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Brand UK Wins Over the World, and Germany Wins New FriendsSoccer World Cup helps Germany challenge Britain to become world’s most valued nation brand, but Brand USA still hobbled by negative opinion of international policy London, November 21, 2006 – In a repeat of the 1966 World Cup final, Germany and UK are battling it out for the title of world’s most valued brand, according to the latest Anholt Nation Brands Index, created by government advisor Simon Anholt and powered by GMI (Global Market Insite, Inc.), a provider of global market intelligence solutions. For the third time this year, the Index ranks the United Kingdom as the world’s favourite nation brand, followed by Germany in second place and Italy in third. The UK scores consistently well in all aspects of the Index, including Culture, Exports and Tourism. However, almost a third of the 25,903 international respondents polled in 35 countries chose the word ‘predictable’ when asked to describe a visit to the UK. To date, the UK’s reliable and predictable nature has contributed to its consistent success, but now it seems the UK’s reign could be coming to an end as its European neighbours step up the challenge. Simon Anholt, author of the NBI report, explains: “Whatever we’re doing, we’re doing it right and we’re doing it consistently. Britain’s character is well known and generally well liked globally. That said, our people can be seen as cold and unfriendly: Germany has traditionally suffered from a similar problem, but it seems that the World Cup has helped ‘warm up’ the image of its people around the world. Let’s hope that the Olympics can achieve a similar effect for us in 2012.” The NBI reveals that Germany’s hosting of the 2006 Soccer World Cup has helped raise its profile with the country moving from sixth to second place in the overall rankings since the last NBI published in February 2006. Anholt believes this is making Germany a serious contender for the top spot in future NBIs: “Germany already has a positive international image with particular respect for its governance, economy and popular brands, such as Audi, Siemens, Braun and Volkswagen. It’s not a country that’s usually associated with warmth, hospitality, beauty, culture or fun, but the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ has definitely helped not only soften and boost Germany’s image, but also show its potential as a destination for fun and friendliness.” Similarly, Italy’s success in winning the 2006 Soccer World Cup has given the country an image boost, with Italy receiving top marks for culture based on its contribution to sport, ranking third for excelling at sport after the U.S. and Germany, as well as more traditional attractions like the Coliseum, Leaning Tower of Pisa and works of art. Countries that didn’t fare so well in the NBI include: USA – Out of the 36 countries in the rankings, the USA ranked 22nd for governance, appearing below Hungary, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Poland. When asked if the country “behaves responsibly in the areas of international peace and security”, theUSA fell to 32nd place, only beating Turkey, Indonesia, China and Israel. Israel – As a guest country on this latest NBI, Israel ranked last on the overall Index and was last place in terms of its people, governance, culture, tourism and investment. The 35 countries polled for this study were: Argentina • Australia • Belgium • Brazil • Canada • China • Czech Republic • Denmark • Egypt • Estonia • France • Germany • Hungary • India • Indonesia • Ireland • Italy • Japan • Malaysia • Mexico • Netherlands • New Zealand • Norway • Poland • Portugal • Russia • Singapore • South Africa • South Korea • Spain • Sweden • Switzerland • Turkey • UK • USA To download a copy of the Q3 2006 NBI executive summary report, please visit www.nationbrandindex.com. About the Anholt Nation Brands Index The Q3 2006 Anholt Nation Brands Index was conducted between July 27th and August 18th, 2006 on the GMI platform. A 200-1,000 representative sample based on age, gender, and where applicable, geographical region, race and ethnicity, was collected in each of 35 countries. For further information about the Anholt Nation Brands Index methodology, please contact GMI (Global Market Insite, Inc.) or visit www.nationbrandindex.com. About Simon Anholt Simon Anholt is recognized as the world’s leading authority on the branding of countries, regions and cities. He is a member of the UK Government’s Public Diplomacy Board, and works as an independent advisor to around 20 other national,regional and city governments on brand strategy and public diplomacy. Anholt developed the concept of the Nation Brands Index in 2005. He is founding editor of the quarterly journal, Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, and the author of Brand New Justice, Brand America and Competitive Identity - the New Brand Management for Nations, Cities and Regions. For further information about Simon Anholt, please visit www.earthspeak.com or email speak@earthspeak.com. About GMI GMI (Global Market Insite, Inc.) is the only provider of comprehensive integrated solutions for global market intelligence for both market research firms and corporate market research departments at Global 2000 companies. Solutions include Net-MR, a suite of software tools to manage and automate research throughout the project lifecycle, desktop analysis tools, 24/7 service bureau capabilities, and one of the world’s largest, highly profiled, double opt-in managed panels, spanning across 200 countries. In addition, GMI offers high-value, real-time enterprise feedback solutions for customer, partner and employee programs. Founded in 1999 with world headquarters in Seattle, Wash., GMI has operations on five continents. In 2006, the company ranked #93 in Inc. Magazine’s Inc. 500, #4 in Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 for Washington State and #105 in Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500 for North America. More information is available at www.gmi-mr.com or email us by contacting us. Media contacts:
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