Nation branding and integrated marketing communications: an ASEAN perspective

Abstract

Purpose-This paper aims to examine the extent to which the nation branding activities of export promotion organisations (EPOs), investment agencies (IAs), national tourism organisations (NTOs) and embassies follow the principle of coordination that characterises an integrated marketing communications approach. Design/methodology/approach-A qualitative exploratory approach was taken, comprising face-to-face in-depth interviews with key informants from five Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) involved in the implementation of nation branding communications in terms of export promotion, tourism, investment attraction and public diplomacy. Findings-Seven key dimensions of interorganisational coordination in a nation branding context emerge from our results. These dimensions include sector, organisation domicile, mode, strategy formulation, nature, frequency and target audience. Research limitations/implications-The relatively small dataset as well as the restricted geographic scope of the study limits the generalisability of the findings; further research is required to ascertain whether the findings of this study also apply in other settings. Practical implications-Enhanced coordination needs to occur not only between the different governmental organisations engaged in nation branding strategy, but also between those organisations and their respective private sector stakeholders. Originality/value-This paper extends previous work on the need for countries to adopt a coordinated approach to their nation branding activities. The paper is original in its examination of actors' perceptions of the optimal degree of coordination that should occur between a country's EPO, IA, NTO and embassies. The paper is also original in its reporting of findings from a region (ASEAN) that is under-researched relative to other areas, such as Europe and North America.

A framework of place branding, place image, and place reputation

“…Nation branding has been defined as "the strategic self-presentation of a country with the aim of creating reputational capital through economic, political and social interest promotion at home and abroad" (Szondi, 2008, p.5). The domain of nation branding extends beyond a consumer focus on tourism promotion (Dinnie et al, 2010;Pike, 2005) to include extra functions such as investment attraction (Arregle et al, 2009;Capik, 2007;Cho et al, 2009;Lee and Rugman, 2009), export promotion (Tesfom et al, 2004) and public diplomacy, which is the dialogue with foreign publics designed to inform and influence (Cowan and Cull, 2008;Fullerton et al, 2009). …”

“…Further, research devoted to understanding place branding's influence in the tourism industry, especially in the context of an emerging country, is sparse (Dinnie et al, 2010;Roth and Diamantopoulos, 2009). Little is known about the coordination of place branding among managers, directors of travel and tourism organizations, and tour and travel agencies from an inter-organizational perspective (Tasci and Kozak, 2006).…”

Imagen país de Colombia desde la perspectiva extranjera

“…Tiene como finalidad comunicar de manera favorable la imagen de un lugar y que esta sea consecuente con la realidad (Dinnie et al, 2010). Desde la perspectiva histórica, el concepto de imagen país ha estado asociado al conjunto de percepciones que tienen las personas sobre los productos originarios de un país determinado (Papadopoulos & Heslop, 1993).…”

Modern classification system of real estate markets

“…On the other hand, the development of cities depends on the attractiveness of real property markets as an effect of conducting efficient territorial marketing by cities, which is taken into account by potential city dwellers as a very important element of the "migrant decision" (Kotler et al, 1993;Dinis, 2006;Bernat et al, 2014). Furthermore, the attractiveness of the real estate market is a very important element in the procedure of city branding construction, which constitutes a fundamental part of forming and meeting residents' satisfaction (Dinnie et al, 2010). …”