City branding in academic contexts and target audiences

Building and developing a city is on long term with remaining competitive in a globalization of
economy in order to attract financial and human capital (Bonakdar & Audirac, 2020 cited
Friedmann 1986). Therefore, branding cities and places have been discussed in academic and
practitioners to secure greater of significantly economic growth (Bonakdar & Audirac, 2019
cited Friedmann 1986, Insch, 2011-p8, Chan, Suryadipura, & Kostini, 2021). Look into branding
city is a city marketing strategy with of strengthening relationships and increasing awareness of
city with residents, visitors and investors (Chan et al., 2021 cited Michalis Kavaratzis, 2004;
Zhou & Wang, 2014, Insch, 2011-p9).

Branding city in different views, both academics and practitioners pointed out that branding city
attract value residents with creating opportunities for individual benefits such as employment
rating, better education, affordable housing, social benefits (Insch, 2011-p9, Bonakdar et al.,
2019 cited Logan, J., & Harvey 1987; Greenberg, 2000). Further from the review of literature it
is found out that the number of researches which have published about benefits of city branding
to attract visitors from national to international level (Chan et al, 2021 cited Kavaratzis 2004;
Zhou & Wang 2014; Graeme, 2003). In the book of Introduce to the theory of city branding, the
author has summarized that any one city brand may have target audiences in city planning and
marketing as diversity as tourist (Brickfrord-Smith, 2009; Prasetyo & Maulani, 2018; Merriless
et al. 2009), sport mega events and sport fans (Herstein & Berger, 2013, Insch, 2011 cited
Chalip & Costa 2005, Ahonen, Lämsä, Mero, & Karimäki, 2016), shopping areas and fashion
consumers ( Haila, 1999; Insch, 2011 cited Martinez, 2007; Bravo, Iguácel, & Raúl., 2020), and
current residents and potential future immigration residents (Insch, 2011 cited Greenberg, 2000,
Zenker 2009, Dynon, 2011).

It coud be said that more and more value citiezens have brought addition to economic benefits;
for instance, the impact of EU migrants to UK have been regognised the benefical impact of
econimic, being more positive about sellected skills workers, (Insch, 2011-p9; D'Angelo &
Kofman, 2018, Kim, 2015, O'Hanlon & Stevens, 2017). There is a reason to believe that city
branding concentrate on individuals is unsustainable, because there are many cities not only
among domestic country, also around the world, among countries where are increasing
competition among cities for human resources, investors, intangal intelligent to give their
residents about healthy and high standard living (Insch, 2011). As the result, local government
have been looking at the embracing the branding process as part of city marketing and
urbanizaion (Insch, 2011 cited Morgan et al., 2002, Melović, Mitrović, & Djokaj, 2017).

From the view of business marketing, from countries to countries, goods or services, companies
and industries have been using the Customer Sastifiction Index (CSI) to understand and evaluate
the satisfaction of customers (Insch & Florek , 2008 cited O'Loughlin and Coenders, 2002).

From the city marketing, it could be called life satisfaction to understand the quality of life; for
instance the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business had developed a multi-equation
econometric model to have the cumulative satissfaction concept (Insch & Florek, 2008). In
addtion. In Australia, the government have used the City Prosperity Index which is an
assessment tool to understand among stakeholders as city authorities, local, national, and
communities to find out the oppourtintites and potentail areas of intervention. These actions
would support for Australian Cities to become more and more prosperous; as the results, the
nation has better cities with better quality of life (Chan et al., 2021, Abbott, 2013, UN-Habitat,
2019, UN-Habitat, 2013).

In the previous part of this paper, the information generally have been written about target
audiences from branding city as tourism, residents, investors, and local authorities, and the cities
could also have potential residents and next generation residents (Insch, 2001, chapter 1&2;
Greenberg, 2000; Dinnie, 2008, p136-139, Zenker, 2009; Chan et al., 2021, Melović et al.,
2017). Moreover, the theorical conceptualizations of city branding from marketing and business,
these used city branding as good as strategy to help tourism industry and business investment
sectors, while reinforcing local identity (Bonakdar & Audirac, 2019 cited Ashworth &
Kavaratzis 2009, Hanna & Rowley 2011). However, city branding does not stop at these actions,
there has been an increase in the amount of scholarly research released about cultural place and
heritage, sustainability, political and communties in complex processing of city branding
(Melović et al., 2017 Bonakdar & Audirac, 2019, Chan et al., 2021).
 Toursim sector (domestic and
international tourist)

City branding target audiances

Central
government/Authourities/local
government

Investment
(domestic and international)

People(current resident/future
resident)

other
stakeholders/communitities

Chart 1: The Target Audiences of City Branding based on ( (Kotler, Haider, & Rein, 1993; van
Gelder, 2011; Bravo et al., 2020; Chan et al., 2021; Dinnie, 2008, p236-256)

(Clearer the difficulty and complexity of City Branding, because City is different from normal
Product or Company regards of target audience, structure)

The concept of global cities suggested the local authorities may well be known the function of
their cities to have the right policies to do well to seek a more realistic approach; therefore, the
cities could gain existing economic life and attracting new resources from the value flows,
( (Anttiroiko, 2114) . Moreover, the livable cites do not stop at the highest-ranking global cities,
command financial, or the city attempts to maintain its identity (Petrikova, Jaššo, & Hajduk,
2020; Bonakdar et al., 2019; Kavaratzis & Hatch, 2013). For instance, cities could invest in
severals aspects to improve the quality of life with sustainable developmentto achieve ambitious
goals; the author Kvararatiz had implemented the corporate branding concepts and specififc
methodologies such as the city marketing mix (Kavaratzis & Hatch, 2013; Kavaratzis, 2004);
however, “coperate identity of smart city cannot be perceived as pure visual style or city design ,
but it rather a synchrinized management of the ‘self” of the city” stated from Petrikova et al.,
2020, p56. Moreover, the author Petrikova mentioned “City is a living organism”, the city need
for internal and external environmental conditions and its communication is neither progaganda
nor certainly polical appoarching; the city branding is a dialogua/polylogue engage by many
many different actors and stakeholders (Petrikova et al., 2020; Chan et al., 2021; Zenker 2009,
Logan et al., 1987; Veeck, 2015). It could be said that, all strategies can be useful for all of
stakeholders engagement as interesstubg and true as the understanding of city branding. There
can be several answers to who are target audiences from city marketing. It could be collectively
or individually, or even both of them (Kavaratzis & Hatch, 2013).

In regards to urban design, it could be said that many cities still underestimate the importance of
a city’s look and feel as a live organism, public spaces, and active transportation infrastructure,
failing to fully comprehend the correlation with improving quality of life, key components of
human well being from society aspect, and environmental resilience (UN-Habitat, 2021, UN-
Habitat 2019; UN-Habitat 2013; Petrikova et al., 2020). Furthermore, cities that are visually
appealing will be more likely to attract the creative, innovative, and skilled workers and
investments that will help expand the urban economy. However, when this understanding is
present, the lack of finance and capacity often keeps urban design from taking top priority (UN-
habitay 2021).

Typically, cities grow along infrastructure corridors and become new growth engines, but most
often this growth is unplanned and uncoordinated between municipalities such as stakeholders
and authorites; therefore, the region loses out on a wide range of promising social, economic, and
environmental opportunities (UN-Habitat, 2021; Dynon, 2011)
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