In the video: an international innovation center in the food industry - a foodtech center was inaugurated in Kiryat Shmona (photo: Gilad Shoshan Creative)
Pele, the greatest Brazilian footballer of all time who passed away this week, was one of the people who made football so identified with Brazil and gave it the spectacular and happy branding of the country of football.
But to what extent does the glorified image of the Japanese automobile industry and the German machine industry open doors for them?
Is this also true when it comes to Israeli high-tech?
And how can a country be identified with any industry?
Creating an infrastructure
Branding is not created out of thin air.
A country that wants to be associated with football must have an infrastructure of academies, renowned football clubs, and planning and management factors that will drive the business.
If a country wants to be associated with cyber or high-tech, it needs an education system that emphasizes science, math and computers.
In addition, it needs higher education bodies that will acquire the theoretical and practical knowledge required to integrate into the industry, as well as appropriate regulation.
But infrastructure is not only a physical thing, social infrastructure is also needed.
Masses of young people in Brazil have grown up with soccer being the talk of the day, the national team sacred, and soccer players being revered almost as gods.
And in Israel?
There is a constant discourse around the high-tech industry and around the "Startup Nation".
Much of this is due to the military needs that lead the IDF to turn 18-year-old children into brilliant software engineers, and also because of the ethos of the "Jewish mind" and "a small country surrounded by enemies" that, by virtue of survival, must develop advanced technologies.
Success leverage
Once the infrastructure is created, the successes begin to come.
Some of the successes become symbols, and these strengthen the branding.
The success of Israeli high-tech brought into the world Wiz, Mobileye, Checkpoint and others.
The Japanese car industry gave birth to brands such as Honda, Mitsubishi and Suzuki.
And Brazilian football will go to the world of super brands like Pele, Neymar and Ronaldo (the Brazilian one, not the Portuguese one).
It is not for nothing that Pele was officially recognized by the Brazilian government as a "national treasure".
From here, the path to success is easier.
Once a country is branded as country X, many investors from home and abroad will agree to invest in the field of X in that country, and consumers will agree to pay for its exports.
This will increase the country's power in the industry and its branding with it.
How many of you, for example, make excuses when you tell them that the washing machine they are about to purchase was made in Germany?
Or is the watch that caught your eye, made in Switzerland?
This effect is called the Country of Origin effect.
Studies have proven that the country of origin has a very strong effect on consumers' willingness to purchase products, and on the price level they are willing to consider.
The country of production alone can be the reason for the success or failure of a certain product sold at a certain price point, due to the associations that that country of production raises in the minds of consumers.
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Inspirational marketing
Beyond infrastructure and "symbols", active marketing operations are also necessary.
Countries invest huge sums of money to carry out marketing moves and campaigns in which the product being sold is the country itself.
The campaign can be goal-oriented: it can be a campaign to boost tourism, a campaign to encourage foreign investment or a campaign to mobilize diplomatic support, but in all cases the country itself is the product that stands at the forefront of the campaign.
Thus, for example, mythologized campaigns from the past did a great service to the countries that led them.
For example, a campaign that sought to promote New Zealand as a beautiful country with unspoiled nature presented spectacular photos of New Zealand's natural landscapes under the slogan "New Zealand: 100% pure" to emphasize the country's clean and green image and promote tourism in it.
The "Germany: Land of Ideas" campaign sought to promote Germany as an innovative and forward-thinking country.
He presented a variety of initiatives and events that highlighted Germany's contribution to science, technology and culture, and used the slogan "Germany: Land of Ideas".
In conclusion
Branding a country is a complex thing that requires an appropriate infrastructure and a deliberate effort by the country's institutions.
Correct branding can lead to important dividends such as foreign investments, tourism, economic growth and an increase in the country's international status.
The more a country brands itself correctly, the easier it is to continue to hold onto the image it desired years from now.
Adv. Reot Goldman is CEO of the Geomatrix Group.
Member of the "Helsinki" Committee at Blinson Hospital, and member of the Board of Trustees of Schneider Children's Hospital
Marketing and digital
Organizations, systems and changes
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Brand
Country
High tech
Startup Nation
football