With renowned national and international speakers, the most recent version of the Encontro Imagen de Chile 2022 "Juntos, Criando o Futuro" (Together, Creating the Future) was held in a hybrid format directly from Casa Piedra and via streaming on EmolTV. This was a conference in which, from different areas and together with countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States and Costa Rica, experiences and fundamental tools for the construction of the country brand were shared. In addition, the winners of the Chile Image Award 2022 were announced.
Marking the return of the international country branding events in Santiago, Chile, the Fundación Imagen de Chile held, in a hybrid format, the Encontro Imagen de Chile 2022 "Juntos, Criando Futuro" (Together, Creating the Future), aimed at the main public and private actors that contribute to building the country brand and its positioning abroad in line with the central message of the new country brand strategy that seeks to highlight the talent of Chilean men and women as agents of change, focusing on what Chile can contribute to the world.
"The world already knows Chile for its wonderful landscapes and geography, but we wanted to go further and show that Chile is creating a future based on the talent of its inhabitants. That is why we updated our positioning strategy, with the phrase "Chile Creating the Future". We want to respond to what we are today, and present ourselves to the world based on what we have to contribute. We identify our purpose and focus our message on what we have most valuable: our people, their talent and creativity", said Constanza Cea, executive director of Imagen de Chile.
The event dealt with several topics, from the role that Imagen de Chile has played in the current context and its mission to make the Chile brand known in the world, passing through success stories of other country brands at a global level, to fundamental organizations that are behind the positioning and strengthening of the Chile brand. In addition, at the meeting we experienced lectures by world-class speakers such as the international marketing reference Andrew Davis; the vice-director of the GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland campaign, Kate Taylor Tett; the CEO of Explora, Gonzalo Undurraga; Rodrigo Yáñez, Undersecretary of International Economic Relations; and Josefa Monge, Executive President of Sistema B Chile.
"There is a definition that I like, and it is the "sense of place". It is important to evaluate this concept that encompasses the feelings, perceptions, attitudes and behaviors of a person in relation to a place. The sense of place is not only logical. It integrates the irrational, it has to make us feel something and that is what is special about a place, we do not only know or understand it, and that is what we should do. Talking about a place should make us repent", said Andrew Davis, international marketing specialist, during his presentation.
The deputy director of the GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland campaign, Kate Taylor Tett, talked about how they built the brand in that country. "I believe in a wisdom accepted in the branding community, which is that your brand doesn't belong to you, not to the manager or even the marketing department, but to an entire organization and those who interact with it. Every time someone intervenes, a brand perception is formed, and the same can be said of country brands".
In turn, the Undersecretary of International Relations, Rodrigo Yañez, referred to Chile's success in the vaccination process based on the trade agreements that our country has and that connect it to the international world. "In relation to Creando Futuro, we adapted ourselves to be able to take advantage of the potential of digital influence to make a more inclusive trade that considers more women, SMEs, native peoples with a very strong component in the digital economy", said Yáñez.
Along the same lines, the Executive President of Sistema B, Josefa Monge, sustained that the objective is clear: "We want business leaders to be people who face the world with curiosity, empathy and courage. We are a country with an uncommon concentration of B companies, we are the nation with the highest number of B companies per inhabitant", he assured. Meanwhile, Gonzalo Undurraga, CEO of Explora, referred to the importance of the positive impact of the companies. "When working with the territory, we cannot simply focus on exploring, but we have to contribute to its conservation. To build a future together, we have the obligation to have a positive impact on the environment," said Undurraga.
Among the public present were 10 representatives of some of the main country branding agencies of Ibero-America, who are in Chile to participate in the Ibero-American Country Branding Pre-Forum, which is taking place these days and which our country is hosting for the first time this year.
Country image based on talent, innovation and entrepreneurship
One of the moments that most attracted the attention of the public during the day was the panel discussion "Building a country image based on talent, innovation and entrepreneurship", in which the Minister of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation, Andrés Couve; the future Minister of the Environment, Maisa Rojas; the Manager of Start-up Chile, María de los Ángeles Romo; and the Director of the Essential Country Brand Costa Rica, discussed, together with Constanza Cea, important success stories of people and companies in Chile that are positioning national talent globally.
"One of the main messages of the 2018 panel report on how to limit global warming was that every decision counts. This does not just refer to decisions that can be made by the Executive, it refers to society as a whole. Today the challenges are so complex and long-term that they require a level of conviction and social consensus that we all need each other", said Maisa Rojas, future Minister of the Environment.
Regarding the leadership efforts at COP 25 and COP 26 that contributed to the country's image, the Minister of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation, Andrés Couve, assured that "we contributed with the example. The example of a small country, which represents a lower percentage of emissions, but which is doing things relatively well, with an ambitious and viable project, integrating the scientific community and decisions based on evidence. The same happened with the pandemic, where the scientific community responded in an extraordinary way and added value to the way Chile faced the most difficult moments, for example, with vaccination or availability of data. This makes us stand out internationally."
"These moments of encounter are important to share the different experiences of each country brand so that together we can deepen what is true and what is not. Finally, it is about generating individual and collective learning," emphasized Daniel Valverde, director of the country brand Esencial Costa Rica.
From the entrepreneurship, the manager of Start-Up Chile, María de los Ángeles Romo, referred to the ecosystem that allowed many companies in their initial stages to settle in our country. "According to our studies, 70% of the entrepreneurs who decided to go to Chile stayed in this country, not only because Start-Up Chile was a good incubation program, but also because there is a good system to support them", she affirmed.
Image of Chile Awards 2022
To close, the winners of the Image of Chile 2022 Award were announced, awards that seek to distinguish the organization, the person and the brand that best embodies the central message of the new country brand strategy "Chile Creating the Future", which seeks to show our country the contributions that Chile makes to create a better future for the world.
The Chile Image Company Award was given to Wheel the World, one of the most awarded Chilean start-ups at international level, which aims to enable people with disabilities, their friends and relatives to find accommodation and accessible experiences around the world. Today, they have become not only a travel solution for people with disabilities, but also empower and inspire travelers with disabilities to explore the world without limits.
Meanwhile, the Espírito Imagen de Chile Award went to the professor and researcher of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, Alexis Kalergis, who was recognized with the Espírito Imagen de Chile Award for his work as director of the Millennium Institute of Immunology and Immunotherapy, and for his role as a consultant to governmental and legislative committees. He is currently a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of ICGEB (UN Organization) and has been a key player in the development of the scientific-clinical study of the Sinovac vaccine, which led to the priority supply of doses for the mass vaccination campaign against COVID-19 in Chile.
Finally, the Marca Chile Award was presented, an award that seeks to highlight one of the more than 1,000 companies in our Brand Use program, which was granted to the company Tribú, a company of healthy boats, which values local products with organic soil.
The selection criteria were the link with the origin and commitment to the promotion of the country's image, the company's history in the market and the link with the concept of creating the future.
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