Bloody Hell! Australia the Top National 'Brand'

From The Age: "Australia has the world's most marketable country brand, according to an index released in London at the World Travel Market.

The 'Australian brand' topped the United States and Italy, which were ranked second and third respectively, on the second annual Country Brand Index 2006 (CBI).

The CBI identifies countries as brands and their rating within emerging global travel trends in travel and tourism."

I guess it's inevitable (yet somewhat uncomfortable) that countries are thought of as 'brands'... practically everything else is. It also appears that the controversial Bloody Hell ad campaign well and truly worked and contributed to people's positive perception of Australia.