Brand strategy for the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry's (FICCI) North-East Regional Advisory Council. Established in 1927, FICCI is the largest and oldest apex business organisation in India.

1. Here Comes The Sun
BRAND NORTH-EAST (INDIA)
A ROADMAP TO A COMPETITIVE BRAND IDENTITY
p FOR MR. RANJIT BARTHAKUR
by POLICITI.CO
POLICITI CONSULTANCY LLP

2. BRAND NORTH-EAST | JANUARY 20152
Contents
1. Why Brand North-East
2. How To Brand North-East
3. The Big Brand Idea
4. Executing The Big Brand Idea
5. Illustrative Examples

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WHY BRAND NORTH-EAST?
Let’s get back to where we
once were, and let’s bring
ourselves up-to-speed with
India and the world

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North-East yesterday
Was among the more developed regions of British India,
thriving on the rich resource endowments of the region
Tea plantation, tea manufacturing, plywood manufacturing,
coal mining and oil refining were some prominent
industries of the era
The British set up one of their earliest railway lines here,
that ran between Dibrugarh and Chittagong
Transport via railways, roads and inland waterways was
developed and enabled trade both within the region and
outside

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North-East today
After six decades of independence and even with a fairly
wide resource base, the region remains among the most
underdeveloped areas of independent India
The state of affairs at the time of Independence left the
region completely cut-off as India motored ahead
Due to Partition, the region was turned into a landlocked
territory, with just a 22-km connecting link (through
Siliguri) with the rest of India

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Top 10 Brands
$650 Billion
Top 10 brands in Interbrand's
Best Global Brands Report
2014
INDIA
$1,621 Billion
Value of Brand India in Brand
Finance’s Nation Brands
Report 2014
Intangible
Value
Why brands count
As multipliers of value, brands are of great importance in
the distribution of wealth. A consistent, imaginative and
well-managed brand strategy, supported and encouraged
by the government, can make a meaningful difference to
both the internal confidence and the external performance
of India’s North-East

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Why here, why now
Home to 45 million people, surrounded by 5300 kms of
international borders, rich in resources, and stimulated by
a renewed political will to engage with the east, India’s
North-East is the gateway to ASEAN and could very well
become the country’s new growth engine.

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“Connectivity, commerce and
culture are the three pillars of
India’s robust engagement
with ASEAN” Narendra Modi
Prime Minister of India

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Brand Strategy:
Brand Management + Public Diplomacy
“Since most bodies, official and unofficial, national and regional,
political and commercial, are usually working in isolation, they
send out conflicting and even contradictory messages about the
region. As a result, no consistent picture of the region emerges,
and its overall reputation stands still or moves backwards.
Far more can be achieved if the work of these stakeholders is
coordinated, of consistently high quality, and harmonised to an
overall regional strategy that sets clear goals for the region’s
economy, its society and its political and cultural relations with
other countries. This is a role that none of the conventional
disciplines of public diplomacy or sectoral promotion is able to
perform alone.”
Simon Anholt
Nation Branding Expert

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Clearer domestic
agreement on regional
identity and societal goals
A climate where
innovation is prized and
practised
More effective bidding for
international events,
investor summits etc.
More effective investment
promotions
More effective tourism
and business travel
promotion
A healthier ‘place of origin’
effect for exporters of
goods and services
Greater profile in national
and international media
More productive cultural
relations with other
countries and regions
Greater influence in
national politics and
policy-making
Benefits of Brand North-East

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HOW TO BRAND NORTH-EAST
A framework of how to go
about building the brand, and
some recommendations

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Path to Brand Strategy
Determine the most realistic, most
competitive and most compelling
strategic vision for the region
Ensure that this vision is supported
by key stakeholders, and
reinforced and enriched by every
act of communication by the region
1 2

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What will success look like?
Success will lead to the North-East
articulating, embracing and living
one powerful and uplifting brand
idea, resulting in a focused brand
across states and stakeholders,
broadening its appeal with
investors, the country, and the
South East Asian region

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“Going beyond tourism is key
to building a strong regional
brand for the North-East.”
Dr. Paul Temporal
University of Oxford

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“Traditionally, the tourism industry has been
used by countries as a driver for country
branding and country brand image, especially by
emerging countries. In some respects, the
reason for this is that it’s a relatively easy
market to analyse, well researched and global in
nature. Moreover, most countries have the
basics there to satisfy the needs and wants of
tourists, such as sea, sand, sun, shopping and
culture. But it is very difficult to drive a whole
country brand via one industry and in tourism it
is now becoming very difficult to achieve clear
differentiation. If we look at a selection of
slogans from a variety of countries, we see,
“Amazing Thailand,” “Incredible India,” “It’s more
fun in the Philippines,” and “Wonderful
Indonesia.” It is hard to make sense of these and
very difficult to differentiate between them in
terms of what they offer. One country that has
differentiated itself quite well as a tourist
destination is Malaysia, with its “Malaysia, Truly
Asia” brand, established and managed
consistently from the 1990’s to now. With its
mix of races including Malays, Chinese and
Indians, Malaysia opted for a positioning
designed to attract those tourists who were
looking to see and engage with Asian culture
and global research revealed that there is a
large-enough segment of people seeking a
multi-cultural experience who would visit
somewhere that could offer it to them.
Importantly, this choice of brand positioning fits
the political agenda of the government who see
the country as multi-racial and multi-cultural.
Branding cannot be really successful without
the relevant political will and policies being in
place. Tourism is a great economic contributor
and brand builder for a country, but this and
other sectors have to be brought together.”
Dr. Paul Temporal
University of Oxford

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POLICY
INVESTMENT
PEOPLE & SKILLS
BRANDS
CULTURE
TOURISM
Enabling action through the Hexagon1 model…

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SEGMENT INTERNAL EXTERNAL
Investment Domestic Investment
Encourage national commerce to invest
domestically as opposed to investing
overseas
Inward Investment
Attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI),
including business relocation
Tourism Domestic Tourism
Encourage Indians to explore north-east
destinations rather than vacationing
abroad
Foreign Tourism
Promote the region to foreign tourists
and conference delegates
Brands Domestic Brands
Encourage citizens to buy locally-made
products and services
i.e. reduce imports
Export Brands
Promote nation’s products and services
to international markets
i.e. increase exports
People & Skills Domestic Talent
Encourage citizens to study and work
locally, rather than going overseas i.e.
avoid “brain drain”
International Talent
Encourage foreign students and skilled
workers to come to study and work in
the country
Culture Cultural Diversity
Encourage citizens to leverage regional
cultural diversity and use it to innovate
in arts and crafts
Cultural Exchanges
Encourage people to people exchange of
ideas with neighbouring countries
Policy Enabling Environment
Encourage key stakeholders to capture
agreements in form of policy and create
institutional structure to execute vision
Trade Agreements
Align brand strategy to take advantage
of trade and other agreements with
target countries
Brand Strategy Framework2

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TEMPLATE RESPONSIBLE ORGANISATION
INVESTMENT
TOURISM
BRANDS
PEOPLE & SKILLS
CULTURE
POLICY
Framework in practice

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The BIG BRAND Idea

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Strategic brand opportunity
The most actionable brand idea — CONNECTIVITY
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COMMERCE
DESTINATIONS
PEOPLE
DIGITAL
CULTURES
OPPORTUNITIES
CONNECT

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A logistics cost perspective
95% of total exports to countries such
as Bangladesh, Bhutan and Myanmar,
and 99% of total trade with these
countries happens from regions other
than the north-east
Industry can save significant logistics
costs if they set up shop in the north-
east
In Myanmar, savings can range from 7
to 32 USD per MT, depending on the
Origin-Destination pair
CONNECTIVITY // STRATEGIC BRAND OPPORTUNITY

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PwC estimates 35K-180K crore trade potential
Leverage Bangladesh’s 1880-km long
border with Tripura, Meghalaya,
Mizoram and Assam for cheaper
imports to the north-east under FTA,
boost Indian exports
Utilise Assam’s annual 7 MT refining
capacity to process crude/natural gas
from Myanmar and Tripura for thermal
power
Capture significant market share in
adjoining countries in ASEAN and
Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan
NEPAL
BHUTAN
BANGLADESH
CAMBODIA
LAO PDR
MYANMAR
THAILAND
VIETNAM
CONNECTIVITY // STRATEGIC BRAND OPPORTUNITY

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Develop an integrated economic corridor
Take advantage of the region’s
geographic location and speed up
evolving connectivity with Southeast
Asia and ASEAN countries
Develop two integrated freight
corridors running from ‘Chicken’s Neck’
area to Tinsukia in Assam and Sabroom
in Tripura, and develop 150-200
kilometres on both sides as the
economic corridor
Connect with Asian Highway and Trans-
Asia Railway projects.
CONNECTIVITY // STRATEGIC BRAND OPPORTUNITY

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“Economic development nodes
at key strategic points will
facilitate industrial
development, enable tourism
and create high-impact social
infrastructure for urban
development” PwC - FICCI

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“To induce economic development in the region,
create integrated economic development nodes
at strategic points to facilitate industrial
development, enable tourism and create the
structure for urban development by creating
high-impact social infrastructure.
Facilitate the development of the power
potential in the region. The economic
development nodes can be self-sustaining
townships with highly developed connectivity
(road, rail, air and IWT), reliable power and
quality social infrastructure including healthcare
and education. The townships will provide
globally competitive environment for setting up
and running businesses.
Based on availability of natural resources and
market demand, develop each node to focus on
specific industrial and economic activity and
create facilities accordingly.
For example, a node at Bhalukpong could focus
on tourism and facilities focused on the tourism
industry like hotels, resorts, wayside amenities,
recreation centre, etc could be created, while
another node at Kharupetia could focus on food
processing and create facilities necessary for the
food processing industry. “
PwC - FICCI
Gateway to the ASEAN: India’s North-east frontier

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Develop an integrated economic corridor4
CONNECTIVITY // STRATEGIC BRAND OPPORTUNITY
INTEGRATED ECONOMIC CORRIDOR
TRANSPORT CORRIDOR
ROADS
RAILWAYS
INLAND WATER
TRANSPORT
AIRPORTS
PORT TOWNSHIPS BORDER TOWNSHIPS POWER SECTOR
GENERATION
TRANSMISSION

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OPPORTUNITY WHO CAN DO WHAT?
INVESTMENT
TOURISM
BRANDS
Executing the brand strategy
Ministry of Tourism
Government of India
Departments of Tourism
State Governments
State-level Sub-Brands
All aligned to larger regional brand idea
Ministry of Commerce & Industry
Government of India

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OPPORTUNITY WHO CAN DO WHAT?
PEOPLE & SKILLS
CULTURE
POLICY
Executing the brand strategy
Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship
Government of India
State-level
counterparts
Ministry of Development
of North-East Region
Government of India
North-East Council
Vision 2020
Look East Policy
Hydro & Mega Power Policies
North Eastern Industrial & Investment Promotion Policy
Skill India & Digital India Initiatives
Ministry of Culture
Government of India
State-level
counterparts
SHILLONG

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Strategic Action Plan3
Create an action plan to address opportunities on offer and challenges facing the
North-East. The action plan should outline the activities, key milestones and
organisational partners needed for delivery across the six segments of the Brand
Strategy Framework.
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Example
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ACTION
Objective 1: To increase
North-East’s share of the
Indian tourism market
1a: Develop a National
Marketing Strategy for
domestic and
international markets
1b: Optimise
opportunities with top 3
countries of origin
1c: Develop a Major
Events Plan
1d: Develop a Business
Tourism Growth Plan
DESTINATIONS
MILESTONES RESPONSIBILITY PARTNERS TIMESCALE

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Launch Campaign
(illustrative)

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Destination Branding
(examples)

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10-point strategy evaluation guide
1 Does it support business growth?
2 Does it appeal to your audience?
3 Does it appeal to your stakeholders and partners?
4 Can it be cascaded down across verticals?
5 Will it inspire internal stakeholders to live the brand?
6 Is it easy to action everyday?
7 Is it credible? Are we equipped to claim this territory?
8 Is it sustainable? Can we create a defining culture around it?
9 Is it differentiated enough from the competitive landscape?
10 Does it resonate with you?

47. Thank you
Policiti.co
2015
p FOR MR. RANJIT BARTHAKUR
by POLICITI.CO
POLICITI CONSULTANCY LLP

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BIBLIOGRAPHY
1: “COMPETITIVE IDENTITY”, SIMON ANHOLT, 2006
2: BRAND FINANCE NATION BRANDS ANNUAL REPORT, 2014
3: ENGLAND - STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN FOR TOURISM 2010-2020
4: “GATEWAY TO THE ASEAN, INDIA’S NORTH-EAST FRONTIER”, FICCI-PWC, 2014