Germany is world’s best ‘brand’

People around the world hold more positive perceptions of Germany than they do any other country, a new survey reveals.

After holding the number one place since 2009, the United States of America has this year been pushed down to second place by Germany, according to the 2014 Anholt-GfK Nation Brands Index (NBI).

The study measures global perceptions of 50 countries, based on 23 different attributes that make up the six overall dimensions on which national image is based: exports, governance, culture, people, tourism and immigration/investment. For the 2014 study, a total of 20,125 interviews were conducted across 20 countries.

Germany’s improved performance in the Index this year can partly be attributed to its score gain on “sport excellence”, which is the largest gain seen this year for any single attribute across the 50 measured nations.

“Germany appears to have benefited not only from the sports prowess it displayed on the world stage at the FIFA World Cup, but also by solidifying its perceived leadership in Europe through a robust economy and steady political stewardship,” explains Simon Anholt, an independent policy advisor. “Germany’s score gains in the areas of ‘honest and competent government’, ‘investment climate’, and ‘social equality’ are among the largest it achieved across all the aspects covered by the 2014 survey,” he added.

In contrast, the USA has shown the least impressive NBI gain among the developed nations. While it still is seen as number one in several areas, including creativity, contemporary culture, and educational institutions, its role in global peace and security only ranks 19th out of 50 nations.

Overall Brand Ranking 2014 – top 10  

  1. Germany
  2. USA
  3. UK
  4. France
  5. Canada
  6. Japan
  7. Italy
  8. Switzerland
  9. Australia
  10. Sweden

 

Article published 14th November 2014