It seems Crocodile Dundee, Lara Bingle and Baz Luhrmann haven’t done a good enough job.

The Federal Government yesterday announced it would be searching for a new brand to represent Australia. The plan, called Building Brand Australia will spend $20 million over four years to find a brand that will sell Australia to the world.

Trade Minister Simon Crean said the brand would “need a cohesive brand that captures the essence of Australia and underscores the quality of all that we have to offer in sectors such as trade, investment and education.”

“We are much more than a nation of great people and great places,” he said. “We have won 10 Nobel Prizes and we are a nation bursting with creativity and ingenuity.”

The Government will shortly be announcing the first step of the four-year program, with a public tender asking creative agencies to submit proposals for ‘Building Brand Australia’.

The new brand will be shown to the public in February next year with a global launch to follow in May at Expo 2010 in Shanghai.

“I have an open mind and do not want to pre-empt the outcome of the creative process. We want our best creative minds on the job and we want them to engage the Australian people in this exciting project,” Mr. Crean said.

australia.gov.au