Country brand equity: a comparison between the USA and China

Queiroz, Lívia de; Giraldi, Janaina de Moura Engracia

doi:10.7819/rbgn.v17i57.1964

ABSTRACT

Objective:

This article aims to identify differences between country brand equities in the USA and China.

Design/methodology/approach:

The research was descriptive and quantitative, using as survey method self-administered questionnaires applied to 386 Brazilian respondents who are students from a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo.

Theoretical foundations:

Marketing and brand techniques may be applied to countries, and it is even possible to improve a country’s competitive position in the global market in this way. Research about the value of country brand equities is recent and there is no consensus in literature concerning the nature of this value.

Findings:

We found that the USA’s country brand equity is greater than China’s; the USA presented higher averages than China in all dimensions as well as in the global value.

Contributions:

The results represent a contribution to studies about country brand equity, which are new and scarce. From a practical point of view, the results may be used as a source of information in projects and international marketing activities by countries that possess automotive industries; by countries that have invested or want to invest in Brazil, in its automotive industry; and by countries that export cars to Brazil.

Keywords:
Country image; country brand; country brand equity

RESUMO

Objetivo:

Este artigo objetiva identificar quais são as diferenças entre os valores das marcas-país dos Estados Unidos e da China.

Método:

A pesquisa foi descritiva e quantitativa, com o método de levantamento por meio de questionário autoadministrado junto a 386 respondentes brasileiros, estudantes de uma faculdade pública do estado de São Paulo.

Fundamentação teórica:

As técnicas de marketing e de marca podem ser aplicadas a uma nação, sendo possível melhorar a posição competitiva do país no mercado internacional. Os estudos sobre valor de marca-país são recentes e não há um consenso na literatura sobre a natureza deste valor.

Resultados:

Verificou-se que o valor da marca-país dos Estados Unidos é maior do que o valor da marca-país da China; em todas as dimensões, os Estados Unidos obtiveram médias superiores às da China, assim como no valor global.

Contribuições:

Os resultados representam uma contribuição aos estudos sobre o valor da marca-país, que são novos e escassos. Do ponto de vista prático, os resultados podem ser utilizados como fonte de informação em projetos e ações de marketing internacional de países que possuem indústrias automotivas, de países que já investiram ou que querem investir, no Brasil, nas indústrias do setor automotivo, e de países exportadores de carros para o Brasil.

Palavras-chave:
Imagem de país; marca-país; valor da marca-país

Texto completo disponível apenas em PDF.

Full text available only in PDF format.

REFERÊNCIAS

Aaker, D. A. (1991). Managing brand equity New York: The Free Press.
Anholt, S. (2002). Nation branding: a continuing theme. Journal of Brand Management, 10 (1), 59-60.
Cortina, J. (1993). What is coefficient alpha? An examination of theory and application. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78(1), 98-104.
Dinnie, K. (2008). Nation branding: concepts, issues, practice Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Ebrahimi, A., Kashani, F. H., & Shojaei, S. (2012). Country equity-retesting and improving the model of country equity: Comparing Japan and South Korea equity in electronics. African Journal of Business Management, 6(32), 9265-9273.
Elliot, S., Papadopoulos, N., & Kim, S. S. (2011). An integrative model of place image: Exploring relationships between destination, product, and country images. Journal of Travel Research, 50(5), 520-534.
Fetscherin, M. (2010). The determinants and measurement of a country brand: The country brand strength index. International Marketing Review, 27(4), 466-479.
Fetscherin, M., & Toncar, M. (2010). The effects of the country of brand and the country of manufacturing of automobiles: An experimental study of consumers’ brand personality perceptions. International Marketing Review , 27(2), 164-178.
George, D., & Mallery, P. (2003). SPSS for Windows step by step: Aa simple guide and reference (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Gilmore, F. (2002). A country - can it be repositioned? Spain - the success story of country branding. Journal of Brand Management , 9(4-5), 281-293.
Hair, J. F., Jr., Anderson, R. E., Tatham, R. L., & Black, W. C. (2005). Análise multivariada de dados Porto Alegre: Bookman.
Hakala, U., Lemmetyinen, A. & Kantola, S. (2013). Country image as a nation-branding tool. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 31(5), 538-556.
Han, C. M. (1989). Country image: Halo or summary construct? Journal of Marketing Research, 26(2), 222-229.
Keller, K. L. (1993). Conceptualizing, measuring, and managing customer-based brand equity. Journal of Marketing, 57(1), 1-22.
Kleppe, I. A., Iversen, N. M., & Stensaker, I. G. (2002). Country images in marketing strategies: Conceptual issues and an empirical Asian illustration. Journal of Brand Management , 10(1), 61-74.
Kotler, P., & Gertner, D. (2002). Country as brand, product, and beyond: A place marketing and brand management perspective. Journal Brand Management, 9(4-5), 249-261.
Kotler, P., Haider, D. H., & Rein, I. J. (1993). Marketing places: Attracting investment, industry, and tourism to cities, states, and nations New York: Free Press.
Laroche, M., Papadopoulos, N., Heslop, L. A., & Mourali, M. (2005). The influence of country image structure on consumer evaluations of foreign products. International Marketing Review , 22(1), 96-115.
Malhotra, N. (2006). Pesquisa de marketing: Uma orientação aplicada (4a ed.). Porto Alegre: Bookman .
Martin, I. M., & Eroglu, S. (1993). Measuring a multi-dimensional construct: Country image. Journal of Business Research, 28(3), 191-210.
Moscarola, J. (1990). Enquêtes et analyse de données Paris: Vuibert.
Nadeau, J., Heslop, L., O’Reilly, N., & Luk, P. (2008). Destination in a country image context. Annals of Tourism Research, 35(1), 84-106.
Nagashima, A. (1970). A comparison of Japonese and U.S. attitudes towards foreign products. Journal of Marketing , 34(1), 68-74.
Nagashima, A. (1977). A comparative product ‘‘made in’’ image survey among Japanese businessmen. Journal of Marketing , 41(2), 95-100.
O’Shaughnessy, J., & O’Shaughnessy, N. J. (2000). Treating the nation as a brand: Some neglected issues. Journal of Macromarketing, 20(1), 56-64.
Papadopoulos, N. (2004). Place branding: Evolution, meaning and implications. Place Branding, 1(1), 36-49.
Papadopoulos, N., & Heslop, L. A. (2002). Country equity and country branding: Problems and prospects. Journal of Brand Management , 9(4/5), 294-314.
Papadopoulos, N., & Heslop, L. A. (2003). Country equity and product-country images: State-of-the-art in research and implications. In S. C. Jain (Ed.), Handbook of research in international marketing (pp. 402-433). Cheltenham, Northampton: Edward Elgar.
Pappu, R., & Quester, P. G. (2001). Conceptualizing country equity. In Book of Abstracts of INFORMS’ Marketing Science Conference, Marketing Science: A Two Way Street Linking Theory and Practice (pp. 257-258). Wiesbaden: University of Mainz.
Pappu, R., & Quester, P. G. (2010). Country equity: Conceptualization and empirical evidence. International Business Review, 19(3), 276-291.
Pappu, R., Quester, P. G. & Cooksey, R. W. (2007). Country image and consumer-based brand equity: Relationships and implications for international marketing. Journal of International Business Studies, 38(5), 726-745.
Pike, S. (2008). Destination marketing: An integrated marketing communication approach Oxford: Elsevier.
Roth, K. P., & Diamantopoulos, A. (2009). Advancing the country image construct. Journal of Business Research, 62(7), 726-740.
Shimp, T. A., Saeed, S., & Madden, T. J. (1993). Countries and their product: A cognitive structure perspective. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 21(4), 323-330.
Strehlau, V. I., & Bacha, M. L. (2008). Identidade e Imagem de marca país: Uma breve análise semiótica da marca Brasil. In M. Amatucci (Org.), Internacionalização de empresas: Teoria, problemas e casos (pp. 161-176). São Paulo: Atlas.
Top 100 nation brands 2012. (2012, August). [Special Nation Brands Issue]. Brand Finance Journal Recuperado de: http://brandfinance.com/images/upload/bfj_nation_brands_100_2012_dp.pdf
» http://brandfinance.com/images/upload/bfj_nation_brands_100_2012_dp.pdf
Verlegh, P. W. J., & Steenkamp, J. E. M. (1999). A review and meta-analysis of country-of-origin research. Journal of Economic Psycology, 20(5), 521-546.
Yamanaka, G. A., & Giraldi, J. M. E. (2013). Country brand equity: Avaliação dos componentes do valor do Brasil por estudantes canadenses. Turismo: Visão e Ação, 15(1), 34-56.
Yoo, B., & Donthu, N. (2001). Developing and validating a multidimensional consumer-based brand equity scale. Journal of Business Research , 52(1), 1-14.
Zeugner-Roth, K. P., Diamantopoulos, A., & Montesinos, M. A. (2008). Home country image, country brand equity and consumers’ product preferences: An empirical study. Management International Review, 48(5), 577-602.

6
Evaluation process: Double Blind Review

Publication Dates

Publication in this collection
Jul-Sep 2015

History

Received
11 Apr 2014
Accepted
23 Oct 2015

Este é um artigo publicado em acesso aberto sob uma licença Creative Commons

[1] Aaker, D. A. (1991). Managing brand equity New York: The Free Press.

[2] Anholt, S. (2002). Nation branding: a continuing theme. Journal of Brand Management, 10 (1), 59-60.

[3] Cortina, J. (1993). What is coefficient alpha? An examination of theory and application. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78(1), 98-104.

[4] Dinnie, K. (2008). Nation branding: concepts, issues, practice Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.

[5] Ebrahimi, A., Kashani, F. H., & Shojaei, S. (2012). Country equity-retesting and improving the model of country equity: Comparing Japan and South Korea equity in electronics. African Journal of Business Management, 6(32), 9265-9273.

[6] Elliot, S., Papadopoulos, N., & Kim, S. S. (2011). An integrative model of place image: Exploring relationships between destination, product, and country images. Journal of Travel Research, 50(5), 520-534.

[7] Fetscherin, M. (2010). The determinants and measurement of a country brand: The country brand strength index. International Marketing Review, 27(4), 466-479.

[8] Fetscherin, M., & Toncar, M. (2010). The effects of the country of brand and the country of manufacturing of automobiles: An experimental study of consumers’ brand personality perceptions. International Marketing Review , 27(2), 164-178.

[9] George, D., & Mallery, P. (2003). SPSS for Windows step by step: Aa simple guide and reference (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

[10] Gilmore, F. (2002). A country - can it be repositioned? Spain - the success story of country branding. Journal of Brand Management , 9(4-5), 281-293.

[11] Hair, J. F., Jr., Anderson, R. E., Tatham, R. L., & Black, W. C. (2005). Análise multivariada de dados Porto Alegre: Bookman.

[12] Hakala, U., Lemmetyinen, A. & Kantola, S. (2013). Country image as a nation-branding tool. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 31(5), 538-556.

[13] Han, C. M. (1989). Country image: Halo or summary construct? Journal of Marketing Research, 26(2), 222-229.

[14] Keller, K. L. (1993). Conceptualizing, measuring, and managing customer-based brand equity. Journal of Marketing, 57(1), 1-22.

[15] Kleppe, I. A., Iversen, N. M., & Stensaker, I. G. (2002). Country images in marketing strategies: Conceptual issues and an empirical Asian illustration. Journal of Brand Management , 10(1), 61-74.

[16] Kotler, P., & Gertner, D. (2002). Country as brand, product, and beyond: A place marketing and brand management perspective. Journal Brand Management, 9(4-5), 249-261.

[17] Kotler, P., Haider, D. H., & Rein, I. J. (1993). Marketing places: Attracting investment, industry, and tourism to cities, states, and nations New York: Free Press.

[18] Laroche, M., Papadopoulos, N., Heslop, L. A., & Mourali, M. (2005). The influence of country image structure on consumer evaluations of foreign products. International Marketing Review , 22(1), 96-115.

[19] Malhotra, N. (2006). Pesquisa de marketing: Uma orientação aplicada (4a ed.). Porto Alegre: Bookman .

[20] Martin, I. M., & Eroglu, S. (1993). Measuring a multi-dimensional construct: Country image. Journal of Business Research, 28(3), 191-210.

[21] Moscarola, J. (1990). Enquêtes et analyse de données Paris: Vuibert.

[22] Nadeau, J., Heslop, L., O’Reilly, N., & Luk, P. (2008). Destination in a country image context. Annals of Tourism Research, 35(1), 84-106.

[23] Nagashima, A. (1970). A comparison of Japonese and U.S. attitudes towards foreign products. Journal of Marketing , 34(1), 68-74.

[24] Nagashima, A. (1977). A comparative product ‘‘made in’’ image survey among Japanese businessmen. Journal of Marketing , 41(2), 95-100.

[25] O’Shaughnessy, J., & O’Shaughnessy, N. J. (2000). Treating the nation as a brand: Some neglected issues. Journal of Macromarketing, 20(1), 56-64.

[26] Papadopoulos, N. (2004). Place branding: Evolution, meaning and implications. Place Branding, 1(1), 36-49.

[27] Papadopoulos, N., & Heslop, L. A. (2002). Country equity and country branding: Problems and prospects. Journal of Brand Management , 9(4/5), 294-314.

[28] Papadopoulos, N., & Heslop, L. A. (2003). Country equity and product-country images: State-of-the-art in research and implications. In S. C. Jain (Ed.), Handbook of research in international marketing (pp. 402-433). Cheltenham, Northampton: Edward Elgar.

[29] Pappu, R., & Quester, P. G. (2001). Conceptualizing country equity. In Book of Abstracts of INFORMS’ Marketing Science Conference, Marketing Science: A Two Way Street Linking Theory and Practice (pp. 257-258). Wiesbaden: University of Mainz.

[30] Pappu, R., & Quester, P. G. (2010). Country equity: Conceptualization and empirical evidence. International Business Review, 19(3), 276-291.

[31] Pappu, R., Quester, P. G. & Cooksey, R. W. (2007). Country image and consumer-based brand equity: Relationships and implications for international marketing. Journal of International Business Studies, 38(5), 726-745.

[32] Pike, S. (2008). Destination marketing: An integrated marketing communication approach Oxford: Elsevier.

[33] Roth, K. P., & Diamantopoulos, A. (2009). Advancing the country image construct. Journal of Business Research, 62(7), 726-740.

[34] Shimp, T. A., Saeed, S., & Madden, T. J. (1993). Countries and their product: A cognitive structure perspective. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 21(4), 323-330.

[35] Strehlau, V. I., & Bacha, M. L. (2008). Identidade e Imagem de marca país: Uma breve análise semiótica da marca Brasil. In M. Amatucci (Org.), Internacionalização de empresas: Teoria, problemas e casos (pp. 161-176). São Paulo: Atlas.

[36] Top 100 nation brands 2012. (2012, August). [Special Nation Brands Issue]. Brand Finance Journal Recuperado de: http://brandfinance.com/images/upload/bfj_nation_brands_100_2012_dp.pdf
» http://brandfinance.com/images/upload/bfj_nation_brands_100_2012_dp.pdf

[37] Verlegh, P. W. J., & Steenkamp, J. E. M. (1999). A review and meta-analysis of country-of-origin research. Journal of Economic Psycology, 20(5), 521-546.

[38] Yamanaka, G. A., & Giraldi, J. M. E. (2013). Country brand equity: Avaliação dos componentes do valor do Brasil por estudantes canadenses. Turismo: Visão e Ação, 15(1), 34-56.

[39] Yoo, B., & Donthu, N. (2001). Developing and validating a multidimensional consumer-based brand equity scale. Journal of Business Research , 52(1), 1-14.

[40] Zeugner-Roth, K. P., Diamantopoulos, A., & Montesinos, M. A. (2008). Home country image, country brand equity and consumers’ product preferences: An empirical study. Management International Review, 48(5), 577-602.