Brexit is good for the UK Nation Brand!
Don’t kill me, I’m just the messenger!
The United Kingdom holds riveting global influence in her hands. She has preserved her authority through ‘storm Brexit’, in fact, her economic power may have grown…
The proof really is in the pudding. The UK incredibly climbed 7 positions and claimed the number 1 spot in the 2017 edition of the
Bloom Consulting Digital Country Index.
The United Kingdom saw an impressive performance across all five dimensions. The rise of the UK’s position on the Index can largely be attributed to Brexit and the media attention surrounding the referendum. This year’s Index has not only taken searches for the “United Kingdom” as a single unit into account, but also added singular searches directed towards Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales. Besides occupying first place in the general world ranking of the Digital Country Index, it comes as no surprise that the UK also has the most searches in the Prominence dimension.
In the days immediately following the Brexit result, the UK’s nation brand significantly suffered as the rest of the world branded the country ‘inward-looking’, ‘anti-immigration’, and ‘insular’.
Brexit is something that I would never have anticipated. Along with the rest of the world, I was stunned that despite the initial outcry, the UK seems to have ultimately profited from this referendum.
Rising an incredible 27 places in the ‘Tourism’ dimension, the UK has shown a 19% increase in Tourism related searches with peaks in searches occurring both before and after the Brexit vote date of June 23rd 2016.
Search volume within the ‘Investment’ dimension soared in correlation with the vote; searches regarding the United Kingdom’s ‘economic strength’ saw an incredible spike following the vote date. Additionally, the automotive industry became of particular interest immediately before Brexit.
Not to mention the ‘Prominence’ dimension, where searches grew by a staggering 105%.
Interest in the UK grew across all five dimensions of the Digital Country Index as international buzz resonated globally. But let’s see how long that will last…
I believe that Brexit will negatively impact the UK Nation Brand on the long medium to long run. For now, the data tells a much different story.
I invite you to read more about Digital Demand D2©, the Technology behind the Digital Country Index
Thank you and remember to visit Bloom Consulting website for more information about our projects and Nation Branding
