Italy, U.S. and Australia rank highest as Country Brands

Italy ranks as the top overall destination, according to a first-of-its-kind global survey that identifies countries as brands and suggests the pivotal role that branding could make in helping countries differentiate themselves. Australia and the U.S. take the second and third positions in the FutureBrand Country Brand Index, which is comprised of a three-tiered analysis of statistics, a global quantitative survey, and expert opinions of international travel professionals.

The report examines the role and opportunity to market a country as a brand, and ranks countries according to a variety of measures. This year's index includes rankings, as well as emerging trends, travel motivations, challenges and opportunities within the world's largest industry - travel and tourism. These include China as "most improved" country brand, the U.S. as "best country brand for business travel" and Italy as "best country brand for art and culture."

"If a 'brand' is defined as an experience, then some of the world's most powerful and recognizable brands should be countries. The challenge the industry faces is that it must move away from the traditional reactive and tactical marketing approaches and instead, create and deliver an overall brand experience that drives sales and turns visitors into country-brand evangelists," said Rene A. Mack, president of Weber Shandwick's global travel practice.

"Based on our years of experience in this category, we are excited to launch the FutureBrand Country Brand Index. Countries have traditionally under-performed and under-achieved as brands, despite enormous potential," notes Jean-Louis Dumeu, chairman, chief executive officer, FutureBrand. "We hope this study promotes dialogues, raises questions and encourages countries to look at themselves in a whole new way. A strong country brand will offer nations a tremendous competitive advantage and help build long term opportunity for business, tourism, exports and investment."