Is Bruno - the most famous Austrian since Adolf Hitler - ruin the image of Austria?

British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen's new movie about a fictional gay Austrian fashion fanatic who wants to be "the most famous Austrian since Adolf Hitler" has some Austrians up in arms even before its release next month.

The lead character, Bruno, sometimes spelled Brüno, is also a TV presenter reporting for the "Voice of Austrian Youth TV."

People Today columnist Lisa Trompisch said she, for one, finds some lines of the film irritating and upsetting.

"How could a line that obviously points to the most horrifying crime that Austrian has seen in decades, namely a father [Josef Fritzl] keeping his own daughter in a dungeon for 26 years and fathering her seven children during that time, be considered humorous or funny?" she asked, citing one of Bruno's controversial lines, "I want to live the Austrian dream of finding a partner, buying a dungeon and starting a family."



Trompisch said, "I would rather call that irreverent and cynical." She also pointed out that in her heute.at (today.at) column she highlights another quote, "K is for Kampf, as in 'Mein Kampf,' ze fashion bible written by Austria's black sheep Adolf Hitler" as politically incorrect and unacceptable.

"I can't decide which is worse, the insult to Austria, or to present Hitler merely as a black sheep," she writes.

Austrian writers are reminding their readers of Cohen's last movie, "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" (2005), a satire in which the small town of Glod was portrayed in a backward land (Kazakhstan) of poverty and bigotry.

The film hurt a lot of feelings in Kazakhstan at the time and upset many local officials with "the derogatory way" in which their country was presented.

Suggesting that Kazakhstan has been suffering an enormous loss of identity because of Cohen's movie, ORF, the Austrian Broadcasting Corp., published an article on its Web site headlined, "Could that happen to Austria, too? Will Nazis replace our Dirndl image?"

"Could tourists be thinking of Nazis and hatred towards foreigners instead of mountains, lakes and friendly hosts wearing Dirndl dresses?" the article said, referring to the kind of traditional dress worn in southern Germany, Liechtenstein and Austria. "Should we laugh about this movie, or should we simply ignore it? Is this going to threaten our country's image?"

Will the Sacha Baron Cohen Curse Strike Austria?

Austrians needn't worry, said author Simon Anholt, a British nation-branding expert who has just published his latest book "Competitive Identity."

"Absolutely not, they should not worry, this is not how it works," he said.

Anholt, who works with international countries as a policy advisor on national identity issues, said, "This is a lot of wild talk. I know the Austrians are very sensitive about their image, but if a country's image is pretty well established, almost nothing can change it. If at all, this movie will have a short-term superficial impact which will be forgotten as soon as the reporting about it dies down.

"In the case of Kazakhstan, the situation was completely different. Nobody knew the country to begin with. It had no image to lose. In fact, Baron Cohen's film 'Borat' put the country on the map. It made people curious and tourism saw a ten-fold increase after the film. The Austrians would be best advice to ignore it, or better even, to respond with humor."

That's what Alfons Haider, Austria's most famous TV presenter, is suggesting, too.

"It's difficult to judge a film that you haven't seen but I expect it to be very funny, he said. "Sacha Baron Cohen is a wonderful actor; I'm definitely going to see the movie and I'll invite him to show him what the country is really like.

"The only thing that makes me feel strange is the idea to see Austrians marching again in Nazi uniforms and to see Hitler portrayed as entertainment. Hitler simply cannot be a comedy star. I think Cohen is walking on the edge there."

Haider, who is preparing to host a TV show on national Austrian TV ORF the same day the film is released, is thinking out loud. "I have three things in common with the lead character Bruno; I'm male, I'm gay and I'm Austrian. Maybe I'll present the show that night as Bruno."

Author: CHRISTEL KUCHARZ
Source: ABC NEws

Consensus key to vibrant national brand

W rankingu marek krajów z 2008 r. (Anholt-Gfk, 2008) Korea uplasowała się na 33 miejscu. To rozczarowujący dla nich wynik, biorąc pod uwagę potencjał gospodarczy (15 gospodarka na świecie, 4 w Azji) oraz atrakcyjny świat kultury i sztuki. I to właśnie koreańska kultura ma dodać energii marce kraju. Więcej w wywiadzie z Kim He-beom-em, dyrektorem organizacji odpowiedzialnej za promocję kultury, afiliowanej przy Ministerstwie Kultury.


Consensus key to vibrant national brand

‘It is our responsibility to draw the whole picture of Korea for [the world],and offer facts on the rest of the spectrum.’



A decade or two ago, few thought that a country or a culture could be called a brand in its own right, a marketable, profitable name capable of generating business and trade deals all on its own.

Yet Koreans these days are constantly reminded of the importance of the country’s image as a brand and marketing tool, since the Lee Myung-bak administration is particularly keen on promoting Korea and commercializing its culture.

According to Anholt-GfK, a New York-based market research company that ranks the world’s national brands, Korea was 33rd of 50 countries in 2008 in terms of the power and quality of its image. For number-conscious Koreans, the ranking is both disappointing and alarming, especially considering that the country is the world’s 15th-largest economy, and No. 4 in Asia.

There are several government organizations in Korea responsible for promoting it and its culture to the international community. Perhaps one of the oldest is the Korean Culture and Information Service. Kim He-beom, a veteran government publicist, took the helm at the Culture Ministry-affiliated organization about three months ago. The JoongAng Daily sat down with him for his take on Korea the brand.

Q. How have efforts to promote Korea abroad changed over the years?

A. Next year marks the 40th anniversary of the Korean Culture and Information Service. [The agency has existed under different names depending on the leadership at the time.]

In the early years [of the 1970s and ’80s], the work was largely about the justification of the government. Amid rising calls for democracy, the military regimes that came to power in coups d’etat lacked legitimacy. Thus, our main function was to provide justification of the government.

Then in the early 1990s, North Korea began to provoke the international community with nuclear threats. Our prior task then was explaining to the world the situation with the North Korean nuclear program - to tell them precisely what’s going on on the Korean Peninsula and defuse unnecessary concerns or crises.

In the late 1990s, the Asian financial crisis erupted. Thus, our work was mostly about reporting to the world how Korea was handling the situation, and how it was recovering in order to win back credibility and investment from foreign partners.

Today, Korea no longer has to prove the legitimacy of its government, but the North Korea issue lingers, and like many other countries in the world, Korea has been hit with another economic crisis.

So we are working to let the world know how Korea’s quickly recovering from the crisis using its previous experience from the late 1990s. We are also working to promote Korea’s cultural aspects, since as a member of the OECD and the G-20, the country has a lot to offer culturally, too.

What Korean cultural content do you think is particularly viable in the global arena?

Korean food is one. There is a diversity in Korean food that is rarely seen in food in other countries. And that variety, along with richness in taste and quantity, has so much potential. We just have agree on how best to promote it overseas.

The Hallyu [Korean Wave] phenomenon is another. When I ask foreigners about the appeal of Korean films and dramas, they pick their lack of sexual and violent content and abundance of emotional and moral elements, which certainly set them apart from say, Hollywood films.

The Korean government’s green initiatives can also be utilized. Korea is a small country with high population density and few natural resources. Thus the government is extremely interested in eco-friendly, sustainable development. Green is the buzzword in the international community today. If we succeed in these initiatives, we could become an exemplary model for others.

Finding a linkage among these elements can also yield synergistic effects. One example would be a bicycle tour to take participants on Korean food tasting experiences in different regions. The green element would be the bicycles, and the cultural element, the food, and they would work synergistically to promote Korea and enhance its image.

How do foreigners perceive Korea? And how is the Korean Culture and Information Service working with these perceptions?

It seems that there are two very contrasting views on Korea.

At the one end of the spectrum is the negative perception that Korea is politically unstable because of the North Korean nuclear threat and that the economy is also weak and unpredictable due to factors like management-labor conflicts and protests.

At the other end of the spectrum is a sense of respect, even awe, for successful Korean-made goods and content like Samsung products or [the drama] “Jewel in the Palace.” This is often seen in regions in Southeast Asia, Central Asia or the Middle East.

I don’t want to call these perceptions stereotypes because they are, after all, what make up Korea. Instead I would call them partial, unbalanced views on Korea. In that sense, it is our responsibility to draw the whole picture of Korea for them, and offer facts on the rest of the spectrum.


There has been criticism of the official slogan “Dynamic Korea,” adopted by the government in 2001. Do you think it does a good job of representing Korea?

I am aware that there are both supporters and opponents of that slogan. One thing that cannot be ignored is the amount of research, work and money that went into creating that slogan. Another equally important thing is the brand recognition it has accumulated abroad over the years. In fact, “Dynamic Korea” is more famous abroad than here in Korea.

The key to a good slogan is coming to a consensus among ourselves about what facet of us we want to present to the world. Is it our 5,000-year history? Historic sites like Gyeongbok Palace? IT? A slogan is important, but no slogan can satisfy everyone. Some will like it and others are bound to hate it. All we can do is find consensus as best we can beforehand.

There are many government groups working to promote Korea and its culture: the Council on Nation Branding under the presidential office, the Korea Foundation under the Foreign Ministry, the Korea Tourism Organization, and others. Is this ever challenging for you?

The launch of those organizations was inevitable given circumstances in the past. But the situation has changed now. It seems that Korea has grown in body size, yet is still wearing old clothes. It’s crucial that we differentiate these group’s missions while centralizing efforts and strengthening networking.

As part of these efforts, we envision something like the British Council or the Japan Foundation. Its tentative name is the “Korea Center.” The center will centralize the nation’s PR efforts, which are now scattered, and enhance communication among organizations like the Culture Ministry, the Korea Tourism Organization and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency.

By Kim Hyung-eun, The JoongAng Daily

(Kim He-beom, Director of the Korean Culture and Information Service)

Source: joongangdaily.joins.com

South Africa 2010 communication: still no central message

South Africa 2010 communication: still no central message

Having attended the fourth and final National Communications Partnership (NCP) Conference last week, I hoped to gain clarity on the NCP's communications plan and my role as a communicator in delivering on that plan. Although feeling inspired to take on an active role, I'm still unsure of what that role will be and the central message is that the NCP wishes professional communicators to champion.



Despite being a brand leadership workshop for the communication industry, the session aimed to serve two functions: not only to debrief the industry on the Confederations Cup and provide a status update on the progress for 2010, but also to discuss and agree on a way forward for communication for 2010.

Holistic message

The partnership, consisting of the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS), the Local Organising Committee (LOC), FIFA, Brand South Africa, the National Tourism Board, and various communications agencies and stakeholders in the private and public sector, aims to drive a holistic message and create brand ambassadors in South Africa in acting as hosts to the world in 2010.

Everything made so much sense. If the practice of branding, and in this context nation branding, is essentially about creating consistency around the 2010 brand message, then mobilising and uniting people through a centralised message and calls to action that encourage citizens to act as brand ambassadors is a natural strategy.

The process, it seems, is well understood by those in control of our nation's 2010 communication; however, there is still no brand message.

Lot of talk

There was a lot of talk surrounding Germany's 2006 campaign, a nation-building campaign that united Germany and greatly improved the perception of Germans and Germany as a whole.

Quite simply, the campaign encouraged making friends. The ‘Time to Make Friends' campaign was honest, and spoke directly to the perception and relationship troubles that Germany had with the rest of the world and, most importantly, gave the German people the tools to literally, be friendly.

On top of this, the country launched a ‘Land of Ideas' campaign locally and internationally that positioned Germany as a cultural centre, and delivered on that external promise by investing large sums into arts and culture in the country.

It didn't matter which host city you went to; Munich, Frankfurt, Berlin, the messaging was consistent and the communication was coherent. It sung of one Germany, one voice. It was - by all accounts - a masterfully managed and delivered campaign.

What are we telling?

So in South Africa, what are we telling the rest of the world, for 2010?

With the exception of the ‘Diski Dance' campaign, the national tourism board is not creating any new campaigns, and using old positioning and campaigns with the 2010 logo stamped on them.

2010 provides us with an opportunity like no other to refocus our international positioning as we reach out to the millions of people visiting our country and the billions watching around the world and what are they going to see?

Well, so far no one knows.

In addition, South African Tourism will be using an American service provider to research and train 500 000 service industry staff (a debate for another day). Again, what will the campaign message be that aligns everyone in preparation for the delivery for service excellence? ‘Come and feel it?' ‘South Africa, It's Possible'?, ‘Welcome'?

No-one knows

Again, no-one knows.

At the end of the conference there was agreement on several symbols and calls to action that we can communicate and rally support for. The Diski Dance, Flying the Flag, learning and understanding the National Anthem, and support for Bafana Bafana were but a few.

However, none of these provide a great context; none of these adequately represent what South Africa has to offer the world. They are all sub-components of a bigger message - which, with less than 300 days to go, is unknown.

Dr Irvin Khosa said in his address at the NCP conference that he's not feeling it, there isn't enough hype and we need to get moving. Well, Dr Khosa. we aren't feeling it either.

It's time

So maybe it's time for the 2010 national communication partnership to dispense with the consultation and commit to a core message that as communication professionals and South Africans we can all get behind.

By: Karin Botta
Source: www.bizcommunity.com

Brand Sweden goes local

Szwecja rozpoczęła budowę swojej marki od działań na poziomie centralnym. W 2006 r. Rada Promocji Szwecji uruchomiła platformę brandingową dla swojego kraju. Platforma opisuje istotę komunikacji Szwecji na zewnątrz. Obecnie działania brandingowe schodzą o jeden poziom niżej - do miast i regionów. Więcej w artykule:


'Brand Sweden' goes local

Nation-branding, though controversial in some quarters, is becoming ever more important and can be of great value to towns and regions wishing to reach out to the wider world, writes Joakim Norén of the Swedish Institute.

Nowadays, a place is also a brand. But branding a place is fairly different from branding a product. For Swedish regions and municipalities, the “Brand Sweden” platform may make the job easier.

In 2006 The Council for the Promotion of Sweden (NSU*) launched a brand platform for Sweden. The NSU is a cooperation between the Swedish Institute, VisitSweden, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Invest in Sweden Agency and the Trade Council. The platform describes the essence that is the foundation or starting point for all official communication of Sweden abroad.



It is quite unique that organisations with such diverse missions from the government share a brand platform, and similar organisations from around the world have shown interest in the platform. The Swedish Institute has also noticed a growing interest from Swedish regions and municipalities, both to learn from the process of developing a brand platform with a broad group of interested parties and to relate to “Brand Sweden” when they develop their own brands.

Branding is becoming ever more important. For companies targeting the consumer market it’s a prerequisite, and for most business-to-business companies as well. But many still think that branding of places is a little bit strange, sometimes even controversial. However, places have as much to gain from a strong brand as products and services. And quite often product brands and place brands interact; you all know which country builds the best quality luxury cars or where the most cutting edge consumer electronics come from.

Branding of places has some additional challenges compared with branding of commercial products. Products can often be changed to fit a brand platform, something which is very difficult or impossible when it comes to a place. There is also a broader range of interested parties involved, who will have to contribute to realising the brand but also have something to benefit from a successful brand. A brand platform for a place needs to be accessible to the public and is therefore more likely to be questioned and criticised.

The Swedish regions and municipalities have far less resources to allocate for branding than the NSU, so sharing the experience from developing “Brand Sweden” is a good way for the Swedish Institute to help them move forward in this process. In the spring of 2009, the Swedish Institute arranged a seminar together with Geobrands, where we presented the brand platform for Sweden together with some insights into how the national brand can be interpreted and used on a local or regional level.

For the regions and municipalities it is essential to know how Sweden is perceived abroad for their own branding efforts, and they wouldn’t be able to afford to carry out all the research that the Swedish Institute does. Sharing this information broadly is also a way for the Swedish Institute to reach its target of a stronger, clearer and more up-to-date image for Sweden abroad.

Brand Sweden is the sum of all encounters between people around the world and anything Swedish – products, people, culture or actual visits to Sweden. The key to a clear and strong national brand is not only in what message the Swedish institute or the rest of the NSU send out, but what all Swedish regions, product brands, people, etc do and say.

For example, companies like Volvo and Ikea have done a great job of positioning Sweden as a country that makes products where design and innovation is really used for the benefit of ordinary people. If we can get more Swedish organisations to share and use the Brand Sweden platform and communicate the unique values and the position that sets Sweden apart in the world, it will surely benefit both the image of Sweden in general and any brand associated with Sweden.

Author: Joakim Norén, Brand Development Manager, Swedish Institute
Source: www.thelocal.se

Country branding for unity and growth (Kenya)

W kolejnym afrykańskim kraju, tym razem w Kenii, zaczyna się ponowna dyskusja o marce tego kraju. Posiadanie pozytywnego wizerunku na arenie międzynarodowej może pomóc w utrzymaniu silnej gospodarki, nawet w przypadku niewielkich perturbacji politycznych. Ciekawy artykuł CEO jednej z agencji ze Wschodniej Afryki.

Country branding for unity and growth

The current political standoff and intolerance is threatening to erode the major economic gains that Kenya has achieved over the past five years. Not only is the situation affecting logistics within the country, it is also affecting our hard-earned international image.



Whereas we had reached a point where Kenya was seen as a case study in political tranquility and economic stability, we are now being showcased in the international media as a war torn economic time bomb. One solution to counter this is to create a strong country brand.

Why brand a country

Much has been said in the past about Brand Kenya but not much has been done, possibly because only a few people could understand the power of branding for a nation like Kenya. A strong focused country brand strategy not only strengthens the international image of a nation, but it also realigns the citizen's mindset about their country and speeds up healing and reconciliation.

Currently Kenya is experiencing strong economic growth of approximately 7% and this is projected to continue growing, especially if we rapidly upgrade our road network. However, the upgrade of infrastructure will provide only part of the desired growth. It will get us to double digit growth but may not keep us there. Countries like Singapore and South Africa that have been through similar situations also realised that one way to enhance their growth beyond what will be provided by improved infrastructure, is country branding. Just like in the world of product brands, country branding can position a country way above its peers, even though both may have the same offering. Ireland and Scotland are widely acknowledged as having created country brands that punch far above their natural weight.

Principles of country branding

The principles of branding apply in equal measure to countries as they do to corporations; the only difference is the methods applied. Countries compete daily with neighbouring countries or block regions for tourism, inward investment and export sales. Due to the limited amount of business available in the global market those countries that do not develop and hone a competitive edge will find it difficult to boost their commercial success beyond a certain level. Countries that have an unknown or poor reputation will find themselves limited or marginalised. Consequently they will always languish at the bottom of the influence ladder at regional economic summits.

Germany, a country that has been at the centre of two world wars, today has a clear and positive reputation, whereby products made in Germany have a certain aura of meticulous engineering. The added brand equity they possess by originating in Germany opens door and wins contracts. According to statistics on the European car business, the vehicle of choice for the mass market in each country is largely indigenous brands; for example Citroen and Renault in France and Seat in Spain. However, when a second car is required, more often than not it's a German brand.

Creating a branding programme for a country requires an integration policy that most countries do not possess. This entails the ability to act and speak in a coordinated and repetitive way about themes that are the most motivating and differentiating for a country.

The benefits of consistent and professional country branding can be observed in every region, including the ability to win more investment business because the country image says the right things about taxation, labour skills, safety, the environment and political stability. It also gives weight to the “made in” label because it will positively aid the sale of products in foreign markets. Furthermore, it builds up patriotism and pride that goes far beyond personal political opinions and inclinations.

Developing a country brand

To develop a country brand you require having the cooperation and involvement of representatives of government, business, the arts, education and importantly the media. Usually the media will be keen to be involved because it gives them the opportunity to objectively settle some scores on unfair attacks by foreign media. The media also enable fast and uniform dissipation of the country brand message to the general populace.

Using qualitative and quantitative research methodologies you also need to find out how your country is perceived both internally by citizens and externally by people abroad who you want to influence. You should also consult with opinion leaders on the countries strengths and weaknesses and compare their views with the research information gathered.

Similar to how brand strategies are developed for corporations; the research information is collated and analysed using professional brand strategy models. This enables the development of a brand idea and positioning that positively and clearly differentiates the country from any other. The brand idea enables the development of messaging to the various audiences previously identified. The message created for tourism will be different from that created for investment; however they will both portray the same overall brand positioning.

The most difficult part of country branding is on the ground roll out. You should work out a programme to make the strategy tangible through improvement projects. For example, people want their country to have the best physical impression at ports of entry, city centres, entertainment venues etc.

A major challenge is to create a system that links together the different organisations and departments that drive implementation of your brand strategy, without making it look too governmental, because people will instinctively avoid working with it. In addition to this the government needs to drive support for the initiative but shouldn't try to take all the accolades, otherwise all you will end up with is a number of re-branded ministries and government bodies.

Most of all, to be successful, it is actions that really count. You cannot impose branding on a country, but you can find out the aspects that appeal to the widest group of people and which are different and special. The execution of the strategy takes time but you have to be consistent, building an integrated picture and always backing it with quality. The consistency in execution should not be affected by the day to day changes in the political atmosphere.

These same principles and methodologies of country branding can be applied to a city or an economic region. Two great examples of city branding are New York and Jo'burg. Visitors to these cities tend to state the name of the city as opposed to the country when they are discussing their trip. The same can be done for Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu cities.

By: Richard Mukoma (Chief executive at Interbrand Sampson East Africa)
Source: www.bizcommunity.com

Korea starts running an ad on advanced technologies

Korea już prawie od 10 lat działa na rzecz budowy silnej marki swojego kraju, właśnie pod kątem gospodarczym, kładąc duży nacisk na markowy eksport związany z nowymi technologiami. W 2000 r. ówczesny Minister Handu, Przemysłu i Energetyki zapowiedział, że rząd będzie wspierał tworzenie marek narodowych, aby gospodarka Korei była bardziej konkurencyjna na arenie międzynarodowej (tworząc m.in. 'Design and Brand Policy Division’). W 2002 r., podczas mistrzostw w piłce nożnej FIFA World Cup rozgrywanych w Korei, zaprezentowane zostało logo i hasło, za pomocą którego Korea prowadziła potem działania promocyjne.



Obecnie planowana jest duża, międzynarodowa kampania, która ma wzmacniać wizerunek Korei jako kraju o innowacyjnej gospodarce, produkującego zaawansowane technologicznie produkty.

The Korean government plans to start running an ad featuring Korea's indigenous and advanced technologies on international news media such as CNN and BBC, beginning from the middle of September, a source said Sunday.

The ad is aimed at promoting Korea's technologies for WiBro wireless data transmission, flat-screen televisions and other telecommunication areas where Korean firms have an edge over global competitors.

The government will also run the ad in a local newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Penn., targeting participants of the Group of 20 (G20) Summit, which will take place in the U.S. city from Sept. 24 to 25.

``We've made the ad for global media as part of efforts to embolden Korea's image as a technological powerhouse,'' the source from the Presidential Council on Nation Branding said. ``The ad will also be helpful for Korean technology firms seeking to raise their global positions.''

He hoped the ad will open the way for Korean ``hidden champions,'' the little-known but powerful small firms equipped with the world's best technologies, to draw more global attention and boost their sales.

In addition, the government is considering setting up public relations offices at major airports and exhibition centers around the world to promote the competitive small firms abroad, according to the council.

By Na Jeong-ju, Staff Reporter

www.koreatimes.co.kr

Finlandia wzmacnia swoją markę

Pod koniec zeszłego roku Minister Spraw Zagranicznych Finlandii powołał zespół ekspercki pod przewodnictwem Prezesa Zarządu Nokii i Shela - Jorma Ollila - by wzmocnić markę kraju. Co robi Minister z naszego MSZ podczas spotkania o brandigu Polski (http://www.brief4poland.pl/aktualnosci/art384...) - wychodzi po godzinie bo ma inne, ważniejsze zobowiązania !

Guardians of our national reputation

What do those foreigners really think about the Finns?
I am not joking. I am not being sarcastic. I am serious. I really want to know what those foreigners think about us Finns. I also want them to think something quite magnificent of us.

Finland's most overly-cultivated cliche is that we Finns are pathologically interested in what foreigners think of us.

The other 192 countries in the world supposedly have no such concerns. The reason is that Finns while are plagued by weak but that other nations are not.
Poppycock!

The reality is quote the reverse: we Finns pay far too little heed to what others think of us. We are arrogant and pathologically self-assured, and we imagine that others admire our northern plot of land as much as we do ourselves.

Fortunately the Finnish government has finally understood that it is not possible to get very far with such an attitude. Minister for Foreign Affairs Alexander Stubb appointed a working group last week to think about a Finnish national brand - that is, the image, or reputation of the country. The group of 18 wise persons is chaired by Jorma Ollila, chairman of the boards of both Nokia and Shell.
As competition intensifies, Finland will not be able to afford not to care about how others see it. A strong country image creates success and well-being, the proponents claim.



Not too little, but perhaps too late?
In other countries national brands have been nurtured since the beginning of the decade. The Estonians are pioneers, and right behind them come the Swedes and the Danes. In Britain and Germany - you know, those two West European countries that appear rather often in the media - the image of the countries has been honed consistently for years.

The aim of establishing a stronger national brand is that when a foreigner hears the word “Finland”, many pleasant thoughts will pop into that person’s mind. The more positive the thoughts raised by the word “Finland”, the stronger Finland’s brand, or reputation will be.

If a country’s brand is especially strong, a foreigner will go batty every time he or she is exposed to a stimulus involving Finland. The foreigner will want to buy Finnish products, to travel (if not actually move) to Finland, to agree with Finnish opinions on international arenas, and to be the Finns’ best friend in other ways as well.

Even a large country can have problems with its national image.
In France a few years ago, Germany sought to brand itself as a sexy country. “We could do all kinds of nice things together”, the Germans indicated to the French, tired as they were of having a reputation of being mainly engineers. In Britain, Germany’s national brand campaign focussed on something completely different: Germany is more than just the Second World War.

The mission of Ollila and his partners will take more than two years. It is a short time to set a brand for an entire state.

Furthermore, country brands are not established through administrative decisions, or through any other decisions, for that matter. National images are mostly based on random and coincidental events, whose significance is understood only in retrospect.

Or as Simon Anholt, the British pioneer of nation branding, said: “National image is like starlight which, by the time it reaches us on Earth, is only the distant echo of an event that started and finished long before.”
Nevertheless, Ollila’s working group would do well to put some speed in its work. I want my neighbours to start whispering as soon as possible: “She’s a Finn. We were lucky!”

Until then I’ll have to boost Finland’s national brand on my own. It’s terribly difficult, having to think about what others think.

Annamari Sipilä / Helsingin Sanomat

To visit IKEA is to visit Sweden

Marki krajów i komercyjne często są ze sobą powiązane. Marki komercyjne zasilają markę kraju z którego pochodzą, i odwrotnie. Ma to tym większe znaczenie im wartości marek komercyjnych są bliższe marce kraju (Apple i USA - innowacje, technologia), Giorgio Armani i Włochy (moda i styl) oraz BMW i Niemcy (niezawodność, jakość).

Poniżej przykład symbiozy marki IKEI ze Szwecją (artykuł, niestety po angielski, zaciągnięty z Public Diplomacy Magazine, autor: Olle Wästberg).

The Symbiosis of Sweden & IKEA

Frankly, IKEA is doing more for the image of Sweden than all governmental efforts combined.

That might be a sad statement coming from a governmental official tasked with enforcing “the brand of Sweden.” But IKEA’s 285 stores in 37 countries feature the blue-and-yellow national colors, serve Swedish meatballs and sell blond-wood Swedish designs and books about Sweden. To visit IKEA is to visit Sweden.

Every “nation brand” is a simplification. But even though it may be paradoxical in a globalized world, most countries have found that they must stress their individuality to be able to compete. Reputation is the new currency now that countries are beginning to understand that soft power can be more forceful than the hard power that has so often failed.



Enhancing Sweden’s image involves creating a clear position for Sweden internationally – a unique place in people’s consciousness that distinguishes Sweden from other countries. Specifically, we, Sweden’s image makers, must define what unites all things Swedish, and also dare to identify the associations people around the world make with Sweden. The leading Swedish agencies dealing with “Sweden” – the Swedish Trade Council, Visit Sweden, Invest in Sweden Agency and the Swedish Institute – have together established a mutual brand platform, which places the word “progressive” in the center, with four core values around it:



To elaborate, four words represent these core values:

Innovative means new ways of thinking. Seeing things from a new perspective. Seeing opportunities and solutions and having faith in a better future. Not allowing oneself to be limited by ingrained opinions or traditions.

Open means having a positive attitude toward free thinking and differences among people, cultures and lifestyles. It involves being curious and sensitive to others as well as giving people space and creating exchanges; space for the ideas and views of individuals, as well as physical space to move freely without obstacles, fences, or crowding, in our readily accessible countryside, cities and places in between.

Caring means safeguarding every individual. Providing safety and security as well as respecting and including all people. It means feeling empathy and sharing with those who are most vulnerable; becoming involved with others and trying to see to the needs of every individual.

Authentic means being natural and unaffected. It means being reliable, honest and informal. It also involves being straightforward, unpretentious and clear, as well as standing up for one’s values even when it is not comfortable to do so. To be authentic means to be in touch with your past and your roots, while open to the future.

This might not be entirely unique, but the combination says a lot about Sweden and research shows that these are values that people from other countries associate with Sweden.

IKEA fits very well in that context. The company has been a forerunner in corporate social responsibility, putting emphasis on the working conditions of their contractors as well as on sustainability. The IKEA brand could very well be categorized by the same progressive descriptors as the public diplomacy platform of Sweden outlined above.

The brand of IKEA is not independent; it is closely interlinked with the image of Sweden, drawing from Swedish design innovation going back more than a hundred years. It is not by chance that The Museum of Modern Art in New York last year published the book Modern Swedish Design: Three Founding Texts, which presented the first English translations of three seminal texts by pioneers of Swedish design. The three founding texts are “Beauty in the Home” (1899), by the philosopher and critic Ellen Key; “Better Things for Everyday Life” (1919), by Gregor Paulsson, art historian and director of the Swedish Arts and Crafts Society from 1920 to 1934; and “acceptera” (1931), co-authored by Paulsson and the architects Gunnar Asplund, Sven Markelius, Eskil Sundahl, Uno Åhrén and Wolter Gahn.

Those texts were written long before IKEA was established and were part of what founded the international view of Swedish design: spartan and blond, which may have communicated a national character, if such a thing exists.

The Stockholm Exhibition in 1930 established the term “functionalism” which has since been dominant in Swedish design and architecture, even though Sweden also has its neoclassical buildings. Function, not decoration, is the framework for what could be called the typical Swedish design creed.

On another level, the book Sweden: the Middle Way by the American journalist Marquis Childs had an enormous impact on the image of Sweden, especially in the U.S., and sold several editions in 1936. The book painted Sweden as the ultimate compromise between capitalism and socialism, a sort of paradise where basic class conflicts were gone. It offered a social design that interplayed very well with functionalism. This has been beneficial for Sweden. However, it is largely a stereotype, as today’s Sweden is one of the most market-oriented countries in the world.

Does Sweden use design as a tool for nation branding today? Yes, the Swedish Institute continuously has exhibitions of Swedish design that travel the globe. Sweden is a small country, about the size of California, with a population equivalent to New York City, and a GNP the size of New Jersey. To be successful from that small base, Swedish companies must add value and special knowledge to their products. Some companies have learned the hard way that neglecting design will hurt. Ericsson’s problems with cellular lines at the end of the 1990s were the result of the engineer-driven company’s late realization that people first looked at the surface, before inquiring about the content of the product. Consider products made of alcohol distilled from potatoes—often called “vodka.” Absolut, with its well designed bottle and brilliant ad campaign, has made that simple product an international status symbol, proving how well design can work.

It’s obvious that Sweden’s nation branding is linked to Swedish design. When the U.S. established its embassies and consulates in a devastated Europe after World War II, it built transparent modern buildings with many glass windows that were meant to send the message that the U.S. is an open, democratic society. Similarly, when Sweden built the new House of Sweden in Washington D.C. a couple of years ago, a driving focus was to showcase contemporary design. Designed by the architect Gert Wingårdh, the building is a combined embassy, exhibition hall and meeting place. It incarnates Sweden.

But Sweden can still do more to showcase its aesthetic innovations while its official representatives could be much more consistent in the details. Does everyone who represents Sweden drive a Volvo and carry an Ericsson cell? Is every embassy furnished with the latest in Swedish furniture design? Regrettably, no. You would have to search long and hard to find IKEA furniture at embassies or consulates.

For business, the image of a country can be decisive. Simply put: if you just have a couple of minutes to present your product, it helps if you don’t need to use that scarce time to explain the nature of its origin. In fact, the country of origin could actually add to the value of a product—a phenomenon sometimes called “the country of origin effect.”

I recently met with the CEO of Volvo Trucks. He told me that, clearly, Volvo is very affected by the image of Sweden. Both because Volvo as a brand is so interlinked with Sweden, but also because Volvo needs to entice some of the best car engineers to move to Gothenburg. Therefore Sweden has to spread the image of a country that is nice to live, study and work in (which actually, according to Simon Anholt’s Nation Brands Index studies, is one of the areas where Sweden excels).

The Swedish Institute is in the process of forming a network of companies wanting to use place branding as a marketing tool. It goes both ways: Sweden benefits from the way IKEA markets itself; and IKEA is one of the companies that benefits most from the image of Sweden. IKEA would not be IKEA without its Swedish background.

Autor:
Olle Wästberg is the Director-General of the Swedish Institute, a public agency entrusted with disseminating knowledge abroad about Sweden and organizing exchanges with other countries in the spheres of culture, education, research and public life in general. He was previously Editor-in-Chief of the daily newspaper Expressen, Member of Parliament, State Secretary of Finance, and Consul-General of Sweden in New York.