Nothing proves Koh Buck Song’s point — that nation branding should be a fundamental part of public policy — better than Singapore's Taylor Swift concert kerfuffle earlier this year.
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) offered a grant to bring Swift's Eras Tour to the country's National Stadium – there was no disclosure of exact amount nor the detailed conditions. This did not stop other leaders in the region, such as the
Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, from asserting that the conditions required that Singapore be the only stop in Southeast Asia, and cause a Philippine lawmaker to say that's not
"what good neighbours do".
In the end, the decision was a net positive, and the resulting reactions and discussions about how Singapore achieved this highlight the importance of shaping a country brand.
What is nation branding?
Simon Anholt, who coined the term "nation branding" described it as the favourable images of countries resulting from
"strategy, substance, and symbolic actions."
For Koh,
guest lecturer at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP), and author of
Brand Singapore, it's all about reputation. He said: "Your reputation is your most valuable asset, because with it you can get so much done. And if you've got a bad reputation, then you've got a mountain to climb".
LKYSPP
Associate Professor Terence Ho, who chaired Koh's lecture on this topic, agreed. "A country’s brand makes a huge difference to investment and tourism promotion. All policymakers would do well to understand how policy choices and events (both planned and unplanned) that capture international attention affect a country’s brand image, and what they can do about it,” he said.
Koh said people often confuse nation branding with brand building and marketing. In his book, he pointed out that nation branding includes promotional techniques usually used in corporate or commercial settings. Explaining the difference, he said: "What is needed, though, is not sexy advertisements or fancy public relations alone, but credible statements produced and disseminated consistently."
If done well, it adds up to what Koh calls, "The Holy Grail of Branding" which is that of high-profile, third-party endorsement, such as Swift's boyfriend, Travis Kelce
raving about Singapore on his popular podcast.
The Singapore example
In 2023, the
Nation Brands Index ranked Singapore at number 26, ahead of Brazil and behind Northern Ireland. And the country usually fares well in such comparative rankings.
Brand Singapore says the country's success story itself is nation branding. In Singapore’s early days, the Economic Development Board (EDB) was established to help attract foreign investment. As EDB members went about speaking to investors, they were also selling Singapore's value proposition and branding it in the process.
Koh, who has worked in the EDB, said: "We had a list of Singapore's unique selling points, its value propositions to potential investors. And every day we'll be looking at this list to see how we could add to it and improve the positioning of every single one of them."
These selling points included hard power elements such as anti-corruption laws, as well as soft power aspects such as English being the main language of government and business. These shaped the perception of Singapore as an efficient, investor friendly and stable country.
However, there will always be incidents that risk tarnishing the brand, such as political scandals in 2023 that included news reports of two different pair of affairs among politicians, one including members of parliament, and a corruption probe into a cabinet minister. These incidents
challenged Singapore's squeaky clean image.
Unlike the case in other countries, the Singapore state is the main custodian of its brand. The private sector plays almost no role in nation branding apart from a few prominent players like Singapore Airlines. In contrast, "Brand America" is influenced by the commercial decisions of corporate actors such as the big Hollywood studios. Koh noted that the American government, "would have to lobby Hollywood if it wished to affect what was being portrayed onscreen".
Role of citizens
Over the years Singapore's nation branding has become more inclusive.
According to Koh, Singapore's 50th anniversary campaign,
SG50 was an inflection point. "It really got the ordinary people, the citizens, to think about what they themselves could do to contribute to the country brand,” he said.
Bolstered by a bold logo, a vertical "SG50" in a red circle, over 400 citizen-initiated projects sprung up, celebrating heritage and nostalgia, which gave people a sense of home.
That sense of pride and ownership has carried over to the EDB and STB
Passion Made Possible campaign, which Koh said is "the best brand concept we've had so far in terms of the way that it involves people". The campaign enlists the help of real-life people with real stories to be brand ambassadors.
Professor Ho added that the tagline "is sufficiently encompassing for a range of events and initiatives without becoming dated too quickly."
Policymakers as brand architects
A country brand evolves through two processes: design and default. And no matter how much effort is dedicated to design, default often wins. "If there's any news that hits the international headlines that's going to impact the brand. It could be some crime that's made the news," said Koh, "it's totally out of your control if you are a civil servant or anyone else."
This unpredictability lends credence to Koh's assertion that everyone, especially civil servants, should be aware of how nation branding inform their day-to-day decisions, "because sometime in your work, in your career, or even in your personal life, you might realise that there's something you could do right to contribute to the country brand."
In the Taylor Swift concert case, Koh said that the Singapore brand received more positive than negative perception. The overall narrative reinforces the perception of Singapore as an international entertainment hub with "reliable state-of-the-art infrastructure, no traffic jams, and exceptional public safety", he wrote in an article on this in
The Straits Times.
Yet there is no time for any country to rest on its laurels. As Professor Ho said: "Singapore’s brand image as a prosperous, clean and efficient city at the forefront of technology requires continuous efforts to maintain high standards of governance and liveability amid challenges such as rising costs, high urban density and a rapidly ageing population."