Nation brand communications go digital: Can it help to gain nation branding goals?

Abstract

Globalisation and digitalisation blur the borders between countries and they lose their uniqueness. Relations between countries are becoming close; however, national priorities and ideas of each country are becoming less clear. Nation branding helps to bridge the gap between how a state positions itself and how it is actually perceived. Digital communication tools provide benefits for the realisation of a nation brand. The development of digitalisation as one of the priorities for a country as well as the growth of the number of “digital” audiences necessitate the use of digital communication tools in the implementation of nation branding. Although the use of digital communication tools is common in the commercial and non-commercial sectors, there is a lack of research establishing the relationship between the goals of nation branding and the relevant digital communication tools to achieve these goals. This article analyses the possibilities of digital communication tools in reaching the goals of nation branding. The concepts of a nation brand and nation branding are defined, and the main functions of nation branding are highlighted. There were selected five digital communication tools that are of the greatest interest for the implementation of nation branding; their advantages were identified. Digital communication tools are aligned with the goals of nation branding. The capabilities of digital communication tools to achieve the goals of nation branding are determined. Keywords: nation brand, nation branding, digital communications, communication tools, nation branding goals, digitalisation.