How many slogans does brand Australia need?
If today’s report in the Herald is to be believed Australia will get another new slogan under the federal government’s $20m branding building trade initiative.
To be unveiled by the trade minster Simon Crean later this month, the strapline is expected to be “Australia Unlimited”.
Now, this is not to be mistaken with Tourism Australia’s new slogan and campaign “There’s Nothing Like Australia” which will also be pushed out internationally.
Apparently, Austrade – the government’s trade and investment development agency – rejected the suggestion that it take up the TA slogan, despite the fact the tourism body’s marketing director Nick Baker sat on the Austrade selection panel.
There’s Nothing Like Australia Unlimited
Anyone interested in “Country Branding” i.e. branding a country beyond the scope of tourism, might enjoy this column from brand guru Mark Ritson:
http://www.marketingweek.co.uk.....11.article
In a tweet (the new nutshell) – “the business of country branding or nation branding is nonsense. Countries are not brands. They are countries”.
9! no wait, 11!
Australia – we love it but we can’t put a finger on why you’ll love it
Australia – take our word for it. Honest.
Australia Unlimited – will this mean a comeback for Donnie Sutherland, host of Sounds Unlimited (later, just, Sounds), the iconic 70s and 80s Oz Saturday morning music show?
Think he could front the campaign, use the Barry White theme and even use the typeface from the credits.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7EYvFlOAcA&feature=related
Interesting for the music, Donnie’s jeans and Peter Garret actually having an opinion.
Love youse unlimited
Onya ‘Straya
I still like the slogan that a lady (passer by) gave to a CH7 or 9 reporter when asked if she had any suggestions for a new slogan. I think the report was last year or the year before about the government funding a new brand exercise for tourism.
Anyway, her suggestion was:
“If we had you, we’d have it all”
Australia unlimited doesnt tell me anything about Australia.
It says a lot about a government and its agencies so obsessed with slogans and fluff but lacking the necessary strategy to back it. Perhaps it’s a kind of national intellectual blackhole we’re falling into. So now we have Tourism Australia with the “Australia, there’s nothing like it” slogan and no strategy and now comes this nation building Brand Australia project with this one and still no strategy. Lots of talk of logos but nothing substantive to back up how this slogan reflects a new positioning and for what audiences. What kinds of campaigns will be used to embed this tagline? How will Australians be brought in to support it? On what basis will this tagline be used and when? Given the current kerfuffle on the latest Tourism Australia campaign and its insistence on owning all intellectual property of everyday Australians (without payment) surely any good strategy has to secure hearts and minds here first. Let’s see how the sell this one. If they can.
How about a simple analogy…Are you U Satified To Remain And Live In Austrailia, boom boom:) I mean really, they can’t be serious, more money being spend without any structure to support..Agree with you Stephen…
Australia – nowhere near Iceland
6! Retorical hey? 7!
Unbelievable! Its unaustralian. Its unacceptable. Its unappealing. Its unbearable. Its unconvincing. Its unextraordinary. Its unimaginative. Its unthinkable. Its unperceptive. Its unpersuasive. Its untranslatable. And its uncopyrightable.
Other than that – its okay:)
Its better than my idea of ‘Australia Unreachable’
Jesus @Martin, that’s brilliant!
So stealing that line if I can..
They should watch Flight of the Conchords for good tourism slogan ideas
@ Adam I disagree with your point about countries not being brands.
A brand is what is construct within the minds of people and consists of all the information and expectations associated it. And people construct an image of country or a city or a place with the same information and expectations.
What first comes to mind if I mention ‘America’ or ‘Russia’ or ‘Japan’? Is your mind blank?
So, its a brand and can be branded. If you don’t try to infuence the image of a place then you’re leaving it to chance.
Branding a place works, its just that there is a lot of people who just don’t get it.
Branding a place is not about logos and and tag lines or throwing $20m at problem. Its a lot more…
Logos Unlimited — turning Australia into Logoland. Stephen Byrne above is spot-on.
More hilarious. The Australia Unlimited trademark is owned by News. So why did M&C Saatchi come up an already registered trademark. Complete incompetence and client naivete to think News would let this go. As I’ve previously mentioned. M&C stuffed it up last time. Why have they been allowed to stuff it up again?