BrandMatters

Country Branding 2.0

Thursday, November 12th, 2009

Future Brand have come out with an annual report assessing the worth of various countries as brands. While it is easy to understand the relationship between a product and a brand, the association between a country and a brand is unorthodox. Can a place reproduce this form of association as a brand?

As FutureBrand’s report points out, key associations get formed in the public mind around countries, and become the locus of their ‘brand.’ Examples are Italy and gourmet food, France and fashion, the US and Obama, Germany and cutting-edge cities.

On one level place and product branding involve the same process: identifying, developing and communicating aspects of the identity that are favourable to specifically targeted groups. However this analysis is far more complex for a place than for a product.

Places involve multiple stakeholders with competing interest. Trying to measure success in meeting broad goals, as well as identifying separate contributions to the outcome of marketing has problems. Place branding is very rarely under the control of a single authority, with government and industry associations are rarely able to dictate policy to stakeholders. Many businesses are deeply experience with marketing issues, while few in government have the skill set necessary for a branding and marketing campaign.

Despite these difficulties, conceptualizing a country as a brand is something that’s gaining adherents. In a sense this is simply a contemporary strategic approach by countries to influence the world around them.

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