Page 35 - Azerbaijan State University of Economics

Sana Imran: Effects of nation branding on national identity of Azerbaijan

In an era of increased global interaction and exchanges, effective nation
branding has emerged as an imperative for the nations, in order to aptly tap their
economic potential. ―If you are not making a concerted effort to brand your nation,
other people might do it for you - and for their own purposes.‖ [Tim Lincoln, 2015.
Nation Branding: Perception Can Be Reality - So Manage It http://knowledge.
wharton.upenn.edu/article/nation-branding-perception-can-reality-manage/ (2017)]
Countries are famous globally for different reasons. USA is known for the state of
art cyber technology, aircrafts, space crafts, optical, technical and medical apparatus.
China is identified with low cost manufacturing capability, connectivity projects and
abundant provision of Chinese products till the remotest part of the world. UK
dominates Europe as the financial leader with London as the hub of commercial
initiatives. Russia and Gulf countries excel in the domain of petrochemicals, often
leveraging their hydrocarbon riches to derive politico-economic mileage. Japan
makes its presence felt with cutting edge computer technology, automotive industry
and electrical appliances. Germany is famous for its vehicles, machinery, electrical
equipment, medicines and for the provision of apt business conditions to world
entrepreneurs. Similarly, South Korea is known for cellular phones and electrical
machinery, Switzerland for an impressive tourism industry, Pakistan for textiles,
sports goods and edible items, India for cheap human resource and IT potential and
South Africa for the diamond industry. Prowess of a nation in a peculiar product
range leads to increased exports of the same product from that country. Suits and
shoes from Italy, perfumes from France, chocolates from Switzerland and Belgium,
crystal ware from Czechoslovakia, rice, mangoes and textiles from Pakistan and
construction consultants from Turkey are only the few to mention.
Besides developed nations, the developing countries can also use multiple
branding strategies to heighten the respective national identities. In this paper,
various techniques of nation branding employed by a developing nation like
Azerbaijan will be covered analytically. Azerbaijan has been selected as a preferred
choice for research, due to available scope and ever growing awareness about nation
branding. Azerbaijan has launched number of nation branding initiatives that have
helped in promoting the correct image of Azerbaijan in the region and beyond. This
includes ―Amazing Azerbaijan‖, ―Azerbaijan-The Land of Fire‖ and ―Made in
Azerbaijan‖ campaigns.
National Identity. National identity is the sense of belonging one has to a
state or a nation, or a sense of solidarity one feels towards a particular group,
disregarding one's actual citizenship status. A collective of people, united by shared
cultural features, myths and values [Barrington, ―Nation and Nationalism‖ 713]. If
one views national identity positively, it is typically called "patriotism‖. ―A well

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