Simon Anholt

Advisor to numerous governments, author, researcher, podcaster, 12M+ TED talker. Worried, but unfashionably optimistic.

[Shantanu Tungare @ShantanuTungare]

I asked @SimonAnholt a question I've been wrestling with for years.

If Nike can build a brand...
If Tata can build a brand...
If Amazon can build a brand...
Why can't a country do the same?
What followed completely changed how I think about reputation, storytelling, and my Bharat Rebrand journey.

In this first part, Simon explains:

• Why a Nation Brand is different from Nation Branding
• Why countries can't advertise their way into a better reputation
• Why behaviour matters more than messaging
• Why reputation is earned, not declared

One of the most thought-provoking conversations I've had.

Part 1 below 👇

[Shantanu Tungare @ShantanuTungare]

India has an image problem.

That was the starting point of my conversation with @SimonAnholt advisor to presidents, prime ministers and monarchs across 60+ countries, creator of the Nation Brands Index.

We spoke about:
Why India is misunderstood.
Why behaviour matters more than communication.
Why liking a country is not the same as respecting it.
And whether AI could challenge human primacy itself.

Trailer out now. Full episode next week.

What do you think India’s biggest perception gap is?

[Simon Anholt @SimonAnholt]

@ShantanuTungare This was a good one! Well worth a listen.

[EFNI @EFNI_Poland]

☀️ Drugiego dnia EFNI Wiosna 2026. Po drugim śniadaniu. Na scenę wejdzie gość specjalny - @SimonAnholt.

Czego się spodziewać? Spojrzenia na Polskę i jej światową markę, którego nie usłyszycie nigdzie indziej. Odważnych tez, strategicznego myślenia i pytań, które zmuszą do refleksji.

[Shantanu Tungare @ShantanuTungare]

One of greatest minds in policy @SimonAnholt sits in the narrative room with me. The enriching conversation is going to be a blueprint on how India can rebrand itself.. Stay tuned..

[F. M. O'Donnell @fmod1]

If you get to Davos/WEF, talk it over with Klaus Schwab and DJT? But also worth thanking DJT for Simon Anholt’s excellent observation (Nations’ Brand Index): “For sure, we should thank Donald Trump for giving globalisation the biggest boost it's had in decades, by forcing countries into dozens of new multilateral and bilateral arrangements (e.g. Canada + China, Europe + MERCOSUR). This will surely make a more robust and futureproof multilateral system than the old one�� 😉.

[lnternationale Politik Quarterly @IPQuarterly]

NEW from @SimonAnholt: Even as Donald Trump promotes his brash credo that might is right, research shows that how much good a country does can be just as important.

https://t.co/Klpz3F6U3T

[Asian Productivity Organization @TheAPONews]

If a country wants to do well, it must do good by working more internationally and collaboratively. Find out more from Good Country Index founder, Simon Anholt as he continues his P-talk topic in this P-Insights report. https://t.co/vASdaU23nC #APOPublications

[Lisa Van Dusen🌻 @Lisa_VanDusen]

Must-read @policy_mag piece by Jeremy Kinsman on Canada's global popularity amid Trump's trade war, with an exclusive preview of @SimonAnholt's latest #NationBrands survey...

[FinlandInColombia @ColombiaFinland]

Según el estudio reciente de #GoodCountryIndex, de 174 países, Finlandia🇫🇮 es el que más contribuye al bien común de la humanidad en comparación con su tamaño.💪

@thisisFINLAND @SimonAnholt

https://t.co/xOFg7f4Phq

[Vlada Republike Slovenije @vladaRS]

🇸🇮 Slovenija je na najnovejši lestvici The Good Country Index zasedla odlično 8️⃣. mesto med 174 državami.

ℹ️ Indeks ocenjuje države glede na njihov prispevek h globalnemu dobremu, kot so mir, blaginja, okolje, pravičnost in razvoj. To pomeni, da Slovenija aktivno in pomembno prispeva k reševanju globalnih izzivov, kot so 🌱🌍 podnebne spremembe , 🕊 mednarodni mir in varnost, ⚖️ enakost ter trajnostni razvoj ♻️🌿.

✅ Visoka uvrstitev povečuje ugled države, nas postavlja v sam svetovni vrh in potrjuje naše vrednote ter zavezanost k boljšemu svetu za vse. 🤝

➡️ Celotna lestvica in podrobnosti so dostopni na povezavi 👉 https://t.co/qrQ4qbxP7V
@SimonAnholt

[Simon Anholt @SimonAnholt]

@BAinDiplomacy Depends who you ask. People in BRICS+ countries approve of Russia more and more (and approve of Ukraine less and less). On this and on many other topics you can see global opinion splitting in three in the NBI data almost in real time.

[Simon Anholt @SimonAnholt]

@BAinDiplomacy One of them is focusing on our subscribers (it's a syndicated indicator) rather than on the general public, hence the reduced PR

[Simon Anholt @SimonAnholt]

@BAinDiplomacy Since I've taken over the running of the Nation Brands Index from Ipsos we've made a few changes

[José Manuel Azpiroz @jmazpiroz]

Presentó @SimonAnholt su Ranking de países #GoodCountryIndex 2024.

¡Wow Eslovenia🇸🇮 y Estonia🇪🇪!👏🏻👏🏻

BIEN Uruguay🇺🇾, Costa Rica🇨🇷, Colombia🇨🇴 líderes de la región. Es resultado de su GRAN gestión de #MarcaPaís.

México🇲🇽 lo contrario: Una VERGÜENZA #86

https://t.co/khKsY9cbdl

[Professor Simon Chadwick @Prof_Chadwick]

Sport, countries, nation branding and the importance of soft power

In discussion with nation branding expert Simon Anholt
https://t.co/nD6TYS656g
@Fire_and_Skill

[Simon Anholt @SimonAnholt]

@HMMohammedIdris @FMINONigeria very interested to read your recent comments about Nigeria's brand image, and thank you for quoting me. Do please DM me if you'd like to see more detailed data from the Anholt Nation Brands Index.

[USC Public Diplomacy @PublicDiplomacy]

Check out episodes from the People, Places, Power Podcast! Co-hosted by @NickCull & @SimonAnholt, the podcast featured weekly discussions on international reputation, #foreignpolicy and related issues along the way. Listen here!: https://t.co/B6TmIbflm7

[Arab News @arabnews]

#Report: New #RSU analysis by @SimonAnholt examines the dual role of social media and how platforms can both amplify and hinder public dialogue https://t.co/yruGIq0Ked

[Arab News @arabnews]

#Report: In the latest #RSU essay, @SimonAnholt explores the significance of winning ‘hearts and minds’ in the Gaza conflict https://t.co/yruGIq0Ked