It's all about business

Today we left the town of Monteverde and headed back to San Jose. It was a four hour drive back to the city, but it was a rather relaxing day compared to the other days of hiking we have had. Once we got back, we had lunch and then we went on to hear educational lectures from very influential people of Costa Rica. Here is what I learned:

Country brands are a global marketing trend to help promote exporting products and services between countries. Country brands help attract more tourism, and build a better knowledge of a country. To have a country brand is one way to show that you are willing to give he the highest quality of products or services based on your country's ability to do so. Your brand must be truthful and must be able to represent your country as a whole. Since Costa Rica has developed their brand Essential Costa Rica, the country will be able to play a larger role in world trade.

A country brand will help in negotiating a trade agreement by giving a government "stamp" of approval on a product or service. One example that was mentioned in the lecture was that Costa Rica used to only have exports that were mango, pineapple, and coffee. Now, Costa Rica has a larger amount of exports, including medical supplies and technological advancements. With the Essential Costa Rica brand on the label of the product, a consumer will know that it is of Costa Rican quality, a quality that the government is approving, by use of the country brand on the package.
Since the seller has to have a license to use the brand on their product, the government has control over the quality of the product. This creates a brand that is central and unique to the country that is consistent. This will help other countries determine if a particular product from the Essential Costa Rica brand is worth investing in.

If I were to create a brand for Louisiana, I would make it Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler! I would choose this because whenever I think of Louisiana, I think of all the crawfish boils, all of the beer, and all of the cajun dancing that occurs so often that we are simply letting the good times roll 24/7. I think that if we were to export anything other than oil or natural gas, it would be something cajun, such as Tobasco or drive thru daiquiri shops. I think it is important to allow our heritage to shine through our brand to help influence and teach people what it means to live in the deep south. I think it would help tourism by reminding potential visitors that we know how to have a good time and how to let those good times roll. It also would give potential tourists an idea of our Cajun French heritage, and that we have a lot of diverse culture in our state.

Buenas Noches! Goodnight!