A strategic approach for export: Improving country image through the olympics

Abstract

By improving the national branding countries believe to have some economic advantages in this competitive world. But the determining the effects of a national branding have always been very challenging. Export is considered one of the most effective ways of measuring the effects of the national branding due to its’ direct foreign exposure and accepted relationship between the country image and buyers’ preferences. For countries one of the important ways to achieve that seems to be the Olympics, a mega public relations organization. The paper tries to measure the effects of the Olympics on the national branding by analyzing the export figures of the host and runner-ups of the Olympics after 2000. The findings suggest that hosting the games is sufficient to boost trade but it is not necessary. And the Olympics’ effects on the national branding is not very clear in terms of exports. © Kamla-Raj 2015.