17 September 2009
Interview with Mike Brady on 3AW
Subject: Brand Australia.
MIKE BRADY: Australian Federal Trade Minister Mr Simon Crean, threw the gauntlet down throughout the challenge for a $20 million campaign for the community to come up with a single international brand for Australia. It's an interesting challenge. I am interested in it because to try and find something that sums up Australia in one word or one line or one phrase or one strategy is a big job. Of course Slim Dusty did a pretty good job of singing that song but I think it was Australia's first international hit way back in the '50s. But it's not as easy as it seems. And on the line to tell us about it is the Minister for Trade and Member for Hotham, Mr Simon Crean. Good afternoon Mr Crean.
SIMON CREAN: Good afternoon, Mike, how are you?
MIKE BRADY: Terrific, it's nice to speak to you.
SIMON CREAN: You too.
MIKE BRADY: Haven't seen you for a while.
SIMON CREAN: No, but this is September so I am sure we'll run into each other.
MIKE BRADY: No doubt about that. Well I watch with interest you'll be able to hang out in a good, you know, nice house in Washington now when Kim Beazley takes up his position over there as Australian Ambassador.
SIMON CREAN: Yeah, great appointment and he looked pretty chuffed by it. But I think he'll do a great job, he takes a great wealth of experience with him.
MIKE BRADY: Oh, he's a wonderful orator too as I remember. And I think across the board I noticed that Malcolm Turnbull has welcomed the appointments, I should say, too, of course. And that's - including Brendan Nelson. So that's a wonderful appointment, I think, and a very popular decision I think across Australia. Mr Crean, branding Australia. You, as Trade Minister, of course have got a vested interest in how Australia is perceived but it's not all about tourism. We've really got to do a better job than just running a few sort of glib comments about, you know, what Australia's like. How would you describe what's required to brand Australia?
SIMON CREAN: Well, the first thing I'd say, Mike, is this, every time I go overseas to talk about trade and trade negotiations what strikes me is the real lack of understanding of how good Australia is at so many things. They know we're good at supplying resources and agricultural products, they know we're, in a number of countries, good for education services but there isn't the proper understanding of the diversity of what we're good at, the quality of both goods and services. And that's what we've got to try and distil much more effectively and promote it. The other point I'd make is that what you said in the introduction is right. This is not just a great place to come and have a holiday, because it is, but it is a great place to live, to establish a regional headquarters, to run a business from. Its got state of the art communications, its got great travel connections, its got great lifestyle, great people. So, the challenge, I think, is how do we promote that bigger sum of all of those parts, how do we get another message out that it's not just "made in Australia", it is Australian and that connotes with it, that carries with it that sense of quality, of creativity of innovation, of drive, of punching above our weight in so many different fields.
MIKE BRADY: And we have a history of that, don't we, Mr Crean? We, as entrepreneurs, although that's kind of a soiled word these days - but in terms of IT. And I suppose one of the, and I don't want to go into this now, we've lost a lot of our greater brains in the industrial and innovation world to America and Europe but we do punch above our weight. Do you think that campaigns such as the now infamous tourism campaign "Where the bloody hell are you?" and more recently Australia the movie and the tourism - I know this is not your portfolio but Tourism Australia's involvement in the film which was largely a travelogue on Australia, has kind of reinforced or compounded that problem that we're just not the things that are taken for granted, we're a lot more. Do you think that is, are you looking for a, I suppose, a completely new approach to how we present ourselves in a branding sense that we've never done before
SIMON CREAN: I am, but I think that it's more than just a slogan and it's more than just the travelogue and it's more than just travel. It is this notion, I mean, you look at the fact that we've produced 10 Nobel prizes in Australia, that is hugely punching above our weight. People know that we're good at sports because we play on the international stage but why is that? It's the healthy living, the focus on exercise, lifestyle, those sorts of things. But go to the business connections and, you know, here the world is calling out for food security it's not just agricultural produce, it's safe, clean, nutritional food, that's what the world is looking for. Australia can be the food basket for Asia.
MIKE BRADY: Well you certainly could...
SIMON CREAN: We can also be the clean energy supplier to not just Asia but interestingly enough, now even Europe is looking to diversify some of its energy sources down here and Australia has got that capacity to not just supply in quantity but efficiently because we're not just good at having the stuff in the ground or under the sea but the technology the skill the know-how, the smarts of how to extract it and ship it, move it efficiently. So it goes into all of the services that are associated with say agriculture and commodities, it's logistics, it's the legal services, it's financial services, it's the skills formation, the vocational training, it's the whole suite of things that we can provide a package lot on. And when you look at the markets in Asia - and they're huge and they're growing and they're starting to develop wealth within their economies now - this is the market for services that we've got to try and get ourselves into, it's not just a market for goods.
MIKE BRADY: Yes. Mr Crean, I am delighted that you're doing this and I am delighted that you have actually thrown it open. There's a tender, I suppose, prices that are going to be advertised fairly soon.
SIMON CREAN: That goes out today, Mike.
MIKE BRADY: Today. So people will be able to look that up, on I guess, on a website will it be the Department of Trade?
SIMON CREAN: Yeah, Department of Trade, AusTender.
MIKE BRADY: I am going to have a crack at it.
SIMON CREAN: Yep.
MIKE BRADY: Although...
SIMON CREAN: No, well, but see, I think that there's a whole lot of opportunity here and creative talents around the place, Mike and you should think seriously about who else you might get involved with, get the team together because I know what the concept is that we want to develop but my skill is not the creative marketing side of it but...
MIKE BRADY: I've heard you sing.
SIMON CREAN:...the promotional - yeah I know, you don't hear me sing very often but when I've got someone good to join in with me so, I'll join in softly with you from time to time.
MIKE BRADY: Well, no doubt we'll be seeing you next week. Mr Crean, thanks for talking to us. I am going to throw the lines open now to our callers to find out what suggestions they've got about how we can present our country, our fantastic country, our diverse country to the world and we're not really, as Mr Crean said, we're not looking, or the Government are not looking for some sort of glib slogan. It's really - a slogan obviously will be part of it but it's really a strategy as to how this country can be better perceived in the world beyond just its tourism image. And thank you very much, Mr Crean, for finding the time and no doubt I will see you around the traps next week.
SIMON CREAN: Pleasure Mike, look forward to it.
ENDS
Media Inquiries Departmental Media Liaison 02 6261 1555