A new internationally-bestselling book offers what its authors present as an innovative blueprint for how to positively engage the next generation of both Jews and non-Jews with the State of Israel.
Ethical Tribing, co-written by country branding and influence marketing expert Joanna Landau and award-winning journalist Michael Golden, lays out a new vision for bolstering Israel’s image abroad and strengthening the identity of Jews worldwide.
Laudau, who is also the founder and president of Vibe Israel, recently spoke with the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) about the book and her unique strategy for promoting Israel.
“For almost a decade and a half, I’ve been involved in telling Israel’s story, combating antisemitism, and trying to engage young people with Israel,” Landau said. “And I’ve been doing this with a very different approach to the traditional pro-Israel advocacy methodology, and the approach is called country branding and marketing.”
“It’s basically about how countries can promote their story to specific audiences in order to get them engaged positively in whatever it is they have to offer, whether it’s tourism, or business, things like that,” she added. “I feel that’s missing in the message that’s coming out from Israel, and I think that’s the reason the next generation is walking away from Israel, whether they are Jewish or not.”
“Young people need to be given a reason why they should want to engage with Israel, and right now we’re just explaining to them why they shouldn’t listen to somebody else who’s telling them why they shouldn’t engage with Israel,” Landau noted.
“I think this is a huge blind spot, because young people engage with whatever gives them value, and if you offer them value that is relevant, attractive, timely, and trending, then they will be happy to consume it,” she pointed out. “It’s a dramatically different mindset, and in the last year I decided I wanted to share that mindset with the community, because I think that we are in a very serious problem with the next generation.”
“The book is about where we’ve gone wrong, and what are the paradigm shifts that are needed in how to engage the next generation, and there are three of them, and then there are six tactics on how to do this that come from the world of country branding, which is very similar to commercial branding,” Landau said.
“My focus is on digital engagement, because that’s where young people are at,” she stated. “The book is almost like a roadmap for how we can very quickly and dramatically transform perceptions of Israel amongst the next generation.”
“All that it requires is to think completely differently than everyone has thought for the past 50 years,” Landau added with a wry smile. “It’s a complementary effort to hasbara and advocacy. Every other country is doing it, and I think Israel needs to do it too.”
She went on to say, “I’m looking at Israel not just as the story not just of the State of Israel but also of the Jewish people as a whole, because today Israel’s image impacts Jews living outside of Israel. You can’t walk away from it unless you don’t identify as Jewish. And that’s a major problem, because young people will start not identifying as Jewish because it’s a pain or a liability to be associated with this country that they perceive to be problematic or controversial.”
“So we’re looking at the tribe of the Jewish people as a whole, and we’re saying if we don’t want people to walk away from the tribe, but to walk toward It and be attracted to it, we’re going to need to use methodologies that come from the world of advertising, marketing, the science of influence, and we’re going to have to do it ethically, so we’re not providing fake information or anything like that,” Landau emphasized.
For more information on Ethical Tribing, including purchase options, please visit: ethical-tribing.com
Watch the book trailer for Ethical Tribing here:
