Let’s face it. While Asian countries are making strides to increase foreign aid by launching cultural missions and streaming millions into tourism, one area that tends to be overlooked as an influencer to a country’s global authority is the power of brands.
Either collectively – for example Swiss cheese, Belgium chocolates, Dutch Tulips, French wines or German automobiles – or as a particular force, such as yahoo, Georgio Armani or the Reuters, brands can play a significant role in how a country is perceived.
Solid branding
However, with the exception of Japanese and Korean electronics and car manufacturers, Asian brands still fall far behind their American and European counterparts in this regard.
According to Martin Roll, Asian Branding Guru, Sri Lanka can push for solid branding through its national carrier, SriLankan Airlines. “About 20% of Singapore’s country brand equity comes from Singapore Airlines. Sri Lanka can emulate this through its national carrier. Sri Lanka can be the ‘talk of the town’ through SriLankan Airlines as the airline can promote the country’s tea, cinnamon, culture, etc,” he told the Business Times on the sidelines of a strategic branding seminar for top corporates this week. He added that SriLankan can show the world what Sri Lanka is all about.
He held that a country’s branding refers to a process in which a country claims a conspicuous positioning in the minds of its citizens and the global customers.
To claim such a positioning, the country does a lot of coordination and integration of a whole host of actions. He said that all countries (listed above) created an intricate network of alliances with their cities, their unique cultures, their people and cuisines, and their unique national heritage and exotic places.
Singapore Girl
Mr. Roll said that branding trajectories are closely attached to a country’s economic situation, regulatory frameworks, dominant cultural roots and the customer mindsets.
He noted that when choosing one of the strongest brands from Asia chances are that Singapore Airlines (SIA) and its long-serving, almost iconic Singapore Girl easily come to mind. “SIA has consistently been one of the most profitable airlines globally, and has always had the reputation of a trendsetter and industry challenger.
There are several good reasons for this. Most relates straight to the strong brand management driven primarily by the SIA boardroom and top-management, and the strong brand equity as the result of a committed, professional brand strategy right through a diversified, global organisation,” he added.
Mr. Roll said that somehow an airline is a country’s identity and with the dawn of peace, Sri Lanka can showcase its unique selling proposition through the airline. “It’s a wake up call.”
Low cost is becoming a commodity
He said low cost is becoming a commodity in Asia and it’s also a strategic challenge. “Trading mindset, less focus on innovation and dominance of large, diversified conglomerates are also challenges,” he added.
He said that mindsets and practices need to change in the Asian boardroom - from a tactical view to a long-term, strategic perspective, from fragmented marketing activities to totally aligned branding activities, from a vision of branding as the sole responsibility of marketing managers to branding as the most essential function of the firm led by the boardroom.
“Right now marketers are lame ducks and they need to be elevated to the boardroom,” he added. Mr Roll was in Sri Lanka this week to address two high-powered seminars on branding.
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