1. Country Promotion and Image Building Process Training Programme on Commercial and Economic Diplomacy 22 August 2007 Gautam Mahajan Inter-Link Services Pvt. Ltd K185 Sarai Jullena, New Delhi 110065 mahajan@interlinkindia.net

2. The Process Who is the Customer What do Customers Want Creating value for the Customer and Thereby, building image of country –Value –Brand Image/Brand/Value are perceptions

3. Target Audience Who is your Customer?

4. Target Audience Who is your Customer? –Countries –Lending Banks –Organizations –Companies –Individuals

5. Organization Structure

7. Needs of Target Audience Waterfall of Needs Attribute Tree Value Map

8. When is help Needed? Not thinking of India Thinking of India Entering India Project Implementation During project lifetime Evolving Process: Needed within India and Outside

9. What do the Targets Want? Information Help Resolution of Issues

10. Information General or generic –Call centres –Web sites –Books/presentations –Media Specific –Where information can be obtained

11. Help Help Desks –Including where to go –What to do –Build resource companies Example: Go to ……..

12. Resolutions of Issues Tax Legal Visa

13. Image First Impressions Easy to find and reach First point of contact –Knowledgeable –Helpful –Prompt –Keep promises Call Back –Build a relationship

14. What Do Customers Want? Accessibility Responsiveness Knowledgeable People Promptness Promises Kept Kept Informed Follow Up No Surprises Do It Right A Relationship

15. What has Changed 2-3 years ago vs. Today Problems remain the same Perception has changed WHY? HOW?

16. Image Time is of Essence What do investors want? –Can they make money –Examples Positive Helpful Progressive Issues of negative image

17. Competitive World Good touches and information –Often first point of contact –First impression of Country –Investment in India increases company’s exports Build the positives Blunt the Negatives

18. Swadeshi Slow Pedantic Bureaucracy n red tape Infrastructure political uncertainties Non tariff barriers Not trustworthy Quality issues Tarriffs Sanctimonius MNC product bashing Communal tensions Slow reforms Bloated Gov’t spending Corruption

19. Defuse current happenings…terrorism, Indians in bombing, Dabhol. Slow, bureaucratic, red tape Invite to visit, reference sites Take them to –GE medical R&D lab in Bangalore –HP centre that builds cutting-edge telecommunication software –ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation), HAL –IITs, Infosys etc. etc. Show them once, show them again and when they've seen it all, show it to them again. Show them, Wow them!

20. Promotion Brand Ambassadors –Bill Gates, Larry Ellison, Jeff Inmelt, Craig Barrett Build local Ambassadors, small and big Local businessmen Start Friends of India Bankers Could be in India Newsletters

21. Whom to Target Newspapers –Plant articles PR Firms Opinion Leaders –Colleges –Companies –Etc. Indian NRIs and Leaders

22. Get People to Visit Promote –Business Tourism –Medical Tourism –Educators –Students –Sports –Opinion Makers –People to People contact India Investments abroad –Indian investors, Mittal, Corus –TIE

23. Brand Image is what represents India or what people think is India Brand is like a mark, a symbol, an identity –Is brand important, or is image? –The country name is the brand Brand image? Country image? Country identity Brand/Country equity –Emotional Value –Reputation What impacts Brand? How strong is a brand

24. What Impacts Brand India Indians (businessmen included) must be positive about India Those who deal with India Country products, product brands Central Message –India on the Roll –Ignore India at Your own Peril Complete campaign of all concerned –Image building

25. What Impacts brand? Indians themselves Bureaucrats/Cosular and Commercial services Involvement –Former Ambassadors –Former Commercial Attaches –India Lovers –Tourism –Networking Sell India –Americans never learnt to sell themselves –Conferences, Trade Fairs/ Buyer Seller Meets –Success stories Bilateral Chambers of Commerce –American Chamber –Indo American Camber of Commerce –In USA fragmented

26. Brand = Trust Image? Experience Bazaar Buzz Association with

28. What you can Do You and your people should project India’s Image Change –Attitude Be accessible, knowledgeable, helpful, reliable and positive

29. What you can Do What you can do –People Friendly Helpful Non bureaucratic Proactive Knowledgeable –Visa –Promotion

30. Just do things right Project a good image Be available and friendly (including your staff) Answer queries and mail Don’t forget you are India’s Ambassadors Streamline your processes And be helpful to other potential Ambassadors

31. Just Do Things Right Learn to say No, positively