FORBES
 
Japan may have struggling to boost its economy in the past year, but the country’s reputation among citizens around the globe has been steadily on the rise.
 
For the first time in the ranking’s history, the land of the rising sun takes first place on global brand consultancy FutureBrand‘s annual Country Brand Index, which measures perceptions of countries around the world according to guidelines similar to the ones used to evaluate the strength of various consumer brands.
 
This year’s results differ slightly from those of previous years, primarily because FutureBrand determined that in fact, not every country qualifies as a brand–of the 75 countries reviewed, just 22 met the criteria laid out for a “country brand.” These metrics include the perception that a country creates  high-quality products, that people want to live or study in that country, and that the infrastructure there is quality.
 
“ To qualify as a ‘country brand’,” states the report, “people need to want to consume your products and services and prefer you as a place to live and learn.”
 
FutureBrand’s research also revealed that when respondents rank a country highly as a brand, it increases the likelihood that they will “visit, recommend and do business with it” than other countries on the list.
 
“By this,” states the report, “we mean that people have stronger than average perceptions of the country across our six dimensions relating to ‘status’ and ‘experience’. In other words, they perceive it equally strongly in aspects relating to quality of life, values and business, as they do for its culture, history, tourism and ‘Made In’ expertise.”
 
To determine each country’s value as a brand, FutureBrand gathered data from 2,530 survey respondents who make frequent international trips from 17 countries: The U.S., Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, UK, Germany, France, Russia, Turkey, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, India, China, Thailand, Japan, and Australia.
 
 
“This year’s research shows that having a strong country brand brings measurable competitive advantage in terms of visitation, advocacy, and investment, as well as consumer preference for products and services,” said Tom Adams, FutureBrand global head of strategy and co-author of the report. “It continues to be vital to manage country identity and reputation as you might a corporate or consumer brand.”