Often, the results of nation-branding are not simply based the acts of the nation itself but the responsibility of all the companies and their products/services that represent the country itself. The positive brand attributes possessed by a company brand often can improve the brand image of the country with which the company is identified. Thus, the consistently good quality and high reputation achieved by many brands from a country can generate positive feelings for the country from people around the world who come in contact with the brands.

Today, the results tallied from a survey conducted by Japanese company Hakuhodo Inc. confirm the above views. In a survey conducted late last year in major cities in the emerging markets of China, Vietnam, India, and Russia, thousands of common people were asked to rank Chinese, Japanese, European, Korean, and American products in general based their desirability through six different characteristics. Japanese products topped five out of six categories including “high quality,” “unique,” and “fashionable.”

The survey specifically mentioned that the participants of the survey specifically pointed out the superiority of Japanese electronic products such as digital cameras that pushed them to rate “Made-in-Japan” highly. European products ranked second in the quality category. Additionally, Korean products topped the sixth category, “energetic.” The survey points out the great investment Korean giants such as LG and Samsung poured into the emerging market to establish a branding strategy based on “momentum” and “enthusiasm.”

The quality and safety problems of the cheap “Made-in-China” is not new, they certainly have not failed to brand China in the eyes of the foreigners (and many of her own compatriots) as a land of low-quality produce. Companies themselves should know that their products and services represent the image of the country itself, both at home and abroad. Although it may be exaggerated to say that producing low-quality goods is unpatriotic, certain Chinese companies should definitely learn from the Japanese and Korean companies and make both building good products and improving product marketing a top priority to help improve the Chinese national brand.

Source: techon.nikkeibp.co.jp