4 posts tagged “nation branding”

A few more shots from this fascinating country. You can tell I am really into India.

   This is probably the only country in the world that puts is tourist-marketing slogan on its bureaucratic forms. Already a tick for India as I filled out my second Indian form. It’s also far easier to follow than anything the US gives out to us foreigners.    Above is the first outside scene I had of India at ground level, exiting Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport. I must have gone back via a different part because it looked nothing like this (image below). Or the pace of change was faster than even I have said.
   Even my Indian hosts said that they were not 100 per cent sure of where I could be met because things change so quickly at the airport.
   I was most fascinated by the Hindustan Ambassador taxicabs. I haven’t seen this shape of Morris Oxford (on which the Ambi is based) for years.    If you are wondering where all the bicycling Indians have gone, they are motorcycling. And all the old motorcyclists are on four wheels. The above is the motorcycle park at IGI.
   I saw very few of the family-on-a-bike situations that Ratan Tata spoke of when he launched the Nano, though I am sure they exist. In Indore, I did see a man and a woman on a bike—she was keeping their new PC from falling off while hanging on herself. In some ways, that was quite an encouraging sign.    This is what IGI looked like when I flew out, from the entrance to the departure gates. Totally modern and the equal of any airport in the western world.    This is not my last Christmas tree pic, but it shows again that the Indians got more into the mood of the season than I expected. With hindsight, it was only logical: Christmas is a big deal in Hong Kong, for instance, yet again it would not have as many Christians per capita as New Zealand.    Finally, this image illustrates that IGI is fairly typical. The flight departures’ board is not digital, but I quite enjoyed seeing the letters flip over in the traditional way. If it works and it generates less electricity, then I say keep it. Don’t go modern for modernity’s sake; only do it when there is a practical reason to do so.

I thought communists were more in to revisionist history than democratic governments. From the Fairfax Press:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4316159a12.html

   I am glad I got to the Republic of China to see the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial before this sort of government-sanctioned vandalism happened.
   The Democratic Progressive Party, indeed. Bit like the German Democratic Republic.
   I can’t speak for those inside the Republic but I would say that the majority of overseas Chinese will react similarly to me. Gen Chiang was not Franco or Stalin.
   The DPP calls Chiang’s Kuomingtang (KMT) repressive. I assume they have romantic notions of what was happening across the Taiwan Strait after 1949—or, for that matter, during the Sino–Japanese War.
   I am not exaggerating: in my time in Taiwan in November I met intelligent people who held beliefs that life was better under Japan than under the KMT, conveniently ignoring massacres such as the Rape of Nanking where hundreds of thousands were slaughtered.
   However, I accept that their positive ideas stem from the fact that some Japanese officials in Formosa did try to be good governors of the island.
   Back then, however, we weren’t talking about two Chinas. When 9-11 happened, it’s not as though Californians were cheery because they were comfortable, while the Twin Towers fell in New York.
   While the KMT did its share of demolishing memorials of Japanese colonialism after the war, it doesn’t make it right.
   My main view is that those of us outside need to respect the wishes of those within who participate in the Republic’s democracy. All we can realistically do from faraway keyboards is create a bit of noise when we are upset, just as we might with the War on Terror or other international matters.
   The Republic’s government also needs to know that this act insults those of us who hope that all of China will be ruled by a free and democratic republic, and whose families left because we did not believe such a China could exist under the Reds.
   Our hope was placed in the last free part of China that remained, that part in exile in Taiwan.
   Sadly, we are not voters in Republican elections. Only the inhabitants of Taiwan are.
   What now? Will a portrait of Mao be erected?
   One wishes that the DPP recognizes that it would not even exist without Chiang and the remnants of the Republican government in exile in Taiwan, but this latest incident suggests it does not.
   From an overseas Chinese view, it’s seen as an acceptance by Taipei that the Communist Party is correct across the Taiwan Strait, doing its work to erase memories that the Chinese people can have freedom.
   Indirectly, this is a slap in the face of the June 4, 1989 protesters in Tiananmen Square.
   Rebranding is something to be done carefully, more so when it comes to national monuments and symbols of national identity. Rebrands are meant to unite, not divide.
   Calling the Memorial the Democracy Memorial Hall sounds well and good on the surface—but divisions and the months of protest suggest the movement is foolhardy.
   For me, there was nothing wrong with calling it by its new name officially, while leaving the traditional lettering honouring Chiang Kai-shek’s memory intact. It was a suitable compromise and a recognition of history. It also reminds people of the freedom that Taiwan enjoys and the setting for its prosperity. Freedom, tolerance and open-mindedness are what separate it from Red China—which is still a dangerous place to visit or invest in, at least without high-level official help.
   Years after the American Civil War, there are still states (Louisiana and Tennessee) that call a certain holiday Confederate Memorial Day—and that does not seem to have harmed the Union.
   So what harm is there to retain the Chiang Kai-shek name in the interests of national unity on the island? Does the DPP seriously prefer disuniting Chinese people?
   At best, this was an ill thought through development.
   At worst, this was a desecration and an affront to traditional Chinese beliefs that memorials to the dead should be respected.
   Talk of independence or a two-China system is dangerous. It would be easy for the Politburo in Beijing to raise its voice—without even threatening violence—and Taipei can watch its stock market index fall. And I would hate to see any of my people suffer once again.
   Part of Taiwan might not know of Maoist suffering under the Reds, but I would never wish for any Taiwanese to be directly reminded of it.
   Beijing itself should not cheer at this latest development at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall as it sets the stage for separatism. During 2008, with worldwide attention focused on the Olympiad, the separatist movement might think it could get away with more mischief than usual.

Not OKed by Miss Universe New Zealand’s Val Lott yet, but here’s what we’re issuing—just received this draft. The judges have changed a little.

Miss Universe New Zealand must represent the nation brand, says Jack Yan

Wellington and Auckland, March 19 (JY&A Media) Lucire publisher and marketing expert Jack Yan says the winner of Miss Universe New Zealand must express the 'nation brand' confidently, and will use his position as a judge to maximize the country's chances at Miss Universe 2007 in Mexico City.
   Miss Universe New Zealand 2007 will take place at the Langham Hotel in Auckland on March 31, with Lucire its official fashion magazine. Mr Yan is a judge, alongside Hilary Timmins, Megan Alatini, Yvonne Brownlie (of the Look Good Feel Better charity) and Peter Fahey (former MD of YSL Beauté) at the event.
   The winner will represent New Zealand at Miss Universe 2007 in Mexico City on May 28.
   Mr Yan says that he expects to take a branding approach to selecting the winner. 'She must be able to communicate, symbolize and differentiate our nation. At the end of the day, Miss New Zealand is about exhibiting Kiwi values confidently, and showing that they surpass any that her rivals at Miss Universe have.'
   He adds, 'Of course, she must also be stunning. This is a beauty pageant, after all.'
   Mr Yan's involvement began in mid-January, when he was asked by Miss Universe New Zealand organizer Val Lott to judge the pageant.
   In June, Lucire plans to profile the winner of the competition in both its print and online editions.
   In 2003, Mr Yan had assisted in securing Miss Sweden for its current owner. The pageant, after some controversy from feminist groups, was revamped and returned in 2006. Last year, he met with Miss Universe sponsor, California-based fashion designer Tadashi Shoji and plans Lucire special features with him.
   'It's nice to do something for the home team,' says Mr Yan, who travels to Auckland shortly for a judging event.
   This year's Miss Universe New Zealand has an added feature. The public can text and vote for a winner using their cellphones. More information is at www.missuniversenz.co.nz.
   In addition to publishing Lucire, Mr Yan co-authored Beyond Branding: How the New Values of Transparency and Integrity Are Changing the World of Brands (Kogan Page, London, 2004) and is a commentator on nation branding issues. He is a member of the Medinge Group branding think-tank in Sweden.

[Cross-posted] I am getting a lot of questions about how I became a judge for Miss New Zealand (officially Miss Universe New Zealand). Answer: because Val Lott (organizer) asked me. I imagine that being a proprietor of fashion magazines gives me some cred. I also think the fact I am not single—albeit separated by 12,000 miles with the woman I love—means I must know something about broads. I, personally, would like to think the reason is that I have a good appreciation for brands: the winner must exhibit the New Zealand nation brand, be strong at differentiating, communicating and symbolizing herself, and be so confident that she doesn’t fold at the mere sign of Miss Venezuela and her gravity-defying boobs because she knows her own ones are ‘real, and they’re spectacular.’