Country Promotion and Image Building Process Bipul Chatterjee

What is it? Strategic marketing to promote a countrys image The need for countries to brand themselves on four different dimensions: tourism, public diplomacy, exports and foreign direct investment Three important things to remember: State branding is no longer a choice but a necessity No longer a function to be performed by the state or individual companies but to be an integrated efforts by all interested stakeholders Soft power

How relevant? Consumers and investors rely heavily on country images to make their economic decisions. Effective state branding not only serves to re-impose positive images but also helps to fight negative ones A major factor of competitiveness in world markets

Country Image vs. Country Identity Country image is a mental picture of a country – beliefs and impressions people hold about places. Country identity is what a country believes it is.

Four Dimensions of State Branding Tourism: Mass marketing approaches by government and industry associations Public diplomacy: Range of interactions on the part of a government with not only its counterparts but primarily with non-governmental individuals and organisations aimed at furthering its image and reputation through mutual understanding. Export: Promotional activities carried out by exporters with government and industry associations acting as facilitators Investment: Personal selling nature rather than mass marketing

Public Diplomacy How a country manages its reputation abroad Three dimensions of public diplomacy: Communication on day-to-day issues – aligning traditional diplomacy with the news cycle Strategic communication – managing overall perception of a country Developing lasting relationships with key individuals through various means

Recommendations for Public Diplomacy Governments should engage with mass audiences not through embassies on the ground but working through foreign correspondents in capitals Governments need to change the tone of public diplomacy, so that it is less about winning arguments and more about engagement Public diplomacy should be focused on the countries that are more relevant to a countrys interests Conspicuous government involvement in public diplomacy can be counter-productive; working through third parties (NGOs, diasporas) is more likely to build trust

Doing Business in India BrazilS. Africa ChinaIndiaOECD Starting a business (% gross national income per capita) Dealing with licenses (Procedures and days) 19 (460) 17 (174) 20 (270) 29 (367) 14 (150) Cost to export (US$ per container and days) 895 (18) 850 (31) 335 (18) 864 (27) 811 (11) Registering property (Procedures and days) 14 (47) 6 (23) 3 (32) 6 (62) 5 (32) Enforcing a contract (Procedures and days) 42 (616) 26 (600) 31 (292) 56 (1420) 22 (351) Closing a business (Year) Overall Rank