Overcoming the Measurement Challenge: Nation Branding Messages on Social Media

• In Event: Challenges of Digital Diplomacy: Definitions, Theoretical Developments, Empirical insights

Abstract

This study analyzes the influence of social media communication campaigns on how nations are perceived by audiences – or nation brands. We position nation branding as an expected outcome of public diplomacy projects, and present a mixed-method approach to tackle one of the important challenges in the study and practice: evaluation and measurement, including the effectiveness and efficiency of public diplomacy efforts. By using a dataset composed of tweets sent by and about four countries, we focus on the messages crafted by both official public diplomacy projects and by non-state users. Our aim is to present a method that inclusively assesses the impact of public diplomacy on nation brands within digital media ecology.

Authors

• Efe Sevin, Kadir Has U

• Diana Ingenhoff, University of Fribourg