Nation Brand Equity: Three Perspectives of Conceptualization and Integrative Review

Abstract

In recent years, the importance of nation branding has gained increasing notice both from academia and practitioners. Adapting classical consumer-based brand equity theories to nation branding research, the brand of a nation would also be regarded as an asset, i.e., nation brand equity （or “nation equity” for short）. However, researches on nation equity still remain limited. This paper systematically reviews relevant research findings on destination branding, country-of-origin and country image, and firstly proposes an integrative framework that conceptualizes and differentiates three perspectives of nation equity: （1）nation equity originated from overall perception independently about a particular nation （e.g., its name, symbols, or culture）; （2）nation equity originated from general perception about products and brands from a particular country; （3）nation equity embedded in brand equity of commercial brands. More importantly, this paper illustrates the theoretical definition, level of conceptualization, specific type of branding strategy, and representative example in practices for each perspective.Following the conceptual framework, this paper further illustrates and compares measurement tools for each perspective. Tools from both academic literature and business reports of industry practitioners are included. For example, in terms of nation equity originated from overall perception independently about a particular nation （the first perspective）, we introduce both practitioner tools such as Anholt’s Nation Brand Index and scales developed by researchers such as Country Brand Strength Index （Fetscherin, 2010）. In addition, we also discuss the downstream effect of nation equity along with the three perspectives: （1）nation equity from the first perspective would improve different stakeholders’ evaluations and behaviors toward outputs associated with a country, including encouraging inward investment, adding value to exports, and attracting tourists and skilled immigrants; （2）nation equity from the second perspective would increase consumers’ overall attitude on products or brands from a country, including actual sales and price premium; （3）nation equity from the third perspective would help to establish a unique image for a particular commercial brand in consumers’ minds, so as to influence their brand evaluation and purchase behaviors.Built on the integrative review on prior research findings, we finally identify novel opportunities to study each perspective of nation equity: （1）quantifying nation equity from the first perspective using online reviews or actual market data; （2）empirically exploring the reverse effect of nation equity from the third perspective on that from the second perspective—for example, how a favorable brand-specific image in a given country （e.g., the emerging digitally-driven brands in China, such as Taobao, Huawei）can alter evaluations of consumers from foreign countries about the country as a general product origin （e.g., “made-in-China” image）; （3）partitioning nation equity from brand equity with a cultural focus, e.g., revealing the mechanism of how commercial brands can leverage cultural elements to enhance brand evaluation, developing more precise measurement for particular cultural elements or generally capturing the connection between cultural elements and the brand’s country origin to facilitate theoretical exploration.