What This Country Needs Is A Real Chief Marketing Officer

As January is a month for New Years resolutions -- I look no further than my own teeming neighborhood gym for confirmation of that -- I propose that our country institute one of its' own: Make America a respected name once more.

America's image around the world is really in the dumps. The Iraq war continues to damage our image; a recent Pew Research Center survey found that "Anti-Americanism is extensive." But it is more pervasive than anti-war sentiment, and it requires more active intervention and a more focused and integrated strategy than exists today. In business parlance, we need a chief marketing officer for America.

Friends and clients who run global companies abroad, along with officials of other governments, tell me it's getting harder to publicly support America. The world, they say, which once saw us as liberators, innovators, bearers of economic well-being and personal hope, now sees us as 'America the Bully,' with more money and weapons than sense, only "pretending" to serve others for our own narrow self-interest.

In all fairness, this is not totally new. For a lot of people, America hasn't stood for apple pie in a long, long time. Consider how reflexively anti-American Europe was in the 1970s and 1980s. The rocky relationship that America has had with the outside world for a while now is something that needs and can be addressed. Today.

With longtime Bush confidante Karen Hughes stepping down from her post as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs it looks like another Friend-of-Bush, James K. Glassman, nominated in December, is poised to step in. In Washington-ese, Hughes -- and, soon, Glassman, provided there are no surprises -- was kind of an uber-PR agent for the State Department. After announcing her resignation, Hughes explained that she had completed her mission "by transforming public diplomacy and making it a national security priority central to everything we do in government." Not so fast.

Make no mistake; we're in a branding crisis. And, Glassman has to do better. Many would say the situation is already beyond repair, or too complicated to fix. I don't buy that. We can fix it, and we must, to preserve the position of this great nation.

Embarking on fixing that image is a process similar to that of any significant brand. It requires the work of a designated Chief Marketing Officer coordinating with the President and other key influencers with all the humility and recognition of the uphill battle that it will take. And just as in big companies, what will assure failure of such a turnaround are hints of the recent introspective, isolationist, protectionist, and self-flagellatory positioning our American brand has been promoting.

It's important that the CMO I'm envisioning won't just sell policy (public relations) but will help to shape it (the distinction of a real marketer). This cabinet-level official, or at least respected special assistant to the President, will be responsible for coordinating America's image and must have a seat at the policy-setting table where the others who influence the brand convene. Hughes may have been competent in her post as a "communications officer" (she managed to win two presidential elections for Bush), but her failure at this job, and to an extent, that of her predecessors, Margaret Tutwiler, and Charlotte Beers, demonstrates that just hiring somebody who is talented at messaging and communications isn't enough.

Let's take one important role to the American brand, the Secretary of State. In theory, the Secretary, although a diplomat by definition, leads thousands of employees who comprise the State Department and are devoted to American "branding" among foreign nations. Yet, there are problems with this. The State Department staffers' jobs are to deal with the official relations between the U.S. and other nation's governments. And that's a big job in itself.

The problem is that the world now is about individual activists, media and many, many organizations with significant influence, not just governments, and we need somebody who focuses on reaching out directly to the new universe of influencers. Just because we have good "government" relations with the Blair administration did not mean that our positioning with the English people was strong. Changes in the economy, in communications, in travel, have empowered people and broken down organizational borders. People make personal decisions with just one input being what their government is saying to them. In another example, just because at the highest levels the leaders of two nation-states may not see eye-to-eye doesn't mean that the citizens of those two countries must follow suit. We can and must go direct and assure that all key influencers are targeted, not just the ones with official government titles.

The CMO must have a clear strategy, with a coherent message from the president, to improve America's brand overseas and, just as important and absent today, be the internal facilitator across all the touch points of our brand... the herder of cats. This begins with our own government. Everybody who works for the U.S. government overseas is a representative of America, and they will shape America's brand.

But, the CMO's work cannot end with employees and representatives of the U.S. government. The CMO must reach out to private sector influencers and provide them with resources and strategy for showing the world what's great about America.

We need that super-coordinator reaching out to, coaching, cajoling and inspiring to align all these communicators, including domestic and international business leaders, our relief workers abroad, U.S. travelers, Hollywood celebrities, our own folks in media, academia, NGOs, etc. The role of our many potential "ambassadors," cannot be underestimated.

There are obstacles that cannot be underestimated. Some will say the media is too cynical, that Hollywood is too reflexively anti-government, that most business executives have an ostrich quality beyond promoting their own companies, and that America itself is deeply divided about what we should stand for. Granted, not everybody will rally behind our messages. That said, optimism is part of the American brand and I am certain there are many exceptionally proud Americans ready to help once they know how. In a recent movie about Darfur, George Clooney was seriously called, "the highest level representative of the American government" to go overseas and focus on the situation there. I balked at first, but that's right. And, in the end is that so bad? Why limit our ambassador corps?

If we didn't have a solid "product" I wouldn't be so emotional and concerned. Here's how I see our brand imagery: strong and loyal ally; land of opportunity and home of the free; Yankee ingenuity; and world-changing inventions born in the garage. The next President will define the brand, but she or he will certainly need help executing on that brand promise and her top staff will need to be reminded, coaxed, and challenged to protect that brand.

This isn't about "spin" or pretending we're perfect. It's about reminding those who know at their core what a great country this is; remembering the good things we take for granted; working together to recognize and foster what America genuinely stands for, and doing a better job of embodying -- in both word and deed -- those values at home and to the world. In this dawn of 2008, a critical election year, lets resolve to be better Americans, in every way. Leading this charge is how I see the job -- the much-needed job -- of a true American CMO.

Follow Keith Ferrazzi on Twitter: www.twitter.com/keithferrazzi

Comments

[pkohan]

Come on - everyone knows CMOs have no power, even in top corporations. Their tenures last about the length of a Kid Rock marriage.

The only person capable of changing America's "brand image" per se is the soon-to-be-incoming President.

[ramal]

The best "marketing device" this country could ever come up with would be bringing all American troops and service personnel home from wherever they might be stationed outside of the fifty states.

[Cathexis]

Before we can "market" what we stand for, we have to actually stand for it ... and demonstrate it through our actions. Bush and the GOP have *talked* values for years, all the while *doing* the exact opposite. It has been an un-****ing-believable experience, watching the ongoing contradictions since 2000. In fact, I now just assume that everything Bush & Co. SAY is the exact OPPOSITE of what they'll do. Cases in point:

* The Clean Air Act: To allow greater pollution by industry
* The Save Our Forests Act: To allow timber countries greAter access and fewer restrictions.
* The Patriot Act: Need I say more?

Words won't do, they'll just be chalked up as more lies. More importantly, we have to realize that we have strayed WAY off the mark of what we talk about. We need to change ourselves, not focus on how to change others' perceptions while remaining the same.

It is not the rest of the world's perceptions that are at fault. It is our own self-perception and failure to recognize and address problems.

[Cathexis]

IMO, the best "marketing" our country could do is to reassure the rest of the world we have rehained our principles, integrity, and sanity by completely and unequivocably rejecting the extremism that has controlled ourt country for the past seven years.

Ideally, it would start with Bush and Cheney having a trip to the Hague. Failing that, the absolute minimum requires they be impeached. Make no mistake, if they are permitted to leave office without having to account in any way for their myriad crimes, all the "marketing" in the world will be seen for what it is: mere lip service.

[OhgReaTone]

Marketing ti two-fold, It is understanding and meeting need, then convincing everyone that you are doing so. We do indeed need a chief marketing officer.
Ohg
http://thefiresidepost.com/2008/01/06/representing-us-to-the-world/

[MadMadWorld]

Must be why we have all this useless CRAP. THEY WERE MARKETED WELL. Stop trying to twist your political ideology to match your candidate. The country is NOT a corporation and should never be run like one. Corporations cull the useless and weak (read not profitable) is that what you are advocating?

[fitCTmom]

I absolutely LOVED your blog. Funny, ironic, but, all soooo true. As an Obama supporter, I know some people will discount him as all fluff and no substance however, anyone who saw the latest debate should believe otherwise. To me, he's the only one who is thoughtful in his answers and doesn't mentally go through his "rolodex of talking points" to find the index card that best fits the question to get their "message" out. The fact that people call him a product of good marketing are literally buying the marketing of the other candidates. Ironically, Obama is the best hope for our country both as a leader and as a "CMO" for our reputation oversees.

[MajorKong]

No, we need a President. The United States isn't a corporation. Let's please stop trying to run it like one.

[Rog49Thomas]

Right diagnosis.

Wrong prescription.

It ain't the sales campaign.

It's the product - our foreign policy - particularly in the Middle East.

[realitytrumpsbull]

I DON'T think we need a 'marketing officer', what they apparently need in D.C. is an OPEN AUDIT. THIS country can't even come CLOSE to balancing its' books, accounting for the People's money, if you want to improve our 'brand', then start with the fundamentals even if they AREN'T fun. Start with the basics.
IF you have people that are siphoning millions of dollars out of the tax system, PROSECUTE them and stop pulling punches. Make public oversight MEAN something besides, 'oopsie, where'd we put that 20 billion dollars? MY bad'.
It's just nuts. It's crazy. It's off the hook.
And, my view is, it needs to be fixed. Before they talk about raising taxes or doing anything else, they need to find out where all this money goes. SO much depends on it.

Want to improve 'brand america'? Don't create another pointless bureaucrat, another layer of bureaucracy, get RID of the excess baggage that there is already. TOO many people doing damn little if anything, but it's a 'government job'.
Eventually we'll ALL end up as government employees, either voluntary or INvoluntary, and the whole thing will just burn in. At what consequence, at what cost?

Fix 'brand america' by having ground-up reforms, starting with spending reforms, then moving on to tax reforms, and finally policy reforms.

The United States goes into debt at a rate of THREE BILLION DOLLARS A DAY. CAN that be stopped? WILL it be stopped? How pervasive is the corruption? What is the inevitable outcome if NO action is taken?

Stop the false marketing, stop the sunshine stories, and start the WORK of balancing things out. Say it with me....nnnnn...nnnnnuuuu....nnnnnnnnnnnooo. No.
NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOO! Now, while they still accept dollars at the print shop, go get a 'no' stamp made for all those spending bills. Congress is allegedly stamping off on things they never even READ. What is THAT? Congress is supposed to be a co-equal branch of government, NOT a check-cashing place. But, that's essentially what it's become. Ladies? Gentlemen? It's your cue...

[FogBelter]

Mr Ferrazzi, having spent nearly 27 years of my life working for a Fortune 500 Corporation let me let you in on a little something.

Business is the Cult of Mediocrity. A haven for the placeholders in life. A place where the terminally vapid and morally vacant can hide behind superficial knowledge, poor social skills, and where the talisman against termination for incompetence is the religious intoning of the latest industry catch phrases, belched with authority at the appropriate time.

In case you haven't noticed, we have had clods of CEOs, Harvard Business School nitwits and miscreant adherents from Friedman's "Do What Thou Wilt Shall Be the Whole of the Law" school of Economics polluting the White House for decades.

Putting more Businessmen in the White House to correct the mess we are in as a Nation is like ....

"Ouch, Cletus!! I set the darn outhouse on fire! I need something to put the dagburn thing out ... given me sumthin wet!!! ... Pass be that there jug a moonshine and be quick about it!!!"

More Businessmen in the White House? Silly, Silly mistake ... how about just some normal Americans with a little vision, love of country, and common sense for a change? What would that hurt?

Retrain the Businessmen to run the soup kitchens that years of their genius policies might cause the need for.

[Producer1]

The last thing this country needs is another business model or marketing specialist. That thinking is what got us into this mess in the first place.

The one thing that will improve our image is the election of a president whose administration is responsible to the needs of it's own citizens as its first priority. Once we do that finding our rightful place in the world will be easy.

[nina73]

I completely agree with this article. I think we need to look at the US like a product. How do we make it better and promote ourselves? Well what products are popular and appreciated around the world that come from the US?

Well Coke, Marlboro and Budweiser can be found as far away from Canada to Zimbabwe. Solid Us products.

Promoting US products abroad will help our economy.

I know how to fix the US economy in a way.

We sell chemical mood enhancers like caffeinie, nicotice and alcohol around the world at superior product quality and for cheaper cost than anyone else in the world. We need to tap into the new market that marajuana could offer our farmers and this country.

We need a president that will step outside the box take a stand and recognize this opportunity to bring the US back to a top exporter, create jobs, help farmers and reinvigorate the economy.

There is a demand for this product. A product that is safer than alcohol and all natural with little need for addities or preservatives. You can grow it again and again fairly quickly like tobacco.

We sell caffiene, nicotine and alcohol all which have pluses and minuses, marijuana has them too and we have the best farmland in the world. We could be the top suppliers in the world on a global scale.

Imagine the possibilities if the tobacco industry started this market and got taxed.

A boost to the economy would occur and desperately needed jobs would be instantly created.

Guaranteed.

What are the reasons that these politicians deny this market that we could tap into?

We would have such a boost to the economy we could fund universal healthcare like they have in every other civilized country.

This country was founded by people with a pioneering spirit. We need a pioneering president to break new ground open new markets and rejuvenate this country and get us to love it and believe in it once again.

Strengthing the home and heartland especially USA farmers would make this country strong.

[SharonWantsToTalk]

Man....I thought I was cynical. But after reading these reactions, I feel like June Cleaver. You all are really missing Keith's point. We are approaching a historic juncture. America is experiencing its worst world credibility status ever. The changing of the guard in Washington presents a powerful opportunity to start to change our status. Hes not suggesting spinning anything. Hes only asking for real players, from all influential sects that really give a shit. We cant miss this chance.

[LizM]

Talk about missing the forest for the trees!

America needs a CMO like it needs another fiasco in the Middle East.

If you want to change the image of America abroad and restore American credibility and standing in the world to its rightful place, then you need to recognize that this can only be accomplished under an intelligent and pragmatic foreign policy paradigm and a conscious decision and serious effort to lead the world instead of dominating it.