DESTINATION BRANDS

The power of brand positioning

Ruchi Gunewardene cites national tourism destination brands to illustrate the process of brand positioning for products, services, corporates and even nations

The success of these brands is in their ability to evoke a distinct perception of them in our minds – and as such, they have not changed for decades. Incredible !ndia has been in use since its launch in 2002 and 100% Pure New Zealand since 1999.

Let’s explore brand positioning through destination brands as they evoke distinct responses from stakeholders. And this is what product, service and B2B brands should also aspire to build – i.e. powerful evocative brands that can withstand the test of time.

STRATEGIC APPROACH We do not know where the inspiration to develop these destination brands came from. It could well have risen from the mind of a creative individual (a right brain creation) or been diligently crafted from an in-depth study by a brand strategist (a left brain creation).

Whatever the approach, it required considerable skill and insights to distil the very essence of each country’s offering with a distinctive positioning expressed through a vivid brand promise.

The methodology must adopt a carefully engineered process involving a study of the category – including market research to discover current perceptions and trends, and uncover hidden consumer insights.

Success can be secured by following a logical approach that entails fact finding, research, consumer insights, hypothesis development, concept evaluation, and refining a brand’s definition and positioning.

Brand positioning enables a base or platform to be built on which wider marketing initiatives can be carried out.

DEFINING SUCCESS This platform builds synergy and thereby creates value as multiple stakeholders will leverage the brand across their individual platforms and needs. This highlights the importance of ensuring all stake­holders ‘buy in’ to the positioning.

The right brand positioning aligns product development, establishes service standards, motivates employees and develops relevant business processes. They can generate value additions and cost savings for companies.

BRAND STRENGTH A strong brand has absolute clarity on what it stands for. It leads to setting customer expectations and enables other stakeholders (suppliers, governments and so on) of the brand to take action.

Strong brands evoke positive responses through the imagery or association that they express from their proposition, thereby building memorability.

In this way, a strong brand evokes feelings and empathy with stakeholders, precisely because it is an axiom – a statement that’s established and accepted, and self-evidently true.

BRAND POSITIONING Sadly, Sri Lanka’s last branding attempt failed in all these aspects. It needed to be explained; and even then, it had significant
negative connotations.

Our economic bankruptcy can be perfectly captured through the ‘So Sri Lanka’ brand proposition! This highlights how inappropriate it was and its inability to fire up the imagination of stakeholders.

Here is what must be done as illustrated through a few winning brands.

First is differentiation, which can be measured through the degree of distinctiveness relative to the competitive set. The further the divergence from the norm, the more likely a brand will stand out. A key element of being different is being able to evoke distinctive imagery or associations.

Malaysia has taken the high ground through its brand positioning by encapsulating all the wonders and diversities of Asia into the country. This is clever as it simplifies travellers’ choices by evoking all the exotic associations to one country – Malaysia, Truly Asia.

The second factor is relevance to stakeholders. This is a measure of the significance of a brand’s features with stakeholders. When a brand takes a distinctive position, it naturally elicits beliefs. The more empathetic they are the better.

A country that has only a few attractions to offer travellers is the Maldives – namely, sun, sand and sea. To those who are merely seeking a quiet and leisurely beach holiday, the brand offers the perfect option through its highly relevant ‘sunny side of life.’

The final factor is the credibility of a brand’s offering. New Zealand’s brand promise of ‘100% Pure’ is rooted in a strong belief system that embraces sustainable practices and environmental protection. Its low population density makes for secluded travel destinations that are in pristine condition and perfectly capture the brand offer, making it highly credible.

In contrast, India embraces the diversity the country offers through one simple word: ‘incredible.’ It celebrates the chaos of the congested unplanned cities as well as the pristine beauty of the isolated Himalayas, and the historic splendour of the multitude of kingdoms, faiths, mysticism, sights, sounds and tastes that only India can offer.

MEASUREMENT AND FINE TUNING ‘It’s More Fun in the Philippines’ is a destination brand that’s interesting in that it was launched more recently.

Here’s a country where music is a passion, and present in every occasion and emotion, adding to the vibrant nightlife of its cities. The brand seems to have all the elements of longevity.

A successful brand needs active management and development. It is a diligent process that requires flashes of inspiration and creative expression but more importantly, a lot of hard-nosed digging to find that insight leading to a long-term and sustainable strategic brand positioning.