A little while ago, someone said that ‘markets will become conversations’ and we need only look to the web to see that the conversation on Greece, the Greek crisis and specifically the Greek brand is gathering steam.
From internationally focussed business forums using it as a keynote topic and it being syndicated on YouTube, to the emergence of brandinggreece.com and the ongoing Facebook conversation of marketing industry stalwart Peter Economides, the conversation about Brand Greece is well and truly gathering a following of opinion and debate in parallel to the discussion about the Greek economic crisis.
DotKite, a consultancy in Amsterdam posed back in 2010 ‘Five things Greece should do’ and placed their own take on what the new Greek identity should look like.
‘Before re-creating a brand for Greece, we should start from the most important element, the name’ DotKite consultancy states adding that The Hellenic Republic (official name of Greece) is most commonly known as Greece and less commonly known as Hellas and that this might be the perfect moment for Greece to leave behind the “bankrupted” brand
“Greece” (which is more associated with the country’s history since the times of the Roman invasion) and move forward with the brand name Hellas which is more associated with the ancient times and the Hellenistic period.
They also point out that with the recent financial crisis in Hellas, and having received money from other European countries and the IMF, the Hellenic government should bring strict transparency to the received funds. Online and live tools should be developed and fully accessible in order to inform the world how the funds are being used. A “new” country needs a new face and therefore Hellas should begin with a crystal clear and fully transparent face.
In relation to the cultural component of the ‘new’ brand they assert that Hellas should never give up the exposure of its vast history, culture, language and heritage and that the country should invest heavily on exporting its history, culture and arts in the developed world and developing countries. The consultancy argues that in China and India, for example the young generations should know that the base of the so-called “Western Civilization” is Hellas and the Hellenistic period and this could be achieved by organizing cultural events and festivals that combine the Hellenic heritage together with modern Hellenic offerings.
Cuisine is another area Hellas can rely on in promoting the new brand. Hellas has to a lot to offer in the so called “Mediterranean diet” and could certainly export a lot of it’s products- olive oil, wine, cheese, honey, oregano and mastiha are only a few examples. Hellas should not only focus on exporting various food products, but the Hellenic way of using the products, DotKite suggests.
The last thing that Hellas should do, according to the consultancy, is promote the notion of heroism. Citizens of Hellas should champion the popular backlash against obscure rating agencies and billionaire speculators and gain the respect of the world as a modern Thermopylae, they point out.
Recently George C Pappas wrote in the Huffington Post that he was “dumbfounded” at the Greek strategy in marketing the Greek identity abroad, saying that his reaction, ‘eventually escalated to anger, disgust and culminates with the lowering of my head in embarrassment”.
He, as many others who have entered the debate, have expressed both interest and opinion on the topic, asserting also that “Greece deserves better”.
The online conversation on Brand Greece continues and the invitation for the diaspora to discuss and debate the issue is open.
For more details on the ongoing discussion visit: www.dotkite.eu