many men with cell phone holsters on their belts in those stores for one thing.

But everyone just wants to be popular and Radio Shack is no exception.  Of late Radio Shack has begun rebranding itself as “The Shack.”  Why?  Well, no one really knows.  Perhaps it does sound a little cooler, but it also sounds more like a smoothie stand than an electronics distributor and does a place that already suffers from a reputation of being cheaper and less reliable than stores like “Best Buy,” really want to conjure the image of a ramshackle hut in every single ad they put out?

McDonald’s

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Double Cheeseburger?  I’d Hit It.

So began a less than popular ad campaign released by McDonald’s in 2005.  Don’t these people learn?  “Ba-da-ba-ba-ba I’m lovin’ it” made McDonald’s food sound good.  Before it completely erased the Justin Timberlake association with its own brand associations, that bit of jingle had us thinking that McDonald’s food was the kind of thing a hot male popstar’s heart would yearn for.  After that we just knew that we wanted fries.

But what about “I’d Hit It” coupled with the smirking image of a 27 year old man with a ratty haircut?  Does that make someone want fries?  Who wouldn’t this dude hit it with?

The problem with this ad is that it’s just too real.  Most of us don’t want to eat nasty, cheap, fatty McDonald’s food, but as we cruise down the highway late at night or walk home from the bars at 4 AM and pass those Golden Arches, we know that we would… and will… hit that.

But advertisements are about fantasy, so let’s stick with the idea that a Big Mac is something worth singing a love song to.

Sir Richard Branson has been called “the undisputed king” of the publicity stunt, and we couldn’t agree more. Rarely missing an opportunity to spread the word according to Virgin, Branson has traveled far and wide, and gone to extreme lengths to advertise the various companies that fall under his umbrella brand. Virgin has always prioritized and prided itself on its PR, and generally it’s worked for them — and to spectacular effect.

Undoubtedly a skilful and savvy operator, Richard Branson has used his fame and familiar face to put his companies squarely in the spotlight time and time again. Always retaining a self-deprecating sense of humor and a smiling affably, Branson is the good-natured boss many managers and CEOs aspire to be. From breaking world records through to fancy dress escapades and even appearing in an episode of Baywatch, Sir Richard always goes the extra yard. Here are the ten greatest Virgin PR stunts he’s ever undertaken.

10. Dresses in Wedding Dress for Virgin Brides Venture

For the 1996 launch of the relatively short-lived bridal and wedding venture Virgin Brides — it ceased trading in 2007 — Sir Richard won a fair bit of publicity by shaving off his famous beard and donning a $10,000 wedding dress. Never one to miss out on a photo opportunity, Branson ensured the media stunt garnered fat column inches for the Virgin brand, and though the company may have faded, the image of Branson dressed in drag on a catwalk has not — a PR coup selling the idea that this is one businessman who’s not afraid to laugh at himself.

9. Jumps Off Palms Hotel Casino to Celebrate Virgin American Flight

In 2007 Sir Richard celebrated the inaugural Virgin American flight from San Francisco to Las Vegas with an outlandish – and potentially dangerous – act. Branson’s nerves of steel were given a severe test when he jumped off the Palms Hotel Casino in Las Vegas in a bungee-meets-abseiling stunt. Supported by a harness and cable, the PR king descended 407 feet literally by the seat of his pants. The leap of faith did not go completely smoothly — he bashed into the building twice and ripped some material from his pants — but while some saw his public image plunging because of this, the stunt was a sign of his courage and human qualities to others.

8. Poses as Zulu Warrior to Celebrate Flights to South Africa

While visiting a cultural center near Johannesburg, Branson, in typically extrovert fashion, decided to celebrate Virgin Atlantic’s first flights to South Africa by dressing up as a Zulu warrior. The airline, launched in 1984 out of a merger with the former British Atlantic Airways, is the jewel in Virgin’s crown. Sir Richard’s unusual get-up provided countless photo opportunities and helped boost the brand’s profile. In 2010 the company flew over five million passengers all over the world – a far cry from the airline’s humble beginnings.

7. Slings Dita Von Teese Across Back at Virgin Media Launch

In 2007, Branson launched the British communications company and internet broadband provider, Virgin Media, in London’s Covent Garden. With a little help from the sexy burlesque performer Dita Von Teese, Sir Richard ensured the event got the photographers snapping – flinging the model over his back and keeping his face squarely in the public eye by acting out the naughty prank. Today Virgin Media is a major player in the UK telecommunications market, with 4.8 million customers using its fiber optic cable network.

6. Drives Tank Down Fifth Avenue to Launch Virgin Cola

In 1998, in order to launch Virgin Cola to the US market, Branson drove a tank down Fifth Avenue and then “blew up” the Coca-Cola sign in Times Square. The memorably spectacular stunt created plenty of buzz for the fizzy soda drink, as Sir Richard promised war with Pepsi and Coke. However, despite all the attention created by the one-man PR machine, sales of the cola slipped rapidly, and it’s now rare to find the drink outside a Virgin Atlantic flight. Still, while the marketing battle may have been lost, the Branson and Virgin PR war machine never ceased revving its engine.

5. Bares Butt to Mark Arrival of Virgin Atlantic in Canada

Sir Richard has never been afraid to be the butt of a joke, as this image clearly shows. To mark Virgin Atlantic’s landing in Canada, the self-styled eccentric billionaire had the bare cheek to strip off down to his shorts – and then some! With the company’s name proudly emblazoned on he and his colleagues’ posteriors, the announcement was guaranteed to hit the headlines. Another oddball stunt, but doubtless a carefully calculated one, and further proof that Branson’s no ass when it comes to shameless self-publicity.

4. Dresses as Birdman

In 2003, the high-flying entrepreneur traded his Virgin Atlantic window seat for a dashing pair of wings. Branson was taking part in the Bognor Birdman event, a typically eccentric get-together in a small English coastal town. Competitors are required to jump off a pier and then attempt to “fly” over the English Channel to France. Branson’s head for heights must have helped, but he didn’t quite make it to France this way! He enjoyed the experience though, and remains a patron of the annual competition, while the photos of course helped the Virgin boss’s image to soar.

3. Drives from Dover to Calais Across English Channel

In 2004, the flamboyant, daredevil Virgin chief set a world record for crossing the English Channel from Dover to Calais, France in an amphibious car. Driving a James Bond style Aquada sports car that cut through the waves, the trip took Branson just 1 hour and 40 minutes. The entrepreneur once again showed that he is more willing than most to go to extremes. What’s more, it paid off and then some as Branson generated yet more media coverage for himself and his global empire.

2. Arrives in Spacesuit for Press Conference Launching Virgin Galactic

When Branson first unveiled his plans for a sub-orbital space travel service to be available to the paying public in 2004, the savvy marketeer attended press conferences dressed in an astronaut’s suit. To publicize the space suits, he also made himself the image of Buzz Aldrin for a photo shoot (see top image) — a hero at the dawn of a new era, gazing into a new celestial frontier. Capturing the public’s imagination and grabbing the headlines is clearly a strong point of Sir Richard’s. Arguably the entrepreneur’s most ambitious project, Virgin Galactic has yet to make any flights beyond the Earth’s atmosphere, but the company has stated that all is “on track with its development plans.”

1. Round the World by Hot Air Balloon

Sir Richard Branson’s PR skills are perhaps best known in relation to his tests of ingenuity and bravery in the seat of a hot air balloon. In 1987, his relentless pursuit of excellence in aviation, and his knowledge of publicity, saw him become eternally associated with extreme record braking attempts. The “Virgin Atlantic Flyer” was the largest ever hot air balloon flown, at 2.3 million cubic feet capacity, and the fastest to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Branson’s love affair with ballooning continued, and between 1995 and 1998 he made several attempts to circumnavigate the globe. He made a record-breaking flight from Morocco to Hawaii in 1998, but was beaten to the global record. Nevertheless, for many, the balloon attempts stand for the lengths — and heights — Branson will go to to realize his powerful and seemingly limitless ambition.

The Better Business Bureau put together a useful infographic that lists the top 10 online scams. Take a look at the top ten and notice how they work.

(Click the image to see a larger version of the infographic)

Source: Better Business Bureau

One thing we noticed among the list of the top online scams is that they often prey on the most vulnerable, especially those with economic needs (jobs, free stuff, etc.). Most online scams seem to hook people with either free offers or by artificially gaining trust through a trick or by exploiting fear.

Now that we think of it, there are a few billion dollar corporations who use similar techniques. Hmmmmm.

Digital Signage: It’s all around us [Infographic] compliments of DigitalSignageToday.com

Personally, I can understand why people move to the countryside: to get away from all of this intrusive noise that we get in our cities and on our highways!

With marketing & advertising becoming more and more of a need to succeed, this infographic by our friends at MarketingDegree.net provides an industry-by-industry look at where the leading U.S Brands are spending their dollars.

Image courtesy of Ad Age

Trusting brands works the same way. When you buy something associated with a brand, you know the product isn’t going to, say, poison you or disintegrate in your hands. If you do have a problem with something that company provided, you know you can tell a real person about it and they’ll do something about the problem. You can rely on your brand the same way you do the people in your life that you trust.

Perhaps companies have to try harder to be trustworthy than people, though. Many on this list built their strategy around the customer experience. Some have made quality products for a long time. Those products, in turn, either soothe customer anxiety or create an experience that customers crave. Customers know what to expect when they’re dealing with the brands on this list.

Who are these stellar brands, and why do we trust them so much? Here’s a list of the 25 most trustworthy brands in America.

(Note: These were chosen to represent a sample across industries.)

25. WebMD

If you have a health issue, your overpriced MD probably isn’t your first line of defense anymore. The Internet is. WebMD lets you can look up any symptom under the sun, as well as tips for your general health and nutrition, and educates you on health issues you’ve never heard of. An attractive, intuitive layout and expert-written blog don’t hurt, either. On a more subtle level, any good, complete website that soothes your need for information when you’re panicky and desperate, as we often are during health scares, is bound to engender a positive, trustworthy association.

24. Kellogg’s

Who can argue with Corn Flakes or Cheez-Its? Many consumers default to Kellogg’s cereals and snack foods because they’ve grown up with them and they taste good. The company’s natural and frozen products have also nudged their way into consumer’s loyal hearts, and are a staple at most grocery stores. Aside from a packaging snafu in 2010 that made several of their cereals taste soapy, Kellogg’s has consistently produced products with a good taste and texture. Some are a far cry from actually being healthy, but if anything, that makes people even more loyal to the cereal giant.

23. FedEx

Image: coolcaesar/Wikimedia

Shipping companies are lucky. What better way to foster trust with consumers than delivering something that’s precious to them, quickly, safely and on time? Having the US Post Office, which many people see as sluggish or unreliable, as your main competitor also helps. If you FedEx something, it will almost always arrive at its destination on time and secure. In the rare instances a problem does crop up, FedEx is generally accountable and helpful–another one-up on the postal service. By virtue of doing what it does well, FedEx is one of the most trusted brands around.

22. Apple

A personable front man and general high quality of products and services endear Apple to millions of repeat buyers. The company has several things going for it in terms of generating both trust and excitement. Apple’s computing devices are sleek to the touch, sexy, intuitive, and smart, kind of like what you’d want in a date. The Apple Store staff are helpful and competent. Steve Jobs is arguably the best innovator of the past 20 years. Even though some of Apple’s policies are hard to work with, most Apple consumers don’t get the sense they’re waiting to pilfer your money at every turn. To boot, Apple has set industry standards for tablets, smartphones, high-powered computers, and laptops. No wonder everyone keeps coming back for more.

21. Adobe Systems

Image: Coolcaesar/Wikimedia

From Flash to Dreamweaver, Photoshop to Illustrator, creative computer types can’t live without Adobe’s software. Fortunately, because they’re industry standards, Adobe’s products are reliable and fast (unless you ask Steve Jobs about Flash). And aside from a minor overseas pricing scandal, the company stands out as a software provider you can trust. When you don’t have many products to use as alternatives, this is a good thing.

20. Target

Image: Marlith/Wikimedia

It’s safe to assume you’ll get a good deal on most of things you buy at Target, be they fashion jeans or garden tools; that alone makes consumers trust the brand. But Target goes a step further than, say, your local dollar store. It does so by providing trendy clothes, accessories, and home decor at its superstores, making them a one-stop shop for both mundane things like orange juice and the latest pair of 1980′s aviator sunglasses. This unique strategy sets Target apart from other big discount stores, and has the effect of creating loyal customers. Moreover, unlike superstore rival Walmart, Target doesn’t have that bad-rap monkey on its back, making shoppers perceive it as nicer and more trustworthy.

19. Southwest Airlines

Image: Dylan Ashe/Wikimedia

Provide good service in an industry notoriously lacking it, and you have yourself almost instant loyalty. Southwest, unlike most other airlines, also lets you check a back for free, and offer one of the industry’s best rebooking policies–no fees, just pay the price difference and use credits within a year. That excellent treatment of customers makes it easier to overlook snafus like pieces blowing off a jet while it’s in flight, or the airline ignoring mandates to fix its planes. Note to other airlines: When you build a lot of brand equity, your inevitable mistakes (and, sadly, crashes) are easier to forget.

18. Amazon

Image: James Duncan Davidson/Wikimedia

Go online. Buy a book or one of a million other items. Get item sent to your door, pronto. Return if necessary (but probably not). This is Amazon, and it has become a classic part of the American experience. From the reliable service to the smile on the box, Amazon is the go-to ecommerce classic for millions of people. On a primitive level, ordering something from a screen and knowing it will appear at your doorway in a predictable number of days is a little bit like magic. Consumers trust Amazon to deliver that magic. It does, and we start to rely on it. That reliance and familiarity breeds trust. Perks like the Kindle, seller accounts, and streaming movies don’t hurt, either.

17. Honda

Image: motoracereports/Wikimedia

Toyota used to boast epic customer trust, but last year’s recalls ensured that it is no longer the trustworthy Japanese brand of choice, at least for the time being. Honda, on the other hand, spells reliability for many consumers. You don’t buy a Honda expecting it to break down, at least not for a whie. When it doesn’t–most don’t–you start to associate the brand with reliable cars that run forever. This is the promise of Honda’s stylized “H.” The fact that early-1990s Civics are still the country’s most stolen cars attests to the brand’s enduring value.

The carmaker’s base of small, fuel-efficient cars also lined up well with recessionary consumers’ needs, and ensured it didn’t see the kinds of steep losses that many of its competitors did. Even with Japan’s nuclear disaster denting Honda production, the brand’s perceived value, and the extent to which consumers trust it, will endure.

16. Colgate-Palmolive

Image: Pavel Savela/Wikimedia

Colgate-Palmolive’s name alone invokes images of two things you probably use, Colgate toothpaste and Palmolive dish soap. There’s something about everyday products that engenders trust, perhaps a combination of familiarity and the fact that they help you accomplish basic needs. Case in point: Washing hands and brushing teeth. Unless a runny gray sludge comes out of your toothpaste tube when you first open it, chances are, you trust the brand. Colgate-Palmolive has its work cut out for it.

The corporate giant owns a number of other brands, most of which you probably trust. They include Ajax, Handi Wipes, Irish Spring, Softsoap, Teen Spirit, and Tom’s of Maine. CP’s success may rely more on its ubiquitous, decent products than on a stellar service model, but the fact that its items are so ingrained into our daily lives makes us trust them implicitly.

15. Chipotle

Image: CW221/Wikimedia

Although this brand belongs to McDonald’s, it never movies made about how it simultaneously fattens, cheats and overworks people. Perhaps that’s because fresh-Mex brand Chipotle doesn’t actually do these things. Indeed, the custom burrito maker is about as transparent as it gets. The menu tells you about the purity of its meats, and when you order, you name the ingredients you want and watch an employee spackle them into a tortilla for you. The customization of that process, combined with the visibility and clarity of ingredients, makes Chipotle a place where you know exactly what you’re going to get (aside from the apparently sodium-laden ingredients that you don’t actually see).

While Chipotle isn’t the only restaurant to employ this kind of model–the burger joint In N’ Out has simple, delicious burgers and malts down to a science–its widespread success and numerous copycats indicate that the transparency-for-trust model truly works. (Low prices and fast service don’t hurt, either.)

14. UPS

Just like FedEx, this brown-clad service guarantees that it will deliver your stuff anywhere, quickly and securely. It’s hard to miss a brown UPS truck as it plies surface streets for its destination, and the brown uniforms of employees only mean one thing, that your package is arriving. You know you can trust these guys to transport just about anything you need, and that, as mentioned for FedEx, is an instant harbinger of trust.

13. Starbucks

When you ‘get a Starbucks’, you always know what to expect, in terms of layout and service, flavor and drink sizes. While the company keeps coming up with new products to innovate itself out of its midlife slump, the fundamentals of Starbucks remain reliable. Go in, grab a latte/frappe/frappuccino, and feel better. Bottom line, it works.

12. Mercedes Benz

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Age generates brand equity and trust, especially if you can survive the aging process intact. Mercedes Benz, one of the world’s first car manufacturers, has done just that, and is still receiving handsome dividends. Thanks to more than a century of quality cars, you always know a Benz will be comfortable, fast and safe. Heck, they invented crumple zones.

For decades, the German car has also acted as a mark of class, reflecting taste and wealth. A Mercedes is also generally known for its mechanical soundness, though depending on year and model, that case can be disputed. All in all, it’s been a trusted and classy brand for years, with a solid reputation. Consumers buy them expecting a certain level of quality, and the brand generally delivers.

11. Costco

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Costco, with its big boxes, reasonable prices, and stacks of stuff, invokes a primitive hunter-gatherer instinct in shoppers. (The samples help too.) You can always count on the deals, not to mention the hot dogs and pizza. Moreover, service is generally pretty good, and you don’t get attitude from checkout people the way you do at many other big stores. The backstory here is that Costco pays and treats their employees well; that attitude carries over to consumers’ shopping experience. Costco, in its membership-club wisdom, hasn’t changed its model much over the years, only its name. This further augments the familiarity-breeds-trust idea, spanning it across generations of Costco shoppers.

10. Canon

Image: Thomas Wolf/Wikimedia

Good products, established name, old, innovative company. Canon, a Japanese imaging products company, fits the “Trust Me” formula well. From high-end photography equipment to consumer video cameras that will fit in your palm, the company’s products permeate a long vertical. Consumers rightly equate the name with quality, and continue to buy at all levels.

9. Trader Joe’s

Good food at good prices and two-buck Chuck—how can you go wrong? Health-oriented customers love Trader Joe’s for its low-price, high-quality produce, cheese, grab-n-go lunches, bread, and a host of other tasty items. That’s not to mention its excellent wine selection, also friendly on the pocketbook. TJ’s offers the personality and product selection of a high-end grocer without insane prices. It keeps loyal customers coming again and again, and would-be shoppers in states lacking a TJ’s (Colorado. Cough.) begging for the chain to arrive.

8. Nike

This innovative sneaker company has flaunted star athletes and cutting-edge products since its early days in the 1960’s. If you buy a pair of Nikes, you’re pretty much guaranteed to leave the store with a comfortable and functional, if not trendsetting, pair of athletic shoes. Even after 47 years, the Nike logo, one of the most reliable around, is still a status brand around the world. Nike’s star power and deeply established brand make it one of the most familiar and trusted brands in sports.

7. Marriott

The hotel giant’s brand is built on consistency. The company prides itself on good service, predictably clean and comfortable rooms, and the loyalty of its guests. Although CEO Bill Marriott expressed concern about his chain not being up to the current generation’s standards of hipness back in 2005, the Great Recession, which made consumers re-focus on quality for value, may have changed all that anyway.

6. Nordstrom

Nordstrom boasts the latest fashions, as well as the personal shoppers and friendly assistants to help you find your perfect fit. That customer service-meets-fashion approach is why people keep on coming as though the retail slump never happened. While Nordy’s has some serious designer duds, it isn’t exclusive or across-the-board unaffordable, so it appeals to mainstream shoppers as well as the Nieman Marcus crowd.

5. Campbell’s

Image: H. Gordon/Flickr

Campbell’s has been around since 1869. Most of us started eating it as kids, when its chicken soup made us feel better when we were sick. Talk about powerful product association–and instant trust. In the seven or so generations it’s been around, the company hasn’t change its branding or core product line much, so you always know what you’re going to get when you buy a can of their soup. Aside from last year’s Spaghettios recall

4. Burberry

Few fashion brands stand apart based on tartan and a trench coat, but Britain’s Burberry has pulled this off with its trademarked patterns, making it identifiable on fashionistas even when you can’t read the label. Founded by a Hampshire tailor in 1856, the brand has undergone several identities, from apparel worn by the outdoor crowd to the insignia of working-class teens to its current manifestation as a luxury status symbol. But you still always recognize that tartan as a symbol of a darned good product.

3. Tiffany & Co.

Tiffany diamonds never lose their luster. When Marylin Monroe mentioned the company in her song “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” in 1953’s Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, she could still have been singing for women today. Even with a wallet-busting recession playing in the background, women all over the country are hungry for Tiffany’s high-end products. They’re trendy and high-quality, but the brand’s rich history is what really roots it in consumers’ hearts, whether they know it or not.

Tiffany has been around since 1837. It created swords for Union soldiers, the New York Yankees’ logo, various United States medals of honors, as well the first jewelry catalogue in the country. No jewelry store has been celebrated as much as Tiffany has in movies, songs, Broadway shows, sitcoms, and the media in general. Tiffany isn’t just a matter of trust. It’s a collective love affair.

2. Johnson & Johnson

Even though it’s a member of the much-maligned Big Pharma consortium, Johnson & Johnson is an exception to the “Pharma does bad things” reputation blight. How can you hate the company the makes Band-Aids for your owies or baby shampoo for your little one? They also produce the much-loved Neutrogena brand, as well as Tylenol, which has admittedly been hit by a musty rap of late. Still, J&J’s large suite of products include enough beloved, essential brands that the company’s name remains a stalwart of good medicine.

1. Coca Cola

The taste of Coke probably hasn’t changed much since you were a kid. Elders might recall the drink’s cocaine days, but Coca Cola has at least two generations of just plain Coke addicts under its belt, and it’s cultivating more as we speak. The logo hasn’t changed much over the years, the core product selection is the same, and most people grew up drinking the company’s trademark brew. Indeed, most of us experience times when we need a Coke. We trust the brand so much that many of us depend on it.