Brand Australia
The Rudd government has decided to revive that perennial question: how do you go about rebranding Australia? It has invited advertising agencies to bid for a multi-million dollar contract to come up with a ringing new slogan and a wizard new logo.
Understandably enough, the government wants to get away from the "shrimp on the barbie" image that was popularised by Paul Hogan in the Come and Say G'Day! a quarter century ago, even though it's the most successful marketing campaign that Australia has even seen. Fun and lifestyle, which traditionally have been major selling points, are a bit passe.
Instead, it wants something altogether more grown-up and sophisticated, spruiking Australia's creativity, innovation, entrepreneurial spirit, spirit of social inclusion and ingenuity. In other words, it wants to project modern Australia to the world, not some pastiche from the early 1950s with a soundtrack from Rolf Harris (don't get me wrong, I love Rolf, but you know what I mean...).
"We need a cohesive brand that captures the essence of Australia and underscores the quality of all that we have to offer in sectors such as trade, investment and education," according to Trade Minister Simon Crean. "It is time for Australia to more actively promote itself."
This isn't a tourism campaign per se, it's a national marketing campaign. The aim is to persuade people that Australia is not only a good place in which to enjoy a holiday, but to live, invest and do business.
Ideally, the Australian government wants to emulate the success of New Zealand's 100% Pure New Zealand tagline, and South Africa's Rainbow Nation. Though it is confident about its product, it is suffering from a bit of brand envy.
Admittedly, neatly encapsulating Australia in one pithy slogan is going to be tough. "We have a physicality that defies belief in terms of desert to snow to rainforests to beaches to big cities," says Chris Brown of the lobby group the Tourism and Transport Forum. "We produce everything you can imagine from fine wine to iron ore, highest levels of education down to Billabong board shorts, I mean how do you put all of that together in one little logo or ad, I don't know that you can."
People are already having a go on the talk-back radio stations and in the papers. "The Best Country in the World" seems popular, if contentious. "So far so good," has a ring to it, though it reminds people of the long in long-haul destination. "Come and shake the sauce bottle down under," might have champions in The Lodge, although Kevin Rudd noted, in one of his less ocker moments, that the Where the Bloody Hell Are You? tourism campaign was a "rolled gold disaster".
"The Lucky Country" seems popular, though it would have the journalist Donald Horne, who coined the nation's most misappropriated phrase, revolving in his grave.
Can you do better?
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