Benchmark Branding

A leading Korean trade group is using NZ as a benchmark for competitive national branding. Research by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) has shown the long-term effectiveness of NZ’s “100% Pure New Zealand” and “New Thinking New Zealand” slogans, and the group is now urging that a similar approach be taken in Korea. “If some of New Zealand’s methods were applied to our national branding, it would help sharpen our competitive edge as well,” said So Byung-taek, divisional director of KOTRA. According to KOTRA’s research, visitors to NZ have increased by 53 per cent since the “100% Pure” campaign was launched in 1999, and 2003’s “New Thinking New Zealand” slogan has significantly boosted exports such as screw cap wines.