See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/324063013

Nation Branding and Tourism. Case Study: Croatia

Conference Paper · March 2018

CITATION READS

1 3,949

2 authors, including:

Ana Maria-Irina
Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies
7 PUBLICATIONS   48 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by Ana Maria-Irina on 28 March 2018.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Nation Branding and Tourism. Case Study: Croatia
ANA Maria-Irina, ANDREI Anca-Georgiana
Bucharest University of Economic Studies (ROMANIA)
Bucharest University of Economic Studies (ROMANIA)
ana.mariairina@yahoo.com, anca.georgiana.andrei@gmail.com

Abstract
Nowadays the world can be seen as a huge potential market as a result of globalization. Countries try
more and more to find niches in order to gain competitive advantage. In this context, nation branding
became an important tool used by many states to build and manage their reputation, to drive sustainable
development and competitive parity. As to Anholt (2007), the most significant brand communicator is
tourism and, on the other hand, tourism is the sector that benefits the most from a good branding campaign
and a positive image. The image of countries is often represented with touristic landscape, which proves the
power of tourism in influencing a country image. Therefore, the main purpose of this paper is to disclose
how tourism can build a national identity and how this national identity can become a nation brand. In order
to achieve this objective, the case of Croatia will be studied more in depth, as the service sector has a 70%
share of Croatia’s GDP, with tourism accounting for roughly 20%, meaning that tourism plays a significant
role in Croatia’s development (OECD, 2016).
Keywords: Nation branding, nation-brand, tourism industry, branding campaign, country case.

Introduction
The effect of increased competition among countries in the context of globalisation forced national
authorities to search for innovative solutions in order to gain competitive advantage.
In this direction, countries acting like brands became a niche, which started to be increasingly explored.
A country’s brand can profoundly shape its economic, cultural and political destiny, as well as international
competitiveness (Nicolescu, 2008).

Literature Review
The role of tourism in building national identities and at the same time nation brands is very important
and recognized by many authors and practitioners (Anholt, 2007; Olins, 2008; Dinnie, 2008; Nicolescu,
2007; Diaconescu & all, 2007; Mansfeld & Pizam, 2006; Țuclea, 2016).
All agreed that tourism represents the world fastest growing sector, which develops permanently. A
report from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (2005) showed that 1.56 billion international
tourist arrivals are expected by 2020.
Anholt (2007) outlines that tourism is the main national brand communicator. Considering this idea,
Hollinshead (2014) and Meethan (2001) also emphasize the importance of tourism in this context of
globalization when every nations wants to be a strong brand and acts accordingly.
In order to understand the decisive role of tourism in building a nation brand it is important to underline
that today consumers are involved in an ongoing search for information with regards to travel and tourism
(Leemans, 1994). Once this information collected, it makes tourists create a “mental prototype” of the travel
experience (Tapachai and Waryszak, 2000) or “mental snapshots” (Anholt, 2007). The travel experience
created by all these images represents a first step in building a nation brand through tourism.
 The ideas expressed above are perfectly highlighted in a concrete example – the case study of Croatia that
will be presented in the following sections.

Research Methodology
The main purpose of this paper is to show how tourism can build a national identity and how this national
identity can become a nation brand. Investigating the case of Croatia was considered the most appropriate
mean to achieve the aforementioned objective, using documentary research and statistical data analysis,
while also focusing on reviewing concrete actions undertaken by Croatian bodies in order to create a
national brand through tourism.
Croatia, recognized by World Bank (2017) as an upper middle-income country, was chosen as it has
managed to become an important tourism destination in only 25 years of existence. The share of tourism in
GDP was 18% in 2016 (IMF, 2016).

Case Study: Croatia

In 1992, Croatia, part of the former Yugoslavia, declared its independence. A new country was born and
it had an unknown name for the international world. Even if it had more than 150 years in tourism tradition,
it was being perceived as a new entry on the foreign market as tourism destination. Therefore, the national
tourist organization had to create new channels of information meant to promote the new country, given that
those were inexistent at that moment.
The tour operator Bemextours was very affected by the internal changes and that is why they asked the
Croatian government to give support in order to continue its activities on its main markets, namely
Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Austria, France, Switzerland, Belgium, Czech Republic, and
Slovakia (Mansfeld & Pizam, 2006). The authorities understood that this tour operator was practically the
only connection with the foreign markets and an important tool in promoting new Croatia.
Promoting Croatian tourism on foreign markets by Bemextours meant to be present at the main tourism
fairs in Europe, to re-establish connection with international tour operators and travel agencies and, at the
same time, to share with them promotional materials with Croatia, to organize press conference abroad and
to hold a permanent contact with foreign media, to organize study trips for journalists and travel agents, to
prepare accurate press releases and to organize individual talks and interviews with foreign journalists
(Mansfeld & Pizam, 2006, Tuclea, 2016).
Starting 1992, Bemextours invited more than 400 journalists and TV crews to Croatia to promote the
country as a safe and beautiful tourism destination. The results were encouraging, 207 articles published in
various newspapers, 63 radio interviews and 24 TV interviews (Mansfeld & Pizam, 2006). In 2003, 85
French journalists were invited to Croatia. More than 700 positive articles were written about the country,
presented as a great tourism destination. The following year, the number of French tourists in Croatia
increased with 70% (Tuclea, 2016). The strategy applied by tour operator Bemextours in collaboration with
the Croatian government had a positive effect and branded the country as a safe tourism destination on the
tourism market of Europe.
For example, the Dutch television Dutch TV broadcasted for thirty-five minutes during prime time a
documentary about the safety of the region Istria. This would have cost Croatia $700.000, but, as a result of
the multiple PR initiatives undertaken by Bemextours and the Croatian government, the TV show was
telecasted for free (Mansfeld, 2006). Shortly after the images were released, the Dutch Government lifted its
travel alert to the Croatian region.
Croatia’s promotional strategies success can be easily noticed if we look at the number of international
tourist arrivals at accommodation establishments. According to the latest data from Eurostat (2017), in the
period 1993-2016, the number of international arrivals of non-residents at tourism accommodation
establishments throughout Croatia increased approximately 9 times, from 1.58 million arrivals to 13.7
million arrivals. The evolution of the non-residents arrivals at tourism accommodation establishments from
1993 to 2016 in Croatia is illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1 – Arrivals of international non-resident tourists in Croatia 1993-2016

Arrivals of international non-resident tourists in Croatia
1993-2016
16,000,000
14,000,000
12,000,000
10,000,000
8,000,000
6,000,000
4,000,000
2,000,000
0
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Source: author’s conception, based on data from Eurostat

Over the time frame analysed, the number of non-residents arrivals increased steadily, but once Croatia
entered the European Union, the number of tourists experienced a significant boost, roughly 80% of them
being from the European Union. Tourism in the entire Europe is one of the sectors most impacted by the
European Union accession waves, this sector being considered not only a useful means for integration,
stability and unity in Europe, but also a key instrument for the development of a European Identity, as also
identified by Diaconescu et al. (2007). One of the main challenges for Croatia’s tourism is seasonality, as
this country is mainly based on sea and sand type of tourism. Hence, “Croatia 365”, the latest marketing
campaign launched in July 2014 by the Croatian National Tourist Board aims to make Croatia a four-season
destination. Foreign investments in tourism and auxiliary infrastructure, the wide variety of touristic
products offerings, the considerable increase in the number of protected tangible and non-tangible attractions
throughout the country, plus the fact that Croatia has been starred in the famous HBO TV series “Game of
Thrones” are some of the most important factors that contributed to the impressive growth in the tourism
industry in Croatia.
The current national tourism strategy launched in 2013 seeks EUR 7 billion in new investments in
tourism by the year 2020. Those are mainly meant to develop and improve private and public
accommodation establishments and to attract tourists outside the popular summer months. Some other
objectives of the national tourism strategy also include tourism expenditure increase by EUR 6 billion, new
jobs creation by 30,000 – 20,000 directly related with the industry and 10,000 indirect jobs, tourism services
quality improvement, bed capacity increase by 100,000 (The Ministry of Tourism, 2016), as well as turnover
rate decrease. Furthermore, organizing cultural, gastronomic and sport events, as well as setting up and
promoting thematic parks, cycling routes, and diversifying touristic offerings are among the Croatian
tourism industry’s priorities. An innovative project developed by the Ministry of Tourism (2016), aware of
the high influence online tourism and Social Media have had recently, of the fact that “preserving the
competitive advantage in the fiercely-augmented competition of the digital marketplace requires leading-
edge strategies, integrating both tangible and intangible factors to foresee and keep pace with consumers’
expectations related to sustainable purchasing” (Gazzola, P., Colombo, G., Pezzetti, R., & Nicolescu, L.,
2017), was the implementation of a HOT-SPOT type of programme able to support free internet access in
tourist destinations in Croatia.
90% of the incoming tourists travel to Adriatic Croatia, the most popular cities here being Dubrovnik,
Split and Zadar, where one can find many UNESCO Heritage Attractions. Plitvice Lakes is one of the main
touristic places in Croatia, with over 1 million visitors per year. On the other hand, Zagreb seems to be a
serious competitor for Prague or Budapest, other popular destinations in the New Member States. According
to Zgorelec & Zgorelec (2017), Zagreb is the city with the most museums per square foot worldwide.
Besides, as per Lonely Planet (2017), Croatia is quite popular among the ones involved with naturism,
approximately 1 million visitors, roughly 10% of the total number of visitors according to Eurostat (2017),
traveling to Croatia for the naturist resorts in the area. The 116 Blue Flag Beaches (most praised being the
ones on the Dalmatian coast) and the numerous nature reserves make Croatia one of the top choices for
international tourists in Europe.
The main source markets for Croatian tourism in the period 2007-2016 (there is no complete data
available until 2007) are, according to the number of arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments, the
following: Germany (~13.9 million arrivals), Austria (~7.6 million arrivals), Italy (~7.4 million arrivals),
Slovenia (~7.3 million arrivals), and Czech Republic (~4.2 million arrivals). Data regarding the number of
arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments from all the countries of the European Union are presented
in Fig. 2.
 Fig. 2 - Arrivals at tourist accommodation establishments in Croatia by country/world region of residence
of the tourist 2007-2016

Source: author’s conception, based on data from Eurostat

Results and Conclusions

Supporting the ideas and the strategy of Bemextours, the Croatian Government managed to build a strong
brand of the nation through tourism. Practically, they transformed the new country into an exciting and safe
tourism destination.
Nation branding through a corporation or an industry, tourism in this context, represents political and
economic capital, which is reflected in its standing in the international arena, a form of soft power (Wang,
2006). A better country image can be translated into higher number of tourists, investments and exports. At
the same time, a higher number of tourists means a stronger brand in a global and homogenous market,
where the power of a country brand might make the difference, difference that brings higher profits in terms
of national economy.
Croatia offers its tourists rather unique experiences and products, differentiate itself from the main
competitors and tend to focus on niche markets rather than on mass-market tourism, as the Government is
aware that at the moment they cannot really compete with the key players of the market, such as Spain,
France, Italy, Germany or UK. For the coming period, in order to overcome the main challenge Croatian
tourism is facing, seasonality, Croatia’s national tourism strategy focuses on cultural, gastronomic, sport
events, thematic parks & cycling routes types of tourism.
REFERENCES

Anholt, S., (2007). Competitive Identity, New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan;

Diaconescu, M., Nicolescu L., Pânzaru, F. (2007). Romania within the EU: opportunities, requirements and
perspectives, Conference Proceedings volume 1, 2007, pp. 135-141, ISBN 978-973-739-428-6, vol.1 ISBN
(13) 978-973-739-442-2, ISI Proceedings;
Dinnie, K. (2008). Nation branding: Concepts, issues, practice. Oxford, UK: Elsevier;
Eurostat. (2017, August 23). Main Tables - Tourism. Retrieved August 26, 2017, from Eurostat Your Key to
European Statistics: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/tourism/data/main-tables;

Gazzola, P., Colombo, G., Pezzetti, R., & Nicolescu, L. (2017). Consumer Empowerment in the Digital
Economy: Availing Sustainable Purchasing Decisions. Sustainability, 9(5), 693. doi:10.3390/su9050693;

Hollinshead, K. (2014). Encyclopedia of Tourism. Springer International Publishing Switzerland;

International Monetary Fund. (2016). Republic of Croatia and the IMF. Retrieved from
[https://www.imf.org/external/country/hrv/];
Leemans, H. (1994). The Multiform Book: Using Information in Purchasing Hedonic Products. Delft:
Eburon, 214;
Lonely Planet. (2017). Croatia Travel Guide. Retrieved April 10, 2017, from Lonely Planet:
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/croatia;

Mansfeld, Y., Pizam, A. (2006). Tourism Security and Safety. Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann;
Meethan, K. (2001). Tourism in Global Society: Place, Culture, Consumption. New York;
Nicolescu, N. (2008). Imaginea României sub lupă! Branding şi rebranding de ţară, Bucuresti, Editura
ASE, 2008;
OECD. (2016). OECD Tourism Trends and Policies 2016. OECD Tourism Committee, Secretary-General of
the OECD. Paris: OECD Publishing;

Olins, W. (2008), The Brand Handbook, London, Thames and Hudson;

Tapachai, N., & Waryszak, R. (2000). An examination of the role of beneficial image in tourism
The Ministry of Tourism. (2016). Annual Report on Tourism Croatia. Annual Report, The Ministry of
Tourism, Croatian National Tourist Board, Zagreb;

The Ministry of Tourism. (2016). Member States' Annual Tourism Reporting. Brussels: European
Commission;

Țuclea, C.E. (2016). Analiza sectorului economic in care actioneaza o intreprindere, Management Strategic
in Turism, Academy of Economic Studies, unpublished;
Wang, J. (2006). Managing national reputation and international relations in the global era: Public
diplomacy revisited . Public Relations Review 32 (2): 91 – 96;
World Bank (2017). Projects & Programs. Retrieved [from
http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/croatia/projects;
Zgorelec, A., & Zgorelec, A. (n.d.). Zagreb. Retrieved June 1, 2017, from Visit Croatia - a travel guide:
http://www.visit-croatia.co.uk/index.php/croatia-destinations/zagreb/.

View publication stats