Google (GOOGL), Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), AT&T (NYSE: T), Microsoft (MSFT), Samsung (Korea Stock Exchange: 2826-KR), Verizon and Facebook (FB) are the technology-based companies that make up eight of the top 10 most valuable brands in the world, according to a report by consultancy Brand Finance published this week.
Yet 10 years ago, the list looked very different, with Coca-Cola, Citi, Hewlett-Packard, HSBC and Marlboro featuring, none of which ranks in this year's top 10, although Wal-Mart and Microsoft are on both the 2007 and 2017 lists.
So what does "digital" mean for businesses that are based on physical products or those that were founded in the analogue world? A new book, "Building Digital Culture: A practical guide to successful digital transformation," by Daniel Rowles and Thomas Brown explores how companies can make sure their whole organization succeeds.
"Many industries, when technological disruption comes along, attempt to actively resist customer requirements. Customers have decided they want something different and the company's reaction is to ignore the change and carry on regardless.
"However, in many cases the organizations may not be actively resisting, but the catch-up time between market change and company change is just too great," the authors write.
But even for brands like Apple, change is hard to keep up with, says Simon Thompson, who held senior e-commerce roles at the company from 2009 to 2011, and was there for the launch of the iPad in 2010.
"You have to bring your 'A' game to work every day [at Apple], the organization was going through massive growth, it was a totally magical time.
"What was difficult at Apple was keeping up with the sheer pace of the change, when you are selling products that are brand new in the market, and they are growing exponentially, that is a pretty unique experience you'll have in any company or industry you work for," he told CNBC.com.
Thompson, who is now global head of digital commerce at HSBC, and spoke in general terms and not specifically about the banking brand, added that businesses ought to be experimenting with innovation, and "placing some bets out there that you don't know are going to pay off." He urged companies to make sure that digital investments paid back quickly, however.
"Digital isn't some future theory any more, it's here, it's now, it's everywhere, it's happening, so I don't think there's really any excuse any more for not delivering some benefit now, either to customers or shareholders. The days of it being a 10-year long project with a gazillion millions [of dollars supporting it], that is long behind us now."