Country Branding: Australia - Essay Example

? Country Branding: Australia Inserts His/Her Inserts Grade Inserts (09, September, Introduction The past century has seen a rapid increase in trade and financial integration of the world. Countries are now dependent on one another and no country can survive seclusion. Countries are now focusing on their core competence meaning they are producing goods in which they have a competitive advantage over other countries. For other goods they are dependent on other countries and this has given rise to global integration. In such times it is becoming increasingly important to focus of country branding. It is important to build a brand name of the country like a product so that the country can attract tourist and foreign investment. Also country branding informs the world about the core competence of the country and this aid export of the economy. Building a brand for a country is also important because it helps improve the perception of the world about that particular country. In this essay we will talk about country branding with regards to Australia. Advantages and disadvantages of branding of Australia will be discussed and a strategic plan for country bran ding of Australia will also be given. The future of Australia country brand will also be evaluated in the essay. Background and Information Australia is based in the South hemisphere and constitutes most of the Australian continent of the world. Australia is a developed country with a highly urbanized population. The economy of the county is also extremely strong and Australia is placed 13th in the list of world’s largest economies (IMF, 2010). The country has also sophisticated and educated population that is responsible for the social development of the country. Democratic institutions are strong in Australia and there is political stability in the country. The country is also very safe for investment because of the peace and prosperity. The population of the country is very low and this is one of the problems Australia is facing. This is one of the reasons why country branding is important for Australia. The country has to attract foreign immigrants and skilled people in order to keep its economy running. The population of Australia is not increasing at a great pace so they have no other option but to attract immigrants. The country also has to create a brand image that should attract skilled labour. It is important to understand that skilled labour is very rare in the world therefore it is not easy to attract foreigners with specific skills. The culture of Australia is also extremely diverse and there are many different culture practiced in the country. This cultural diversity is creating certain ethical rifts in the country. There have been seen some racially motivated incidents in the country which are tarnishing the reputation of the country. Such events might resist skilled immigrants from coming to the country. These events are also a sign that cultural tensions exist in the country. Advantages of Country Branding In today’s business environment branding is extremely important. It is important to develop a brand for a product or service because it allows companies to capture profits. Value creation is not limited to product or service provided but brand name is also included in value creation. Country branding is therefore important for a country because it serves many benefits of the country. Country branding attracts tourist from all over the world. Countries that are well branded attract many tourists from all over the world (Future Brands, 2009). This is an important source of revenue for many countries. Foreigners when visiting countries sell their domestic currency to buy the currency of that country. This is beneficial for the currency of a country as well. Country branding enhances the brand image of the country in the eyes of the tourist. All countries have few or many tourist destinations but it is important to market these destinations in proper manner and country branding serves this purpose. Country branding is beneficial for Australia because it needs to attract immigrants. Skilled people will only come and work in a country that will offer peace, prosperity and opportunities. All these things have to be advertised in order to create an impression on these people. Country branding can help create a positive image of the country. Foreign direct investment is also very important for any economy because it helps in job creation. When firms set up businesses new jobs are created for the local people. Alongside with job creation foreign direct investment is pivotal in increasing competition in the local economy. An increase in competition leads to higher level of efficiency which is ultimately beneficial for the end users. Foreign direct investment can also become a good source of taxes for the country (Hartman, 2002). For all these reasons foreign direct investment should be attracted and country branding helps in achieving this. Country branding also allows a country a dominant position in the world political scene. By branding a country perceptions about a particular country can be changed and these perceptions can help a country in international relations. Not everyone in the world will come and visit Australia rather they will go on the internet or believe in the hearsay about how good the country itself is. Now country branding is all about managing this perception of the people. It helps create a positive image of the country in the eyes of everyone so that people should know that Australia is the country to visit. Disadvantages of Country Branding Country branding also have certain disadvantages. Branding of a product or service or even a country is based on certain strong points. These strong points are advertised in order to change the perception of the target market about the product, service or country. Unfortunately country branding is not beneficial for small business and services which are not prevalent in the country. The focus of every economy is on a few industries and country branding is also done keeping these industries in mind. The rest of the industries can suffer as a result of country branding and this is a major disadvantage of country branding. Another disadvantage of country branding for Australia is that it may not result in attraction of skilled immigrants. Unskilled immigrants might enter into the country due to the positive and prosperous image of Australia, and this will do the country no good. It is vital that only people who can make a positive contribution to the Australian society might come in and this is where country branding is helpful because it attracts all kinds of people to the country and not just skilled people. Strategic Plan for Country Branding The first step of country branding is the identification of strengths and weaknesses of the country involved. These strengths will be marketed heavily in order to associate the name of the country with these strengths. It is also important to understand the weaknesses of the country so that perceptions of the people can be turned around. Australia is a prosperous country with high level of peace and stability. The life style of the people of the country is also higher than average. These are the positive points of Australia and they should be part of country branding plan. The recent wave of racially motivated acts of violence is negative points of Australia and this should be countered in order to ensure people that the country is safe. Four factors should play a vital role in promotion of a country brand. These factors are macro trends, target groups, competitors, and core competencies (Gilmore, 2002). All these four factors should be promoted as a part of branding strategy of the country. For example high level of consumption is a macroeconomic trend in Australia and this should be advertised heavily. Target groups are skilled labour and entrepreneurs that are required by Australia. Competitors of Australia are United Kingdom, United States, New Zealand, and Canada. All these countries also posses similar strengths as that of Australia therefore Australia should attempt to differentiate itself from these countries. Core competencies of Australia are the natural resources of the country, agricultural commodities and wine (Wine Australia, 2010). All these things must constitute the brand of Australia. Choosing a medium for the marketing of a country brand is also important. Internet has made life easy for marketers because of the easy access it provides to everyone. Internet should be mainly used in order to market all the above mentioned points and factors. Australian government have made a website that is a good move in establishing a brand of the country (Australian Government, 2011). But more need to be done in this regard because website cannot reach everyone. Country branding involves making advertisements that should cater to demand of the target groups. This advertisement can play a pivotal role in attracting people in the country. Country branding involves people speaking to people of the other countries (Szondi, 2008). This should guide any country branding strategy and the message should be seen as coming from the people of the country and not the government. This will also help in clearing the image of the country with regards to racial violence. Future of Australia as a Country Brand The future of Australia as a country brand is bright because the government is moving in the right direction. More focus should be on advertising the brand of the country in order to enhance the perception of the country in the eyes of the rest of the world. Country branding is the only solution to the problems of Australian people. The country is facing a massive deficit of labour and this trend will continue to exist in future. This is why country branding should become a priority for the country. Marketing of country brands are often underutilized because country branding is not understood properly (Papadopoulos & Heslop, 2002). Australian government should understand the aims and objectives of country branding, and then a branding strategy should be implemented. Marketing is only one aspect of country branding and this should not be ignored. People who enter into the desired industries should be treated in a way so as to attract more people in future years. Conclusion Country branding has become extremely important in today’s world because of the increased globalization and dearth of skilled labour. Countries are also trying to attract foreign investment so that jobs are created for the local people. Australia is in dire need of skilled immigrants because the population of the country is very low. In order to achieve its goal Australian government should develop a brand of Australia and market it in order to enhance the image of the country in the eyes of the target groups. Bibliography Australian Government. 2011. About Australia. Accessed on September 7, 2011 from http://australia.gov.au/ Gilmore, F. 2002. A country — can it be repositioned? Spain — the success story of country branding. The Journal of Brand Management, 9(4): 281-293 Hartman, David, G. 2002. Tax policy and foreign direct investment. Journal of Public Economics, 26(1): 107-121 International Monetary Fund. 2011. Gross Domestic Product of Countries List. Accessed on September 7, 2011 from www.imf.org Koniszczer, Gustavo. 2011. Can Latin America be a brand? Future Brand. Accessed on September 7, 2011 from http://fblog.futurebrand.com/brand-latin-america-english-version/ Papadopoulos & Heslop. 2002. Country equity and country branding: Problems and prospects. The Journal of Brand Management, 9(5): 294-314 Szondi, Gyorgy. 2008. Public Diplomacy and Nations Branding: Conceptual Similarities and Differences, Netherlands Institute of International Relations ‘Clingendael’. Accessed on September 7, 2011 from http://ftp.clingendael.nl/publications/2008/20081022_pap_in_dip_nation_branding.pdf Wine Australia. 2010. Home Wine Australia. Accessed on September 7, 2011 from http://www.wineaustralia.com/australia/ Read More