When asked to explain what Nation Branding is I usually respond by asking the following questions:

Do you think that your country …

• Is  achieving its full growth potential?
• Is  attracting its fair share of international investors?
• Is  attracting its fair share of tourists?
• Will your country be one of the winners of this century?
• How do we as an emerging nation in  Africa, respond to the rise of China and India?
• What do tourists experience first when they enter your country?
• Does that reflect what you want them to see?

To be a sustainable economic success which will empower and uplift the people of your country within a fast changing global landscape - where many nations are jockeying for position - your country (every country) needs to be branded uniquely.

Within a global context, countries are like brands that compete for market leadership to attract foreign investment and tourists. To be remembered, your country needs to stand for something unique. Think of the highly competitive sneakers market – people know Nike, Reebok and Converse… the others are left behind, not necessary because they are inferior products, but because there are not so well branded.

Brand leadership within the nation space has become a key driver for competitiveness. With the decreasing economic, social, and political dominance of the G8 nations, the opportunities for nations in The Middle East and Africa to become the brand icons of the next century are considerable. 

Those who watch the 24 hour news channels will know that advertisements for countries, not only for tourism, but for investment, banking, arts and culture and many other aspects are part and parcel of channels like CNN, BBC, CNBC, Sky and Al Jazeera.

A single-minded commitment to establish an iconic city for the next century, has defined everything that Dubai has done to date. From cities like New York or Abu Dhabi, to nations like Ireland or China, branding is a key priority for nations today. Paris is about style, Switzerland is about precision and high-end banking: these factors create a receptiveness and can help to put a country into the consideration set for investment and tourism.

Simply put, investors and tourists rely upon country images to make economic decisions. If we as nations are not pro-active, the media and investors make up their minds about us - for better or for worse. For that, we need to identify what is unique that we can “own” credibly in the minds of people. Uniqueness is not about copying the West; it is about defining our own destiny. Copying can at best result in a lesser version of those copied.

A strong brand puts your country into the consideration set for potential investors and tourists. If done well, it focuses resources and stakeholder attention, thereby saving valuable time and limiting wastage. At home, it creates a common purpose amongst people.

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.

The Office of the President “owns” the nation brand. A strong nation brand starts with a highly committed Presidency and cabinet, and then with aligning government policy and structures. Nation branding affects every interface with important stakeholders – from the way the country is reported in international news, to the motivation of its people, to the priorities of local business, to the single-minded commitment to excellence by its officials. These factors, and many others, establish a sustainable nation brand.

A nation brand needs a clear brand plan defining the brand and how it will be created Branding starts with defining a clear nation brand blueprint - after a careful situational and stakeholder analysis; establishing current and desired perceptions; defining the key messages and putting the structures, plans, budgets and governance in place to deliver the desired objectives. Having clear objectives, means that even small steps contribute to the same goal.

A nation brand defines policy at all levels of government nation branding defines the way immigration officials behave at airports, the way a minister conducts an interview with a journalist and the priorities a government invests in. A well-defined nation brand sets clear policy guidelines – it actually helps government achieve its objectives.

Most importantly, a clear brand enables passion amongst all who contribute to it. A clear brand plan is like any business plan – it manages and measures the achievement of goals.




Place Branding and Public Diplomacy -  International Journal

Place Branding and Public Diplomacy is a new journal and the first to concentrate on this fast-growing field. Its scope and reach is global and culturally unbiased. Its primary objective is to broaden the understanding of the nature, purposes and benefits of place branding and to demonstrate how place branding strategies are implemented in practice.

Place branding is the practice of applying brand strategy and other marketing techniques and disciplines to the economic, social, political and cultural development of cities, regions and countries.

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