A host of product categories have come to be strongly associated with a particular country. Think watches, for example, where a connotation to Switzerland is almost immediate. It’s not really a watch unless it has that “Swiss Made” small print on the quadrant. That same psychological effect applies to high performance cars being from Germany and the best fashion coming from Italy or France – in this case, even permeating down to cities with Milan and Paris.
Somewhere in our minds, a product or service correlates with a particular country and its legacy, culture, or lifestyle, which leads us to perceive that product or service as more credible, authentic, and ultimately, superior. Some brands have even been given foreign names in order to create that perceived country of origin effect -- Häagen-Dazs is a good example. Founded in the United States in the early 1960s, this ice cream company was given a Scandinavian-sounding name to evoke old-world traditions and artisanship.
There are other cases where referencing a country of origin might not always be a good idea, especially if it is a developing country. Products “Made in China” are generally perceived as inferior and don’t exactly conjure up positive emotions – other than affordability. Other times, country of origin is dismissed because it might not support a brand’s strategy. Nespresso, headquartered in Switzerland, is a good example of a brand that chose not to point to its country of origin -- most likely because Switzerland doesn’t exactly ring up ‘coffee nation’.
Contact us today and find out how you can give your brand more credibility and authenticity using the country of origin effect.
(Picture: Häagen-Dazs)
