Editing World's fair (section)

===Nation branding (1988–present)===
[[File:Expo Sevilla3.jpg|thumb|1992 Expo in Seville, Spain]]

From [[World Expo 88]] in [[Brisbane]] onwards, countries started to use expositions as a platform to improve their national image through their pavilions. Finland, Japan, Canada, France, and Spain are cases in point. A major study by Tjaco Walvis called "Expo 2000 Hanover in Numbers" showed that improving [[Nation branding|national image]] was the main goal for 73% of the countries participating in [[Expo 2000]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2012}} Pavilions became a kind of advertising campaign, and the Expo served as a vehicle for "nation branding". According to branding expert [[Wally Olins]], Spain used [[Seville Expo '92|Expo '92]] and the [[1992 Summer Olympics]] in [[Barcelona]] in the same year to underscore its new position as a modern and democratic country and to show itself as a prominent member of the [[European Union]] and the global community.{{Citation needed|date=January 2014}}

At [[Expo 2000]] Hanover, countries created their own architectural pavilions, investing, on average, €12&nbsp;million each.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bayareaeconomy.org/media/files/pdf/Expo_Report_sml.pdf |title=World Expo 2020 Silicon Valley – USA Economic Impacts |date=February 2011 |website=Bay Area Council Economic Institute |access-date=6 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120813060823/http://www.bayareaeconomy.org/media/files/pdf/Expo_Report_sml.pdf |archive-date=13 August 2012 }}</ref> Given these costs, governments are sometimes hesitant to participate, because the benefits may not justify the costs. However, while the effects are difficult to measure, an independent study for the Dutch pavilion at Expo 2000 estimated that the pavilion (which cost around €35&nbsp;million) generated around €350&nbsp;million of potential revenues for the Dutch economy. It also identified several key success factors for world-exposition pavilions in general.<ref>Tjaco Walvis (2003), "Building Brand Locations", ''Corporate Reputation Review'', Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 358–366</ref>