Royal brand rakes in millions for charity

London: Ask any marketing manager to name the strongest brand in the world, and the answer you'll almost certainly get is Coca-Cola. Instantly recognisable to billions from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, it has the power to persuade people to part with their cash in every corner of the globe.

There is, however, another "brand" which could soon rival Coke in its ubiquitous ability to generate income, and which is about to be road-tested in North America: William and Kate, plc.

Even before the couple were married, they were worth tens of millions of pounds per year to charities, souvenir makers and the wider economy. But with excitement in the US expected to reach Beatlemania levels when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge land in Los Angeles, the couple could soon be a billion-pound worldwide industry.

A telling indication of just how bankable they are came earlier recently when it emerged that wealthy members of the Santa Barbara Polo Club are each donating up to £60,000 (Dh352,000) to the Prince's charitable trust for the privilege of sharing the field with him when he plays in a fundraising tournament.

With other members snapping up £2,500 VIP tickets for the chance to rub shoulders with the Duke and Duchess at a lunch, and even the cheapest spectator tickets costing £250, the Foundation of Prince William and Prince Harry can expect a £2.6 million windfall by the time the final chukka is over — more than four times as much as it raised in the whole of last year. Glen Holden, a former US ambassador who thought he had seen it all in his 38 years as a trustee of the club, has been taken aback by the fanatical response to the couple's visit.

Although the Duke of Cambridge dislikes comparisons between his new bride and his late mother Diana, Princess of Wales, he knows that in America, more than anywhere else, the memories of dazzlingly glamorous visits to the US by his mother and father are a large part of the reason for such fevered anticipation.

However he is also aware that his popularity can easily be translated into hard cash for causes he cares passionately about, such as the Tusk Trust conservation charity, which doubled its income when he became its patron six years ago.

Its co-founder, Charles Mayhew, who will welcome the Duke to a reception in Los Angeles for the charity's US donors, said: "It has been like trying to keep a lid on a volcano since the visit was announced. The Americans are just so excited about the prospect of the Duke and Duchess hitting LA."

Promoting business

By the time the couple fly home from Canada and the US, they are likely to have generated several million pounds in donations for good causes, as well as promoting British business and the UK as a tourist destination. So is it possible to place a value on the William and Kate brand?

Graham Hales, chief executive of the brand analysts Interbrand London, is a man who should know.

"One of the ways we measure the value of a brand is the role it plays in driving demand for something," he said. "If you take tourism as an example, and ask whether the couple have increased the appeal of the UK as a tourist destination, the answer is obviously yes.

Working out exactly how much of Britain's £76  billion income from tourism can be attributed to the Duke and Duchess, or even the Royal family, is tricky, but a good place to look for clues is Anglesey, the island where the Duke and Duchess have lived for the past year.

Bookings at hotels and guest houses there have shot up by 30 per cent year on year, which translates to around £70 million in extra income from tourism, Anglesey's number one employer.

Visit Britain, the British Tourist authority, credits the Royal family with £500 million of tourist spending by people visiting palaces and other royal sites, but its spokesman, Mark Di-Toro, said their true worth was far higher.

They are also a godsend to the souvenir industry, which sold £222  million worth of royal wedding memorabilia, according to the Centre for Retail Research.

Recently, Visit Britain launched a £100 million four-year marketing campaign featuring a host of British celebrities which it hopes will bring in an extra four million tourists to the UK each year.

With the Duke and Duchess having embarked on a trip to the US, whose tourists spend twice as much in the UK as any other nationality, it is tempting to suggest they should put their money back in their pocket and simply let William and Kate do the job for them.