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Branding, marketing and promotions can enhance country and corporate profiles (en)

5 novembre 2014
ITC Nouvelles
Culture and values are key aspects of brand essence

Peru is an example of a logo serving as a brand, while it is also a brand serving as a logo, said Mr Alvaro Silva-Santisteban, Director of the Trade, Tourism and Investment Office of Peru. Commenting on the branding of his country which features a logo that resembles a mirror image of a stylised mixture of the ampersat and a fingerprint which spells out the word ‘Peru’, Mr Silva-Santisteban said the aim is to make an indelible mark in the minds of tourists, entrepreneurs and investors by capturing the brand essence. It means creating mental and emotional appeal to the target audience.

He was sharing his country’s branding philosophy to promote trade, tourism and investment as a national strategy to spur economic development Mr Silva-Santisteban said at the TPO Network World Conference 2014 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on 5 November.

Mr Silva-Santisteban said his government also used the Peru brand as a national identity to promote unity before projecting the image of the South American country internationally more than a decade ago. face
In the case of Austria, the government faced the challenge of brand differentiation with Australia. The Deputy Director-General of Advantage Austria, Karl Hartleb, said the marketing objective was to distinguish Austria from the land Down Under.

Branding is about identity, culture and values, said Helen Rankin, the Business Development Manager of Cheil, a South Korean advertising company.

‘It’s who you are, how you feel and how you make somebody feel,’ said Ms Rankin. ‘You need to understand who you are and what your story is to export to the world.’

She said South Korea’s famous export is K-pop culture and the Gangnam style of dance moves. Ms Rankin added that the government has a billion-dollar investment fund to export K-pop and K-drama.

The Director of Export Market Development at Dubai Exports, Mohammed Ali Al Kamali, stressed the importance of identifying target markets in promoting trade in goods and services so that the right media channels are used. He noted that trade promotion organisations are focused largely on marketing and exhibition management.