People passing through Zurich and other Swiss airports in the last week of January are likely to have heard somebody humming a Hindi song or draped in an Indian pashmina shawl. India seemed to be everywhere at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, where global political and business leaders congregate each year to ponder the fate of the world. By all accounts, discussions about India and China figured prominently at this year's forum, undoubtedly in view of these countries' growing role in the world economy.
In India's case, though, another factor also was at work. Determined not to be overshadowed by other countries or business agenda items, Indian business and government leaders spent some two years and more than $4 million putting together an elaborate marketing and PR campaign -- much as a multinational corporation might plan a major branding initiative -- to ensure that the "India story" got prominent play and did not get lost this year amid the chatter at Davos. For a country with aspirations of growing from a regional to a global economic power, the summit offered a platform to showcase its strengths and opportunities in front of the world business and political elite. Indeed, Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries -- India's largest private-sector conglomerate -- was co-chair of the Forum.
The core message of the "India Everywhere" campaign, as its organizers called it, was simple: It presented the country as an attractive destination for foreign investment, as an emerging manufacturing hub and as a credible partner for world business. In addition, it highlighted the Indian government's policy reforms and showcased the country's cultural diversity, with the overall goal of helping Davos participants gain a deeper understanding of Indian people and markets.
How does a country go about planning and implementing such a major branding exercise involving 22 companies, various government ministries and departments, and other organizations? How does it determine its goals, and even more importantly, measure the eventual outcomes to ensure that these goals are met? In an effort to answer these questions, Knowledge@Wharton interviewed Indian business and government leaders and Wharton professors who were at Davos.
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