Understanding what makes the UK attractive

The client challenge: The British Council sought to identify and measure the factors that make a country attractive to young people around the world as well as the factors influencing the UK’s attractiveness specifically.

Our approach: Our sister agency (In2Impact- Applied Market Solutions) conducted online research among  young educated people in six international markets (China, India, Brazil, Germany and the USA), as well as their UK contemporaries. As well as researching their perceptions on what makes the UK attractive, we also explored their views on the world’s biggest economies in terms of attractiveness, particularly the culture, education and people dimensions.

Client benefits: The research provided evidence demonstrating that the UK’s arts and culture, its cities and education system all contribute to its attractiveness. It also highlighted the opportunities this presents for wider and deeper engagement internationally, especially with young people.

The survey findings were published by the British Council in July 2014 in a report As Others See Us: Culture, attraction and soft power. The report was launched at a debate on the UK’s Soft Power, hosted by Lord Bach, in Portcullis House in the House of Commons in July 2014.

The accompanying press release  received widespread media coverage, generated debate and continues to be quoted and referenced by leading experts and commentators as evidence demonstrating the value of the UK’s cultural assets.