Yvonne Johnston is a renowned, experienced world-class communicator. She does everything from branding nations to personal consultations in terms of media management. She is a reputation manager par excellence.

This strategist who knows how to operationalise plans has served as the Chief Executive of a State Owned Enterprise, the International Marketing Council (IMC). Her experience of working as a private sector person with government, championing the cause of communication, has taught her that too many leaders ignore the importance of good communication, and then wonder why things go wrong.

Because of this unique perspective, Yvonne Johnston brings an holistic and big picture view to every project she takes on, because she truly understands the principles of running a business from many dimensions.

Yvonne Johnston, Marketer-at-Large - is a leading communication strategist, based in Johannesburg, South Africa. She specialises in the identity and reputation of places and is a recognized authority on nation branding. Multi-tasking and time management have never been a problem for Yvonne, who identifies her key skill set as problem solving and developing creative solutions to both marketing and business problems.
Nation Branding or Country Branding

Within a global context, countries are like brands that compete for market leadership to attract foreign investment and tourists. To be remembered, a country needs to represent something unique – something more than a logo and souvenirs.

Within the branding family, nation brands have a far wider stakeholder base and operate within circumstances that are more complex. This means achieving nation brand status requires a far more strategic and considered approach.

Yvonne consolidated her reputation running the IMC, Brand South Africa, for seven years, reporting to the Presidency in the South African Government. She headed the team that created the highly regarded “Alive With Possibility” campaign.

After seven years as the CEO of “Brand South Africa,” Yvonne Johnston is internationally recognized an authority on nation branding, having spoken recently at Harvard on this subject. She has consulted to and spoken both locally and internationally on this topic. Speaking on African nation branding which lies close to her heart, she says, “Uniqueness is not about copying the West; it is about defining our own destiny, and taking responsibility for the messages emanating from Africa.”

Working together with a highly skilled team of nation branding experts coordinated by The BrandWealth Organisation, a perceptual (brand) asset management company with offices in Dubai and Johannesburg, Johnston takes her team to governments, region and cities , “We offer you our insight and expertise in the matter of nation branding to either just set the process in motion with an initial strategic review and workshop, or in assisting you in defining the brand and planning for its implementation, she says

Acclaimed as a public speaker both at home and abroad. Yvonne is often booked as a motivational speaker or a keynote speaker. Her ability to reach people at all levels has made her  sought after  for a wide range of corporate, leadership and business events especially women’s leadership events.

She speaks passionately (mostly off the cuff) on a wide range of topics including:

• nation branding,
• South Africa and its positive stories,
• the current economics and politics,
• leadership lessons (particularly for women) in business.

This marketer-at-larger is never satisfied with mediocrity and is committed to excellence in everything that she does. She thinks creatively, challenges convention, and works fast …and above all she is a deeply committed patriot who believes in doing projects that will help create a better South Africa.