NEW research
Covid-19 Study: The Impact on Nation Brands
Together with our sister company, Bloom Consulting, we conducted a detailed study of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Nation Brands.
Our main aim was to understand better the impact of Covid-19 on national brands and all aspects of Bloom Consulting Brand Wheel ©. Furthermore, to better understand how the government’s crisis management of Covid-19 affects perceptions and brands. We propose a new concept called “Brand-Nought” (BO). It can be used to measure the covid impact on destinations on tourism, investment, talent, export, and general reputation dimensions.
What is the B0 for this crisis?
Countries need to monitor their Brand Nought – the ratio between positive and negative perceptions, based on government actions in response to the crisis. The global average for the Covid-19 situation is B0= -1,8. This means that 1,8 positive ones can only neutralise one negative perception. If a Country exceeds its Brand-Nought, there will be a positive impact on its Nation Brand.
In this Covid report about the country image, we are reframing the way we analyse crises. Every country has its B0. Therefore, each country should compare its Covid-19 crisis management perceptions to the country’s B0 to assess the impact on its Nation Brand.
Among more than the 140 Countries mentioned, the research reveals that the worst-performing Countries captured more attention than those that managed it well.
Brand Nought affects all of the Nation Brand dimensions negatively. However, the negative impact affects the willingness to visit, live, study or buy at a different level of intensity. As we found out in the study, the most “sensitive” or affected dimensions are study and work. On the other side, tourism and buying products are far more resilient to the Covid-19 crisis than the rest.
Jose Filipe Torres, Partner of D2 – Analytics and CEO of Bloom Consulting, presented the research in a webinar on the City Nation Place on May 27, 2020. Other leading practitioners in national brands, such as Rebecca Smith, Director of New Zealand Story, and Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism, also participated in the webinar. You can view the recorded version of the webinar here.
The methodology of the study.
To understand the different points of view and the new tourist behaviours, we launched an international survey using 4,000 people worldwide, including the USA, Italy, Australia and China. We removed all national opinions from the sample population of the 140 countries mentioned.
Simultaneously, we analysed global online searches from every country globally using our D2 – Digital Demand © software. The extensive amount of data collected has provided us with a unique perspective on the recent online behaviours and trends these last few months.
As a result, a study on Covid crisis management for countries was created.
