Dr Dominik Heil reckons you can change a bad reputation into a good one using good marketing

SHOOT: Maybe you can do the harder thing...which is to change the reality. For example the reality of crime, corruption and squatter camps. You can't market that stuff out of people minds, unless you want to influence the news media and do experiments in mass hypnosis. If you want good money from tourism you have to become a destination worth visiting. What is so difficult about solving crime? Probably this: getting smart, honest people - people with integrity - to do the job. But do the powers that be really want an effective police force?

clipped from www.fin24.com This is the finding of a study by the Reputation Institute, which has assessed the reputations of 34 top industrial countries. With a score of 44 out of a 100, which is regarded as "poor and vulnerable", South Africa is ranked 30th. The only countries that did worse are South Korea, the Ukraine, China and Russia. Switzerland and Canada did best, scoring above 70. South Africa's 53.31 out of 100 in terms of perceptions of its beauty, entertainment and lifestyle - the factors that affect tourists decisions to visit the country - is cause for concern, especially in the light of the World Cup soccer tournament next year, says Dr Dominik Heil, managing director of the Reputation Institute in South Africa. In Germany, in particular, which spends the most per capita on tourism, South Africa receives low scores in these categories - and this will need attention.