Google: #1

Google has been ranked the most reputable company in the country - a list it wasn't on at all four years ago. See the entire article at AdAge. Google doesn't spend any money to advertise its brand or services. According to Robert Fronk, senior VP-senior consultant, reputation strategy, at Harris Interactive:

"The positive perception of how you treat your employees, your corporate-social-responsibility efforts, and your products and services and the amount of media that can generate probably trumps any ad spend they would ever want to make."

However, HP, a company that has recently re-invigorated its advertising to lean more to the hip and cool:

"...made not only the biggest jump from 2006 to 2007 -- 21 spots, from No. 38 to No. 17 -- but also the biggest jump in the history of the study."

Coincidence?