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Rethinking Place Branding from a Practice Perspective: Working with Stakeholders

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Rethinking Place Branding

Abstract

This chapter considers the role of stakeholders in the development of place branding, arguing that understanding who they are and the nature of their opinions about the place in question should be key determinants of any place branding strategy. After briefly considering the issue of who ‘owns’ the place brand, the chapter discusses the concept of stakeholding more generally. Using case examples from the first author’s place branding practice over many years, the range of potential place stakeholders that may exist are identified (including residents, politicians, governmental organisations, promotional agencies, infrastructure and transport providers, cultural and sports organisations, business, academic organisations and schools, and religious organisations). The chapter then discusses key issues relating to the process(es) involved in getting stakeholder commitment to place branding activities, including issues such as stakeholder workshops, shared vision and positioning, developing close relationships and having an internal brand engagement plan.

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Correspondence to Gary Warnaby .

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Stubbs, J., Warnaby, G. (2015). Rethinking Place Branding from a Practice Perspective: Working with Stakeholders. In: Kavaratzis, M., Warnaby, G., Ashworth, G. (eds) Rethinking Place Branding. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12424-7_8

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