Branding has traditionally become a tool that is applied not only to large corporations, companies but also to countries, regions and cities. In countries today it plays an important role since it allows attracting tourism, investment and exports, therefore development.
The Country Brand is a fundamental instrument in the new spaces of the world today, aimed at enhancing and highlighting the commercial opportunities of a Country, improving its image, making it more competitive and generating interests that contribute to sustainable development.
Its function is not necessarily to substitute, replace or overshadow the traditional national symbols that identify a country… what it is about is to sustain the national image in the fickle consciousness of those who visit us, for example, if we limit ourselves to the tourist field.
Experts point out that in the case of Latin America there is no better way to promote itself than with country brands. The challenge is for this brand to be authentic, friendly, very subtle that permeates the subconscious and is valid over time.
Perhaps this is the reason why many Latin American nations display so much interest and care to build a Country brand that fills its streets, squares, cities with tourists subliminally motivated by a good proposal.
We can highlight that today we seek to place brands with color, with life, that express strength and denote an authentic relationship with their region and above all that have an international character, with defined attributes in order to attract, not only their favorite client, but also also promote business.
It is obviously that Country Brands have a higher value and response capacity in the Tourism segment, since in this activity it is more likely to attract the interest of large flows motivated by knowing a country about which your brand says a lot.
However, not all cases have been successful, there have been short-lived country brands, and this short duration is explained because their elaboration was not based on professional marketing processes and because the previous concepts could depend on the wills of the moment.
According to studies carried out by the UNWTO (World Tourism Organization), they indicate that income from Tourism has been rising more notoriously in Countries whose brands were disseminated in a timely manner and there is no country willing to waste more time to increase GDP with a Tourism Industry in prosperity and healthy. Hence the fury of country brands.
A couple of years ago, Central America launched a common promotion office for Europe, the Central American Tourism Agency, based in Madrid. Nicaragua entered the market with the slogan "Nicaragua a country with a heart"
Chile opened a series of offices to promote its slogan "Chile, nature that moves" in Europe, the United States and South America.
Guatemala hired the global agency Interbrand to design the “Soul of the Earth” concept. Ecuador launched at the end of 2004 the concept "Life in its pure state", Peru launched a suggestive proposal like »Wake up your six senses, come to Peru»
By the way, brands manage to influence the way we see the world and how we decide to visit one destination and ignore another.
In this understanding we can deduce that the trademark is a process that should not be treated in isolation, unless it is authored by a single regime since in terms of politics it should always be present as a state policy, since it is the best way to keep it in force and make it possible for a country to become a differentiating proposal.
