Malaysia is very well known for its tagline “Malaysia – Truly Asia”, but the Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak wants to push things forward. Malaysian political marketing blogger Radzi comments on the challenges being faced by Mr. Razak in building the Malaysia’s nation brand.
Every nation is a brand. Think of the associations that France, Great [...]
Challenges of building the Malaysia nation brand
Branding Lebanon
With Arab and foreign visitors swarming Lebanon this summer, from the malls in Achrafieh, Dbayeh, Dora and Verdun to the clubs and restaurants in Gemmayze and downtown, and the mountain enclaves from Broumana to Bhamdoun, it is obvious to the naked eye that Lebanon is more than ever a prime vacation destination.
However, this summer season [...]
Re-branding Africa
Brand Africa continues to be a dismal one. Images of poverty and conflict continue to dominate the perceptions of people around the world, particularly in the West. Africa is still seen as a charity case waiting for salvation from outside the continent. This negative view persists despite the enormous progress the continent has made over [...]
Economic crisis may force countries to re-brand
The current economic crisis is affecting countries in an obvious, well-documented and flagrant manner, but is also impacting their reputation, their “nation brands”, in a less obvious manner.
One example is Dubai. The Emirate is facing the toughest economic challenge in its history. According to this article, nation branding guru Simon Anholt believes that only the development [...]
‘Brand Sweden’ goes local
Part of Sweden’s celebrated image can be credited to the fact that the country has a unified brand platform, the result of incorporating the Swedish Institute, VisitSweden, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Invest in Sweden Agency and the Trade Council into the Council for the Promotion of Sweden, which generated a common brand platform for most of [...]
How Public Relations help Nation Branding: 6 case studies
A country’s reputation is intrinsically linked to its economic fortunes and international standing. A proper nation brand image can attract people and money through foreign investment, trade, tourism and immigration, as well as provide ’soft power’ in the shape of political, diplomatic and cultural leverage.
In order to revive flagging or damaged images, countries are [...]
Canada’s nation brand more than a National Geographic country
Andrea Mandel-Campbell writes about Canada’s brand image, and how the country can learn off countries such as New Zealand and Australia. With its widely acclaimed performance in the current economic turmoil, Canada can build over this “safe haven” image strategically to attract business and talent into a stable and prosperous economic environment – becoming something [...]
South Korea’s non-stop nation branding programme
No doubt, South Korea’s nation branding project is very ambitious, but also very active. No month passes without news from yet another action within Korea’s nation branding plans. After creating a Peace Corps and exploring the possibilities of Hallyu, the name by which the Korean wave of cultural exports to neighbouring countries in Southeastern Asia [...]
Branding Slovenia
Slovenia has an identity crisis. People confound it with Slovakia. The names of the two countries, and even their flags are virtually interchangeable. Their languages are also both Slavic and so similar that both nationalities call their language with the same name: Slovenians call it “slovenski” (”slovenian”) and Slovaks also call it “slovensky” (”slovak”).
The two [...]
Nation branding and India
As we crib and complain about brain drain, we must realise that the Indian education system and consequently, the Indian workforce, are losing out to the western world’s superior capacity to attract talent. As much as it is due to the west’s advanced infrastructure, it also reflects their ability to promote itself as a top [...]
