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[email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page 01
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking ©2011 TRADE - TOP 25 Performers Edition
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
Bloom Consulting, has created this World Ranking in order to answer the fundamental issue at the heart of every country, corporation and soul: how does one become attractive? Luckily, the rationale behind such a question for a nation is quite simple. A country wishes to draw the interest of people in order to create wealth. In other words, the purpose of country branding is to bring economic growth.
[email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page 01
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking ©2011 TRADE - TOP 25 Performers Edition
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
As a result of every country branding individual strategy, foreign direct investment (FDI) net inflows worldwide from 2005-2009 were $7.8 trillion. During the same period, FDI inward stock worldwide experienced an 11% annual growth rate.
The Asian and Latin American countries have grown significantly, at a rate of 17% and 14% respectively, followed by European and African countries which have grownat a lower rate of 13%. This is a remarkable figure for Europe as they hold 53% of world FDI net inflows from 2005-2009. In absolute terms, Europe has been able to attract the vast majority of global trade inflows, followed by the US. US inward stock is the highest in the world, about 6.7 times the size of African inward stock.
[email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page 02
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking ©2011 TRADE - TOP 25 Performers Edition
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
It is essential for countries to realize that the image a nation projects has a significant impact on the economy as a whole. The country brand strategy you convey will undoubtedly affect the way your country is perceived. The current global financial crisis has proved this. For instance, we can now see how credit rating agencies are highly influencing external perceptions about countries and more importantly the strong impact they have on a country’s economic perfor-mance. The interesting fact is that how these ratings are calculated are not in the public domain, but rather the speculative effect they have is; it has proven country branding is more than a capricious political idea, but rather a definite national necessity countries now need to face and manage as a priority. Countries can no longer afford to allow third parties to play with their national asset – their brand.
Traditional country branding studies and rankings have used public opinion and stereotypes in order to draw conclusions. Bloom Consulting has created the first study which captures the links between the image a country projects and the effect this has on the country’s success. We have merged macro and micro country facts and statistics, and correlated them with the commu-nication strategies conveyed by every country in the world. This has enabled us to reach deeply meaningful conclusions that mathematically prove that positioning your country in a specific way will have a direct impact on your GDP. Such consequential conclusions are what other studies in the past have lacked.
This report will help you understand the delicacies of country branding. It will let you compre-hend the current situation worldwide, and which communication strategies should be empha-sized or ignored. It will unearth the regional complexities in this global competition, by unleash-ing the truth behind how a country is perceived and the way it can differentiate itself in the international arena.
We sincerely believe that this report will expand your knowledge on how to brand your country, and will contribute to guiding your country down the path to success.
José Filipe Torres - CEO of Bloom Consulting
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
Introductory NoteA word from our CEO
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
The main objectives for creating a country brand strategy rely on three main areas:T1- Attraction of TradeT2- Attraction of TourismT3- Attraction of Talent
The traditional approach to face these challenges is to create, or simply improve, perceptions of the country both domestically and internationally. Most of these initiatives are developed under one umbrella strategy.This means countries try to create one single strategy for 3 different objectives. However, the ideology and objective behind each one is simply different and ultimately will not work; the 3 objectives are completely antagonistic. As an illustrative example, one cannot com-municate leisure and entertainment to investors at the same time as communicating a qualified and hardworking workforce to potential tourists. They automatically repel each other, therefore destroying their core objective. Most of the time, what countries try to do is reach a compromise to better understand the objective of the overall country brand strategy.
Fig. 1 - Bloom Consulting's ‘3T’ Approach ©
Bloom Consulting’s country branding methodology separates these objectives, trade, tourism and talent and treats them individually, not as an umbrella strategy. Thus, we are able to derive growth projections and calculations in order to better understand the objective of the overall strategy (see Fig. 1).
T2
T1 T3
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
Page 04
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
Objective
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
Country Branding Current ChallengesBloom Consulting “3T” Approach ©
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
*Hong Kong has been added to the list as Bloom Consulting considered the specific nature of the territory and the importance of its economic variables. Treating them separately allows us to analyze the real potential of both Hong-Kong and China respectively.
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The ResearchUnderstanding the research methodology
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The ResearchUnderstanding the research methodology
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The RankingBloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking ©
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
Belgium6. Sweden19.
Canada7. India20.
8. Hong Kong Hungary21.
Germany9. Switzerland22.
Russian Federation10. Saudi Arabia23.
Italy16.China3.
Brazil13.
Luxembourg2. Australia15.
UK4. Singapore17.
France5. Mexico18.
Netherlands11. Japan24.
Turkey25.Spain12.
USA1. Austria14.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The Ranking - TOP 25Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking ©
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The RatingBloom Consulting Country Brand Rating ©
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
Major positive impact
Moderate positive impact
Minor positive impact
No impact
Minor negative impact
Moderate negative impact
Major negative impact
Triple Green
Double Green
Single Green
White
Single Red
Double Red
Triple Red
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The RatingBloom Consulting Country Brand Rating ©
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
Hungary
Saudi Arabia
USA China France Brazil Australia Singapore Mexico Japan
Belgium Germany Netherlands Italy India Turkey
Canada Spain
UK Hong Kong Russian FederationLuxembourg Sweden SwitzerlandAustria
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The Rating – TOP 25Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating ©
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The Country Branding StrategyHow the world is differentiating itself
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
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Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
The Country Branding StrategyHow the world is differentiating itself
Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition
1. United States of America
2. Luxembourg
3. China
4. United Kingdom
5. France
6. Belgium
7. Canada
8. Hong Kong
9. Germany
10. Russian Federation
As opposed to surveys and qualitative interviews, this country brand ranking combines the countries economic performance with the respective country branding strategies; a process which as yet, has never been done before. Such combination of variables has given birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm - which sets the world Ranking
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Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking ©2011 TRADE - WORLD Ranking
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RateWorld Rank
17. Italy
11. Netherlands
12. Spain
14. Austria
13. Brazil
15. Australia
16. Mexico
18. Signapore
20. Hungary
22. Switzerland
24. Saudi Arabia
19. Sweden
21. India
23. Turkey
25. Japan
26. Egypt
27. Poland
28. Ukraine
29. Colombia
30. Nigeria
31. Kazakhstan
32. Chile
33. Peru
34. Israel
35. South Africa
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52. Cyprus
36. Indonesia
37. Romania
39. Thailand
38. Argentina
40. Malaysia
41. Czech Republic
43. Portugal
45. Denmark
47. Lebanon
49. Sudan
42. Pakistan
44. Republic of Korea
46. Bulgaria
48. Finland
51. New Zealand
53. Iceland
54. Croatia
55. Serbia
56. Morocco
57. Greece
58. Slovakia
59. Tunisia
60. Algeria
50. Jordan
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84. Jamaica
77. El Salvador
61. Republic of the Congo
62. Philippines
64. Oman
63. Iran
65. Estonia
66. Dominican Republic
68. Panama
70. Ghana
72. Bahrain
74. Trinidad and Tobago
67. Costa Rica
69. Lithuania
71. Democratic Republic of Congo
73. Belarus
76. Syrian Arab Republic
78. Iraq
79. Bosnia and Herzegovina
80. Yemen
81. Madagascar
82. Georgia
83. Latvia
85. Guatemala
75. Uruguay
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87. Bangladesh
88. Slovenia
89. Zambia
90. Honduras
92. Albania
94. Cambodia
91. Montenegro
97. Sri Lanka
99. Botswana
93. Bahamas
95. Uganda
96. Armenia
98. Uzbekistan
100. Ireland
101. Mongolia
102. United Republic of Tanzania
103. Nicaragua
104. The Forerm Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
105. The Republic of Moldova
106. Senegal
107. Angola
108. Barbados
109. Ethiopia
110. Afghanistan
86. Malta
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111. Mauritania
112 Gabon
114. Mauritius
113. Antigua and Barbuda
115. Seychelles
116. Paraguay
118. Cape Verde
120. Liberia
122. Saint Lucia
124. Djibouti
117. Kenya
119. Cameroon
121. Fiji
123. Guyana
125. Mali
126. Saint Kits and Nevis
127. Belize
128. Benin
129. Kuwait
130. Grenada
131. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
132. Papua New Guinea
133. Lesotho
134. Malawi
135. Sierra Leon
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136. Swaziland
137. Dominica
139. Rwanda
138. Maldives
141. Burundi
143. Vanuatu
140. Gambia
142. Zimbabwe
144. Azerbaijan
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One of the key differences in the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking© and Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating© is the use of facts and official data as opposedto surveys and interviews. It combines hard data, such as economic indicators and country characteristics, along with communication strategies, giving birth to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.A consistent use of official and recognized sources
More than one source of information has been used throughout this project to elaborate the global ranking. The United Nations (UN) provided a comprehensive list of 193 countries*, which enabled us to avoid any bias in selecting and identifying specific territories.
The economic variables selected to measure the performance of the countries were taken from the World Bank (WB). This ranking uses 2009 data, the latest data available from all sources.
The communication strategies used by countries to attract FDI were taken from the Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) of the respective countries associated with the World Associationof Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA).
When these IPAs were not accessible through the WAIPA, information was gathered from embassies or chambers of commerce. It can therefore be confirmed, that through the consistent use of official internationallyrecognized sources, the data used is current and accurate.
A revised and validated use of data
With these sources at our disposal, we collected the country brand strategy information of each country in order to understand how the country brand wishes to be perceived.
Naturally, the quality of the data used throughout this project is crucial. For this reason, the research methodology includes a two-step approach to checking the information. Only con-firmed and official data through the World Bank, UNCTAD, and the United Nations has been used. Moreover, all IPAs have been contacted by email and telephone in order to verify the veracity of our information.
Our methodology assumes that the communication strategies used by IPAs are accurate. We do not question their authenticity as this is not the purpose of the study, we are only inter-ested in the impact they have on a countries’ economy. Even though some countries may choose to promote aspects that differ slightly from reality, this behavior is rare and eventually would have a negative impact on their FDI and their country branding
This study examines 144 countries; it was not possible to include all 193 countries supplied by the UN. If a country did not promote any significant messages or if economic data was not accessible, then they were eliminated from the study.
An explanatory and comprehensive clustering of communication strategies
All country branding strategies are heavily reliant on the chosen communication strategies as they have a huge impact on the country's performance. Overall, more than 3,000 messages have been collected from official sources, and implemented as a basis of information throughout this report.
The country branding rating factor is derived from theBloom Consulting Algorithm which is designed to recalculate the rating factor depending on the eco-nomic performance and the communication strategy chosen by each country.
Therefore, we can conclude that the Bloom Consulting Algorithm cannot be manipulated by any single action.Bloom Consulting has created the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © in order to evaluate the effectiveness of a country‘s chosen communication strategy.
The relationship between communication strategies and economic wealth varies substantially between geographic locations and economic development stages. Therefore, these factors, along with the number of countries within each region and the repetition rate of each message within each communication strategy, were taken into account. This ensured that we could derive an accurate and just algorithm in order to designate each country with a rating factor, a country coefficient detailing the effectiveness of its communication strategy.
The Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © scale has classified the rating factors into7 categories according to the effectiveness of a country’s communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Categories Rating
This rating reflects the effectiveness of the top 25 performers chosen communication strategies.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Rating © Top 25 Countries 2011 - Trade Rating
The top 5 country branding performers have all achieved high positive rating factors; however so have other countries located further down the ranking. Countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Singapore all have a top rating due to the use of the most effective communication strategy.
On the other hand Saudi Arabia and Hungary both received negative rating factors despite making it into the top 25 global ranking. This is because even though they attract a lotof investment, they could be using a more effective communication strategy in orderto increase FDI.
50% of all countries tend to use the same type of communication strategy regardless of geographiclocation. The majority choose to communicate messages related to investment incentives, strategic location, and the ease of setting up a business.
The extent to which countries make use of messages, which messages they communicate, and the number of messages they use among other key facts, varies greatly from region to region. Most countries use different strategies when branding themselves.
Country branding differentiation can be achieved through the various messages a country decides to communicate, all with the same intent, attracting FDI. In particular, the level of differ-entiation varies from country to country. There are countries that have a high or low differentia-tion rate based on the communication strategy they use, which allows us to see how many other countries use the same communication strategy.
The most popular communication strategies worldwide are also the most popular communica-tion strategies within every region. All of the messages in Table 1 have been used in communica-tion strategies by more than 44% of countries worldwide.
Table1. Most popular messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World1. Favorable Fiscal Policy 63% 2. Investor Friendly Environment 63% 3. Favorable Strategic Location 61% 4. Qualified Workforce 53% 5. Social Political Stability 44%
In fact, using popular messages does not guarantee a positive impact on the country branding strategy; actually, it’s the opposite; the most valued messages according to theBloom Consulting Algorithm © factor are not the most popular.
Table2. Most valuable messages used in a country‘s communication strategy; World 1. Social Welfare 2. Market Size Characteristics3. Legal Framework Characteristics4. Available Workforce5. Soft Economic Characteristics
Communication strategies related to social welfare are the most valued in the international arena. Countries that decide to communicate social benefits, education, and security would rate highly. Other valued messages help to communicate the soft aspects of a country such as stability, a safe investment environment, innovation culture, as well as no corruption, legal transparency, and a positive legal financial climate.
The communication strategies mentioned above are the ones that work best in the global arena. However, we know that a regional approach is needed and that the most valuable messages in each communication strategy vary from continent to continent. In Europe and Oceania, innova-tion and quality of life are the most valuable messages, whereas in Latin America, the most valuable message is related to economic growth. Asian countries also value growth and they include innovation in their most valuable communication strategy. Finally, African countries tend to value low-cost and qualified workforces in their communication strategy.
Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © Top 25 Countries 2011 – Trade
The list of top country branding performers is mainly composed of the US, European coun-tries, BRIC countries, and Asian economic hubs. No African countries appear on the list, and there is only one country from the Middle East region, Saudi Arabia.
Bloom Consulting is a strategy consulting firm specialized in country branding.José Filipe Torres founded Bloom Consulting in 2003 and is a regular spokesperson at confer-ences and universities worldwide. He has been interviewed by both The Economist and Forbes, where he was identified as one of the top 3 country branding experts in the world.
At the moment Bloom Consulting have offices in Bulgaria, Brazil, Italy, India, Portugal andSpain (headquarters), as well as research centers in Tokyo and London. Bloom Consulting work closely with presidents, monarchs, ministers and institutions in order to define their strategy, establish their vision, and implement it. Bloom’s clients include the Bulgarian, Latvian, Polish, Portuguese and Spanish governments, and also regions such as Madrid, Castilla y Leon in Spain, and Alqueva and the southwest regions of Portugal.
Bloom Consulting has developed a 3T approach © to separate Trade, Tourism, and Talent strategies. One fundamental point for the success of all of Bloom Consulting’s country brand-ing projects, is the CAMPRO methodology ©. This methodology is a combination of academic and professional knowledge under Bloom Consulting’s management and control, key to obtain-ing the most accurate recommendations and insights for all clients.
More information
While this report provides a general global overview, the information presented here is anything but a glimpse of the findings we have at our disposal. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you would like a catered and detailed version of the Bloom Consulting Country Brand Ranking © report for your country or region.
For more information, please visit:
www.bloom-consulting.com/country_branding_rankingwww.bloom-consulting.com/country_branding_rating
or send an email to [email protected]
Bloom Consulting © 2003 - 2011 Page [email protected] / +34 91 308 0286 (CET)
With the help of powerful multivariate statistical analysis tools, we successfully identified correlations between a country’s level of success in trade and the perception that the country projects through its communication strategy. Case-differential tables, as well as matrices, were used to better comprehend the most significant relationships found, leading to the Bloom Consulting Algorithm.
Hence, we present a ranking which positions a country brand according to its economic performance based on previous economic history and the Bloom Consulting Algorithm; a process which as yet, has never been done before. It is safe to say that our research has indicated that countries lack differentiation when it comes to attracting potential investors. It is also proven that the most popular communication strategies, such as hard economic facts are not the most effective to attract investors. This provides a great opportunity for countries to differentiate themselves.
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Development of CountriesHuman Asset ManagementBusiness Strategy
2011TRADE TOP 25 PerformersEdition