Brand marketing a success for Australia in new study

Australia has topped an index of the world's best country brands for the third year running.

The 2008 Country Brand Index (CBI), compiled by FutureBrand and PR firm Weber Shandwick, is based on results from a traveller survey designed to gauge consumers' perceptions of particular countries as travel destinations.

Australia was deemed to be the most successful country in terms of brand marketing, followed by Canada and the US. The UK ranked eighth in the overall top ten.

Rina Plapler, senior executive director at FutureBrand, said it was "exciting" that many countries are now responding to idea of themselves as a brand through marketing activities, although nations could do more to promote themselves through differentiated campaigns.

Rene Mack, president of Weber Shandwick's Travel & Lifestyle Global Practice, added: "With the current state of the world - economic turmoil, political unrest and global warming - it's always fascinating to see which countries come out on top in branding themselves, generating global recognition and fuelling the travel and tourism industry."

Earlier this year, a study by SuperBrands identified search giant Google as the top consumer brand in the UK, followed by Microsoft and Mercedes-Benz.