The nation brand of Vietnam in 2015 was only higher than that of Cambodia, while much lower compared to other regional countries, an executive of brand valuation and strategy consultancy Brand Finance told a forum in Hanoi on Friday.

In 2015, Vietnam's nation brand was valued at US$140 billion, compared to $16 billion of Cambodia, Samir Dixit, Managing Director of Brand Finance Asia-Pacific, said at the ninth Forum on Vietnam National Branding.

A nation brand is one of the most important assets of any state, encouraging inward investment, adding value to exports and attracting tourists, according to the consultancy.

The nation brands of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand last year were assessed at $564 billion, $407 billion, and $347 billion respectively, which are much higher than Vietnam’s, according to a Brand Finance report seen by Tuoi Tre News.

The top three nation brands are those of United States, valued at $19,703 billion, followed by China and Germany, assessed at $6314 billion and $4166 billion respectively, the report revealed.

In explaining why Vietnam’s nation brand was below its regional peers, Dixit took the Southeast Asian country’s national flag carrier, Vietnam Airlines, as an example.

Despite being a Vietnamese nation brand, the carrier never asks its online ticket buyers of their desired in-flight dishes or preferential seats, Dixit said.

While rice is one of Vietnam’s export staples that need stronger branding protection, Vietnam Airlines’ in-flight meals are not quite delicious, he added.

In the meantime, the websites of 63 domestic brands that partake in Vietnam’s Nation Brand Program are all poorly designed, Thierry Noyelle, a Vietnamese representative with the Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, told the forum.

Noyelle added that only a few of them showcase the Nation Brand logo on their websites.

Headquartered in London, Brand Finance is the world’s leading independent brand valuation and strategy consultancy.

Brand Finance was set up in 1996 with the aim of ‘bridging the gap between marketing and finance’.

The consultancy has helped companies and organizations, including government institutions, trade associations and nation branding agencies, to connect their brands to the bottom line, it said on its website.

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