Joao R. Freire recently shared a paper that he wrote on Place Branding with me. It was published in the November 2005 issue of Place Branding. He makes some very interesting points about place branding:
The worst thing a place can do is not try to intervene in the creation of its image.
Given that brands often are a part of an individual’s self identity construction, places where one might visit will be influenced by the meaning behind the place and what that communicates about the individual’s lifestyle and self image.
Some people claim that branding might corrupt a place’s authenticity and abuse its natives.
The author argues that rather tourism and place brands deliver these important benefits:
— Contribute to the preservation of local cultures and thus global diversity
— Provide important community resources, especially jobs (Most of the resources created for tourists can also be used by residents)
— Help increase community self esteem by reinforcing the place’s unique values
The most interesting conclusion of this paper for me is the importance of branding places and of choosing meanings that will appeal to the tourists (and residents) that the place desires to attract.
Source: Freire, Joao R., “Geo-branding, are we talking nonsense? A theoretical reflection on brands applied to places,” © Henry Stewart Publications 1744-0696 (2005) Vol. 1, 4 347-352 Place Branding
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