Nation branding ‘earned, not advertised’: Mudadeniya

SRI Lanka Tourism Advisory Committee Chairman Dileep Mudadeniya stressed that nation branding and destination marketing are fundamentally different, whilst urging the policymakers and industry stakeholders to clearly understand this distinction when shaping Sri Lanka’s long-term tourism strategy.

- BY CHARUMINI DE SILVA

He made these remarks recently during a panel discussion titled, ‘Turning Data into Direction: Shaping Tourism Together’ organised by Australia’s Market Development Facility (MDF), in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) to launch Sri Lanka’s 12-month national airport exit survey to support data-driven tourism planning in the country.

Mudadeniya noted that nation branding is not a marketing campaign, but the reputation a country earns over decades through consistent policy, governance, public diplomacy, cultural exports, innovation, and overall national behaviour.

“A nation brand cannot be built through advertisements,” he said, citing Incredible India as an example of a tourism campaign rather than a driver of India's global reputation.

According to Mudadeniya, a country’s brand strength reflected in global indices, directly affects tourism return on investment (RoI).