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Colombia Proud of Its Passion

Seems Cartagena isn't the only place trying to reinvent its image. The whole of Colombia has been working its "Colombia es Pasión" slogan since 2004, and it's starting to pay dividends with more tourism and foreign investment.

The slogan and associated campaign--which includes licensing a logo to companies as diverse as chicken restaurants and Avianca airlines--cost Colombia just $5 million, a paltry sum in the world of national branding, something that's been a niche industry since 1996.

Simon Anholt, who coined the phrase "national brand," says there's more to the concept than just a snazzy logo and a catch phrase:

Rebranding requires sweeping societal transformations, he says, not just clever public relations. He says South Africa rebranded when it ended apartheid; Ireland when it became a prosperous nation, rather than a mass producer of immigrants; Slovenia when it embraced democracy, joined the European Union and showed that a historically unstable part of Eastern European could be different.

If a country does undertake fundamental changes, marketing can complement them, Mr. Anholt acknowledges.

Which means if tourism is on the rise in Colombia, it's not so much because of a new slogan--but because the country's finally getting back on its feet.

Related Stories:
· Colombia es Pasión [Official Site]
· Colombia Wants the World to Recognize Its Passion [WSJ]
· From 2007: Packaging a Nation [T+L]
· Colombia Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: *L*u*z*a*]