Release of the 2017 Digital Country Index
The earth has made another trip around the sun and we have seen our fair share of ups and downs throughout the year. Brazil basked in the limelight of hosting the 2016 Summer Olympic games, while the United States elected Donald Trump to preside over the Oval Office, as the European Union bid farewell to Britain. While this year has been nothing short of eventful, all actions by nature have consequences. Each time the world was following the latest breaking news story, millions of global citizens reacted by talking to their computers and devices for a deeper understanding of the issues. This is what makes us especially proud to announce the results of this year's Digital Country Index 2017.
Although United States’ Brand fell only one spot to №2 on the 2017 Digital Country Index, it can still be seen as a blow to the country’ brand reputation. Yet its loss in leadership has paved the way for a new winner to take the reigns. The United Kingdom has claimed what it might call “its rightful place” as №1 on the Index. So what factors prompted this passing of the torch? It is important to note that data from the 2017 Digital Country Index was collected until September 2016. Although post-Brexit and pre-U.S. elections, these two events did not have the consequences one might expect. Brexit did give the UK a small boost in online interest. However, the Digital Country Index includes Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland in the UK’s geographical area which accelerated its ascent to the №1 spot.
We can also see a connection between increased performance on the Digital Country Index and countries that focused on bolstering their brand. For example, New Zealand spent the last year promoting its booming job market and cheap land prices. As a result, the country jumped six positions in the Tourism dimension and four positions in the Talent dimension. This resulted in an overall jump of three positions to claim №16 on the Index. Additionally, Ireland also used the last year as an opportunity to promote its touristic attractions, which resulted in a five-position jump in the Tourism dimension and four-position leap, overall, to №17.
It has been an eventful year in the digital world and I am excited to continue sharing these interesting developments with you. Over the next few weeks, I will be covering some of the countries I’ve mentioned here to further discuss the gains and losses of this year’s 2017 Digital Country Index. Stay tuned!
Thank you and remember to visit Bloom Consulting website for more information about our projects.
