Italian National Branding

Italian national identity over the years has been expressed through various aspects of the country’s development from history, music, religion, language, ethnicity, sexuality, etc. Even though national identity defines how the nation views themselves as a whole, nation branding is how “others” perceive Italy. In the article, “National Identity and ‘the other,’” Anna Triandafyllidou states, “national identity is defined not only from within, namely from the features that fellow-nationals share in common but also from without, that is, through distinguishing and differentiating the nation from other nations or ethnic groups” (593). Triandafyllidou’s statement in her article defines national identity and with this understanding the difference between national branding and national identity can be attained.

Nation branding is an accumulation of many different aspects of the nation such as: culture, government, citizens, tourism, exports and immigration. In the article “Nation Branding: A Tool for Nationalism?” by Jordan he states, “Nation branding essentially communicates a nation’s policies and culture to an international audience, the public face of international diplomacy. Arguably one of the main goals of public diplomacy is to cultivate and communicate a certain image or reputation of the nation state to an international audience, and this is true of nation branding too” (Jordan).  The difference between national identity and national branding is that identity is the views from people within the country and branding is the perspective from people outside the country. Nation branding attracts tourists and shows what one nation stands for. For example, America's national brand is the land of opportunity and freedom which draws in many different cultures and ethnic groups. The Italian national identity aligns with what the Italians portray as their national brand; Not only a romantic getaway, but also an up and coming technological professional land of opportunity.

            In blog post one I explored the idea of Italy’s national identity and how Italians identify as a nation. Italy had several events that changed their path as a country, which helped shape how they identify with today. Italy identifies with religion; they are known as a Roman Catholic nation. Italians use their past to help solidify who they have become as a nation today. Italy used the “others” – outsiders from a specific nation or different ethnic background -- to help form their national identity and to create diversity throughout their nation. Blog post two went into further analysis on the Italian performances during the competition, Eurovision. It analyzed the lyrics of the songs pulling assumptions of what the lyrics were indicating. The way Italy portrayed themselves as a nation through the performers helped create an image of their national identity. All of the songs were sung in Italian showing that they are proud of their Italian heritage, as they were singing in their native language. The performances were diverse from the singers that were chosen to represent the country, to the outfits that were worn, and the style of music they sang. This indicated that they are comfortable with who they are and what they stand for as a nation. Although their national identity was explored through blog post one and blog post two, their Italian identity is solidified through the examination of their national brand.

            Nation branding is different than national identity in multiple aspects; it especially focuses on the country’s portrayal that forms the outsider’s view on one nation. Nation branding is crucial in making a nation’s external communication and interaction more compelling to others. Nation branding is a nation’s image abroad, but it is not always viewed in a positive fashion. Therefore, this has an effect on people in Italy and their self-perception, sense of belonging and national identity. When nation branding is applied to a country it can be positive or negative, depending on how the nation brands oneself. Through Italy’s performances in Eurovision, they have developed a sense of national identity along with devising a nation brand for outsiders to refer to. Italy has several aspects that they consider their national brand causing many tourists to travel there to experience what Italians portray their nation to possess.  In the article, Italy Distances Itself from Stereotypical Branding,” Nicole Winfield says, “Italy’s primary tourist attractions of food and monuments is already well known, but its other achievements are often downplayed and could attract a different kind of visitor for future growth. — Samantha Shankman” (Winfield 2015).  Tourist travel to Italy to experience the amazing architecture, historical monuments, study the romance language, visit the cathedrals such as the Vatican, museums full of art, delicious cuisine and much more.

National branding is something that Italy takes seriously, as they try to convey themselves as a strong independent nation to other nations. Italy has various aspects of their country that stand out compared to others, and fashion sense is one that is known across the world. In the article, “Nation Branding and National Brands,” Judd Mercer states,

“Italy is known for its high-quality fashion and trend setting culture and right there you have a nation brand attribute. So when a new boutique opens in the US with an Italian name and "Made in Italy" on their products, consumers will automatically make the connection of high quality and "trendiness" to the nation brand” (Mercer).

This attribute of having highly regarded fashion sense is something Italy proudly owns. This can be seen throughout the Eurovision videos and the various trendy styles that they used. This is one of Italy’s most obvious national brands.  Alongside this fashion brand name lies many misconstrued brands that the “other” has placed upon Italy. Italy chose to not stand by and allow their identity to be promoted contrary to their beliefs. Italy fought against the various distorted stereotypes of the world through a commercial that expresses the many things that Italy represents.

            Italians view themselves as much more than what they have been defined as by the “others.”  Many countries misconstrue Italy as a simple place made up of fashionistas, soccer players, Latin lovers, and pizza makers. But this is simply not true. This is demonstrated strongly in a commercial released by Italy promoting their nation in various aspects such as: technology, aerodynamics, medicine, science, architecture, and so much more. In the commercial presented on the website “Skift” Nicole Winfield gives further explanation on how Italy identifies as a nation; “Pizza makers? Italy is the world leader in the creation of major infrastructures -- 1000 construction sites in 90 countries” (Winfield).  In the commercial they are demonstrating, in a very clean and detailed fashion, how Italy is one of the dominant countries and in the run for the best nation brand in the world. This commercial is a very powerful Italian national brand maker. Not only is it defining who Italy envisions themselves to be, but it also debauches the “others” demeaning and racially misunderstood views of Italy in the process. In the article “Made in Italy,” Stina Lamm and Hanna Molne stated,

The purposes of nation branding are according to Fan (2010) to reform national identities, enhance competitiveness, embrace political, cultural and economical activities, promote these abroad and thus improve the image of a nation. It’s about communicating how good you are to the world (Lamm, Monle 6).

Italy stood their ground. They made a statement to the world, that they mean business.  Italy is no longer simply a romantic getaway or a fashion show playground, but they are beginning to be a productive economic competitor to be reckoned with among the other powerful countries.

            National branding is a quality that every country pertains. Each country develops a national identity which helps the nation develop a sense of a national brand. According to the article “Nation Branding: A Tool for Nationalism?” Jordan stated, “Nation branding can be defined as ‘the phenomenon by which governments engage in self-conscious activities aimed at producing a certain image of the nation state”’ (Jordan).  Jordan defines what national branding is and how it pulls the attention of the other nations to focus on one specific nation and their powerful qualities. National branding is formed from a nation’s identity; without a national identity it is hard for a country to define a brand for themselves. Italy’s brand as a romantic beautiful tourist destination is only small part of the national brand Italy proclaims. Italy also wants to attract more than simple tourists to their country. They are abundant in tourism, but they desire to grow in the professional field and this is easily seen through their Italy name brand commercial. Italy’s national brand is also shown through the performances of Eurovision through the performers and how they represent themselves on stage. The attire they wore, the instruments they used and the lyrics they sang all were in correlation to the national brand of Italy. Thus causing them to convey their love for their nation through the Eurovision competition by clarifying their national identity. Italy believes that national branding is important, because they have been wrongly stereotyped by other nations.  

Works Cited

Jordan, Paul. "Nation Branding: A Tool For Nationalism?". Journal Of Baltic Studies, vol 45, no. 3, 2013, pp. 283-303. Informa UK Limited, doi:10.1080/01629778.2013.860609.

Lamm, Stina and Hanna Molne. "Made In Italy -The Nation Brand Of Italian Fashion". Academia.Edu, 2017, http://www.academia.edu/25292337/Made_in_Italy_-The_nation_brand_of_Italian_fashion.

Mercer, Judd. "Nation Branding | National Brands | Elevated Third". Elevatedthird.Com, 2017, https://www.elevatedthird.com/news-insights/nation-branding-and-national-brands.

Triandafyllidou, Anna. "National Identity And The 'Other'". Ethnic And Racial Studies, vol 21, no. 4, 1998, pp. 593-612. Informa UK Limited, doi:10.1080/014198798329784.

Winfield, Nicole. "Italy Distances Itself From Stereotypical Branding In New Marketing

Ad". Skift, 2017, https://skift.com/2015/01/29/italy-distances-itself-from-stereotypical-branding-in-new-marketing-ad/.