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Placing place branding: an analysis of an emerging research field in human geography
Stockholm University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Human Geography.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-4376-7493
2014 (English)In: Geografisk tidsskrift, ISSN 0016-7223, E-ISSN 1903-2471, Vol. 114, no 2, p. 143-155Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

A growing trend among policy-makers is to regard place branding as a crucial component of regional development strategies. Alongside this shift in policy, research on place branding has increased drastically throughout the social sciences, building on concepts and ideas from corporate branding. This research has been given a number of critical testimonies claiming that place branding lacks coherent theoretical frameworks based on research findings, that it promotes simplified perspectives of places and that little empirical evidence is found to support positive effects of place branding. Branding is at the same time argued to be inherently geographical, since it is situated in and associated with spaces and places. Based on these claims and with the aim to contribute to the understanding of this emerging literature, this paper provides an in-depth analysis of the conceptual development of place branding research in human geography making three claims: Firstly, the theoretical understandings of place branding have moved beyond a conceptual framework stemming from corporate branding. Secondly, these theoretical developments are mainly derived from empirically based research. Thirdly, geographers, by studying place branding using various conceptions of place as defined in human geography, are making distinctive conceptual contributions to the multi-disciplinary research field of place branding.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2014. Vol. 114, no 2, p. 143-155
Keywords [en]
place branding, human geography, literature review, branding
National Category
Human Geography
Research subject
Geography with Emphasis on Human Geography
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:su:diva-107880DOI: 10.1080/00167223.2014.895954ISI: 000348430700005OAI: oai:DiVA.org:su-107880DiVA, id: diva2:751641
Available from: 2014-10-01 Created: 2014-10-01 Last updated: 2022-02-23Bibliographically approved
In thesis
1. Geographies of Place Branding: Researching through small and medium sized cities
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Geographies of Place Branding: Researching through small and medium sized cities
2015 (English)Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

Place branding is commonly conceptualized with a focus on big cities, such as London, New York and Singapore, building from concepts and models from mainstream branding theory. In contrast to such conceptualizations, this thesis focuses on place branding in small and medium-sized cities. The present thesis aims to study place branding from a geographical perspective. It starts with debates theoretical and empirical understandings of place branding; what it is and how it is affecting the places where it is introduced. The thesis develops and argues for a perspective of territoriality and relationality to place branding discussing concepts, methods and empirical approaches to carry out place branding research using geographical perspectives. Empirically, this thesis focuses on in-depth studies of place branding in small and medium-sized cities in Sweden. By analyzing the development of place branding over the course of time, nuances and aspects of both territorial and relational origin emerge, situating place branding practices within a wider spatial contextualization. Four individual papers are presented, which taken together contribute to the aim of the thesis. Paper 1 introduces the place branding research field in geography and how it has developed; Paper 2 investigates the phenomena of flagship buildings located in small cities and towns; Paper 3 discusses the relationship between policy tourism and place branding; and Paper 4 analyzes how local environmental policies are affected by green place branding. The thesis demonstrates the complex and continuously interchangeable spatial structures and place contexts that create and re-produce the geographies of place branding. Here, research models and methodological examples are presented to illustrate how place branding can be studied from a geographical perspective and thus improve theoretical understandings of place branding.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Stockholm: Department of Human Geography, Stockholm University, 2015. p. 72
Series
Meddelanden från Kulturgeografiska institutionen vid Stockholms universitet, ISSN 0585-3508 ; 148
Keywords
place branding, place marketing, small and medium sized cities, hotels, flagship buildings, policy tourism, policy boosterism, green cities, regional development, economic geography, Sweden, Växjö
National Category
Human Geography Social and Economic Geography Economic Geography
Research subject
Geography with Emphasis on Human Geography
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:su:diva-115638 (URN)978-91-7649-144-7 (ISBN)
Public defence
2015-05-22, William-Olssonsalen, Geovetenskapens hus, Svante Arrhenius väg 14, Stockholm, 13:00 (English)
Opponent
Supervisors
Note

At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Manuscript. Paper 4: Manuscript.

Available from: 2015-04-28 Created: 2015-03-27 Last updated: 2022-02-23Bibliographically approved

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