India Everywhere @ WEF!

Did you know that “India Everywhere” was the branding strategy at World Economic Forum (WEF) held this year at Davos? Well if you didn’t …it would be informative to note that people passing through Zurich and other Swiss airports in the last week of January were likely to have heard somebody humming a Hindi song or draped in an Indian pashmina shawl!

India seemed to be everywhere at the annual meeting of the WEF, where global political and business leaders congregate each year to ponder the fate of the world. By all accounts, discussions about India and China figured prominently at this year's forum, undoubtedly in view of these countries' growing role in the world economy.

Did you know that Indian business and government leaders spent some two years and more than $4 million putting together an elaborate marketing and PR campaign - much as a multinational corporation might plan a major branding initiative - to ensure that the "India story" got prominent play and did not get lost this year amid the chatter at Davos. The core message of the "India Everywhere" campaign, as its organizers called it, was simple: It presented the country as an attractive destination for foreign investment, as an emerging manufacturing hub and as a credible partner for world business – WOW!

To top it all…when work was not on the agenda, the Indian delegation lavished Davos attendees with lunches, dinners and cocktail hours with Indian liquor and cuisine, Indian art exhibitions and gift hampers. The entertainment high point was a four-hour soiree on the last evening with Bollywood songs and dances that went on until early morning.

In one word – Excellent!