Ex-post study on the image of Poland and Polish economy
Ex-post study on the image of Poland and Polish economy is a part of the systemic project Promotion of the Polish Economy on International Markets elaborated by the Polish Ministry of Economy in the framework of the Operational Programme Innovative Economy 2007-2013, Subactivity 6.5.1. Its main purpose is to evaluate the change of Poland’s and Polish exporters competitive position on international markets after finalizing the project as well as to recommend directions for marketing activities, which will contribute to strengthen the image of Poland and Polish economy built in the framework of activities related to Operational Programme Innovative Economy 2007-2013, Subactivity 6.5.1.
The study is related to a preliminary image study (ex-ante) on Poland and Polish economy realized four years ago, also by AGERON. Back then we evaluated the image of Poland and its economy on international markets. Now, we compared the results with those from 2011, which enabled us to evaluate the changes in terms of Poland’s image and the information about the country available to foreign entrepreneurs. It also let us verify to what extent the promotion activities realized in the last few years influenced these changes.
Ex-post study on the image of Poland and Polish economy was conducted analogically to ex-ante study: on 9 target markets for Polish brand products and services and characterized by the highest potential to invest in Poland: Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Russia, The Czech Republic, The United States, China, Ukraine. The methodology used was related to the one used in ex-ante study, there were minor modifications though, in order to adjust both the methods and research tools to the study purposes.
In the framework of the ex-post study we realized:
- desk-research analysis ? Poland’s image according to international attractiveness rankings, results of other image studies, etc;
- media information analysis in 9 countries ? 37 headlines en total;
- CATI telephone interviews with foreign entrepreneurs in 9 countries ? 750 interviews in each country, 6750 interviews in total;
- CATI telephone interviews with Polish entrepreneurs ? 1150 interviews in total;
- focus group interviews with foreign entrepreneurs in 9 countries ? 3 interviews in each country, 7-12 people in each group, 250 interviewed people in total;
- individual in-depth interviews with representatives of Polish business environment and institutions engaged in promotion of Poland ? 31 interviews in total;
- case studies ? two Polish companies, two foreign companies, overall 4.
One of the most important conclusions of the study is that Poland maintains its positive economic image abroad, though it is varies depending on the country investigated. Also, it showed a substantial increase in recognition of Polish specialities ? key brands, which were specially promoted within the project realized by Polish Ministry of Economy. The analyzed promotion activities met with a positive evaluation in general, though it varied depending on the country. The activities which included direct contact such as participation in trade fairs, exhibitions and B2B meetings were evaluated as the most effective ones.
An extensive report with a set of recommendations were the results of our team’s work. Also, we designed an informative brochure which contains abbreviated study results.
