Switzerland named world’s strongest nation brand
Switzerland was named the world’s strongest nation brand according to Brand Finance Nation Brands 2021, published by brand valuation consultancy, Brand Finance, which looks at the strength and value of the nation brands of 100 countries.
As the nations around Switzerland saw their ‘brandd strength index’ (BSI), take a hit, Switzerland remained stable, moving to the top spot for bran strength with a BSI of 83.3 out of 100.
According to Brand Finance’s research this could be because the country saw external perceptions slightly rise following its strong response to Covid-19. Switzerland used a mix of compulsory and non-compulsory measures during the pandemic to control the spread of the virus. For example, non-essential businesses had to close, but the government’s order to stay at home was only ever advisory, entrusting the people to make the decision for themselves.
“Small size is no barrier to occupying a solid position for nation brand strength and Switzerland securing the top spot this year is the perfect example. Switzerland has held firm whilst other nations have faltered over the course of the pandemic,” David Haigh, chairman and CEO, Brand Finance.
Covid-19, in fact, has damaged nation brand perceptions, which Brand Finance measures in the Global Soft Power Index. The UK’s BSI drop (of 5.6 points), for example, can be largely attributed to poor perceptions of the handling of Covid-19, in particular from domestic respondents.
This theme has been witnessed across other large economies. Further to the UK, the US, Japan, and France have all fallen out of the top 10 strongest nation brands ranking due to the perception of how they handled COVID-19. The US was hit particularly bad, dropping from 4th to 17th with a score of 75.1. It saw poor scores at home and abroad, and was also one of the lowest ranked nations by the specialist audiences interviewed as part of the research.
However, despite their brand strength taking a hit, these nations all still feature in an unchanged top 10 when ranked by nation brand value.
“It will be important for the world’s largest economies to focus on making up the ground they have lost in brand strength, in order to protect their brand value. They need to rebuild this trust with their respective populations,” Haigh says.
