A method and apparatus for selecting a desired point of interest (“POI”) for a navigation system displays matching brand icons associated with POIs to assist the user in finding an intended POI. When the user inputs characters indicating a POI name or a POI type, or selecting a POI type from a list, the navigation system displays brand icons of the POI name or POI type. When the user selects one of the brand icons, the navigation system lists the POIs associated with the brand icons in the predetermined order such as distance from the current vehicle position. Since the number of brand icons are limited, and each brand icon has a readily recognizable image, the user can quickly find a desired POI by selecting a brand icon.