Place Branding

Adapting the definition of a corporate brand for the context of place branding and in the comprehension of the brand as a network of associations in consumers' mind (Keller, 1993) Zenker and Braun (2010) define a Place Brand as: a network of associations in the consumers’ mind based on the visual, verbal, and behavioural expression of a place, which is embodied through the aims, communication, values, and the general culture of the place’s stakeholders and the overall place design. Essential for this definition is that a brand is not in reality the communicated expression or the „place physics‟, but the perception of those expressions in the mind of the target group(s).

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References:

• Keller, K. L. (1993). Conceptualizing, Measuring, and Managing Customer-Based Brand Equity. Journal of Marketing, 57, 1, 1-22.
• Zenker, S., & Braun, E. (2010). Branding a City – A Conceptual Approach for Place Branding and Place Brand Management. Paper presented at the 39th European Marketing Academy Conference, Copenhagen, Denmark.