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Australia, the country that launched Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, Kylie Minogue and Rolf Harris onto an unsuspecting public, is to launch a major rebranding programme to 'capture the essence' of the country.

The government has unveiled plans to spend A$20 million (£10 million) over the next four years on a brand campaign featuring a new image and slogan.

Trade minister Simon Crean wants a new brand to replace the different logos used in tourism and trade - all of which feature kangaroos - with one consistent image.

It is believed that Crean is a fan of 'Malaysia Truly Asia' and New Zealand's distinctive '100 per cent pure' slogan, which has worked in advertisements featuring the country's landscape, Maori culture and love of rugby.

Ten Nobels but no logo

Crean said: 'We are much more than a nation of great people and great places. We have won ten Nobel Prizes and we are a nation bursting with creativity and ingenuity. The Australian way is to underplay our achievements but this kind of modesty only surrenders the edge to our competitors.'

The new image should, he said, 'capture the essence of Australia' as a trade, education and investment destination in Asia.

Crean has vowed to avoid a repetition of the controversial Where the bloody hell are you? campaign, launched in 2006, which was deemed too offensive to be screened in many countries. Australia's prime minister Kevin Rudd last year described the campaign as a 'rolled gold disaster'.

Indeed, the campaign was initially banned in the UK, while the slogan was amended in Japan to read So why aren't you coming?. Sadly, it proved prophetic. The number of Japanese tourists to Australia fell by 12 per cent the following year.

Even the epic film Australia, starring Nicole Kidman, failed to boost tourism, with the number of overseas visitors down two per cent this year. By contrast, the Lord of the Rings' trilogy boosted New Zealand's image.

'Building brand Australia is also about Australia reaching out to the world. It is another sign that we are not turning inwards and going down the path of a mandatory 'Buy Australia' campaign,' said Crean. 'Instead, we are engaging with the world through a new brand that will help sell Australian goods and services to the world.'

Australia's most successful campaign was in 1984 when actor Paul Hogan promised to 'slip an extra shrimp on the barbie for you' as he told Americans they needed 'a fair dinkum holiday' in the 'land of wonder, the land down under'. The Come and Say G'Day campaign featured a blend of beaches, bikini clad women and bawdy humour. Prior to airing, Australia was number 78 on the 'most desired' vacation destination list for Americans; within three months, it was number seven. The advertisement received a new lease of life when Hogan achieved fame two years later in the film Crocodile Dundee.

More than a beach

Crean said that Australia needed a new brand that goes beyond its familiar beach goer image. 'What we've got to convince people about is it's a great place to invest. It's a great place to come and be educated. It's a great place to live. It's a great place to build your business base from,' he explained.

Todd Sampson, chief executive of advertising agency Leo Burnett Australia, said that Australia has a challenge in working out what it wants to represent to people. 'If you think of Canada, you think of nature and the outdoors and adventure. You think of Las Vegas, you think of adult playground. You think of Australia and you sort of draw a blank. Beyond koalas, kangaroos and beaches, there's not much there and that's the challenge that Australia has.' 

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