Brand Australia – The best outcome?
I’m watching the ‘Brand Australia’ project with great interest. More than 60 of Australia’s best brand and advertising agencies have replied to a public tender. There have been recent calls to bring back Paul Hogan and get across the Aussie ‘Fair Go’ attitude that was portrayed in the 80’s campaign to boost Australian tourism. A campaign that was so successful Australia has struggled to be taken seriously as a brand with strong business and political credentials.
The public call isn’t new. London has also called a public tender. Their issue is the fragmentation of the London brand. Agencies have adopted a number of approaches in tackling the problem (including crowdsourcing), not all have been successful.
While the London problem might be weighted towards a design solution, the Australian problem certainly isn’t. Those who think it is, should have a closer look at the brief. In a nutshell, Australia is calling for:
A clear vision of how Australia should be seen by the rest of the world in the 21st century…to build a contemporary national brand – one which captures the essence of Australia – not just a great place to visit but a great place to live, work, and invest – a trusted trading partner and a great place to pursue an education. Beyond a slogan that delivers on the ongoing promotion of Australia as a global tourist destination, but promoting Australia as a nation producing quality products and services across a diverse field of activities. An innovative nation and a quality supplier to the world of key products such as clean energy and clean food.
So, not just a logo or a slogan. I hope that the agencies pitching take note. I also hope that the rest of Australia recognises this. It’s not a country brand beauty contest or a design contest.
The government has set aside $20 million to promote this new Australian brand. However, one expert that’s commented on the project (Simon Anholt) has stressed, “I have never seen an example of a country in all the years I’ve been working in this field that has succeeded in altering its image through marketing communication.” He goes on to remark especially with regards to altering the image of a country in an international environment.
I agree with this opinion. It’s not unique to country brands necessarily. It’s applicable to all brands. Brands can create expectations, but it is the delivery of these expectations that are key to their success. Australia can claim to be a hub of innovation and an influential intellectual power, but it has to prove to its potential customers that it actually is.
I’m not trying to start a debate on whether Australia is innovative or not. There are many examples of Australia setting international standards, but in comparison with the experience and reputation of other countries it may lag behind from certain perspectives. That’s why I hope that whoever wins the ‘Brand Australia’ tender concentrates on the demonstration and the experience.
If innovation, political and intellectual power isn’t entrenched in Australian business and government culture then strategy and structure should be the starting place for this project.
Not, ‘how can we communicate that Australia is…’ but, ‘why Australia is…’.
There’s no doubt that the Australian government takes innovation seriously. The Review of the National Innovation System makes interesting reading. The expert’s conducting the review recommending that Australia targets international venture capital funds from the US and the introduction of a Competitive Innovation Grants Program for innovative firms with limited access to capital. There are certainly inherent difficulties that Australia faces from geographic and population perspectives. But, at the same time there are unique benefits and insights that it possesses based on natural resources that could be extended to international markets.
Ideally, the outcome won’t be a new logo or slogan for Australia – but a demonstration of the positive experiences that overseas investors, workers and local businesses have had working within an Australian business culture. A culture that is prosperous, innovative and competitive with the rest of the world. If this isn’t possible in each and every case, then the demonstration should be centred on the foundation, structure and process that Australia is laying to get to the desired culture.
Here’s how I would approach it, in the Brandhabits way:
- Identify Australia’s core competencies – the successful habits ingrained into Australian business culture.
- Identify the key focal areas being developed to strengthen the Australian brand.
- Understand awareness of these competencies and areas of focus by the target audience (overseas investors and markets).
- Understand what additional expectations are desired from international markets.
- Which of these can be credibly owned and become a reason for overseas investors and markets to habitually choose Australia?
- Which key habits do Australian businesses need to develop so that the Australian brand promise can be delivered on at every touchpoint (and which habits need to be erased)?
- What are the key touchpoints that need to be created / improved to provide a consistent, positive experience?
- Is a change to Australia’s visual identity necessary?
I’m very interested in hearing your opinions. Have you seen successful examples in other countries? Do you disagree? Does Australia just need a lick of paint, or an extension? I’m not advocating throwing the baby out with the bath water. Australia needs to keep its famous beaches, bbq’s and work life balance equity, but needs to display the real life (that everyone who lives here will know) that we all experience – it’s not all sun and play.
Please let me know your thoughts below so that we can continue the discussion.
Brandhabits
A brand is a promise. It describes what you can expect to experience when interacting with a product, service, company or location. To be effective the promise must meet 3 criteria – 1) relevant, 2) competitive and 3) authentic. Unfortunately, brands are often misinterpreted as a logo and tag line.
Australia needs to understand the authentic promise of the country. This requires some introspective work, but once identified it provides a north star (or southern cross) to guide the balance of branding work.
For a more thorough discussion on place branding visit http://www.StrengtheningBrandAmerica.com
Thanks for the comment Ed. There’s a lot more to a brand than a logo and tagline which are just 2 elements that most brand managers / executives can spend too much time on.
Thanks for the link to your site. I think Joao Freire makes a good point about image vs identity and the gap between them in your interview with him. Image is much more aligned with the concept of brand in this case.