The document discusses the role of culture in city and country branding. It argues that culture is a powerful attractor and differentiator that defines a place. It provides examples of how elements like food, architecture, events and governance transmit a place's culture. The document also examines lessons from Cork, Ireland's branding strategy, which uses the cultural offerings and assets to attract tourists, talent and investment. It emphasizes communicating culture through events, people and unique characteristics to differentiate a place.

1. The Role of Culture in City Branding
Lessons for Country & City Brand Strategy

2. Content of presentation
• My take on place & destination branding
• The important role of culture in city &
nation branding
• What can we learn from city branding?
• Communication lessons for country
branding

3. What is place branding about?
Some places think that place branding is about a
new logo and catchy tag line

4. What is place branding about?
Historically place branding has been concerned with
selling places to tourists

5. What is place branding about?
And it’s also typically been concerned with selling
places to inward investors

6. What is place branding about?
And in the past many place brand
strategies have ignored internal domestic
audiences

7. What is place branding about?
Brand strategies are increasingly about the
retention and attraction of talent

8. What is place branding about?
Brand strategies are increasingly about the
retention and attraction of business

9. What is place branding about?
Its about planning, improving and
developing the offer and experience

10. What is place branding about?
It’s about communicating
the Offer and Experience

11. What is place branding about?
It’s about communicating to target market
audiences (internal & external)

12. What is place branding about?
It’s about telling the story of your place

13. What is place and destination branding?
It’s about where you have come from

14. What is place and destination branding?
It’s about where you are now

15. What is place and destination branding?
It’s about where you are going to
It’s about where you are going to

16. What’s the role of culture in place branding?

17. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Culture is a powerful attractor

18. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Culture is a powerful differentiator of place

19. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Culture is a powerful definer of place

20. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
What do we mean by culture?

21. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Is it limited to the arts?
Or is it more than that?

22. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Images of people in place
transmit culture

23. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Food transmits culture

24. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Architecture transmits culture

25. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Textiles transmit culture

26. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
Events transmit culture

27. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
City and national governance transmit
culture

28. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
How we educate our people and care for
their welfare transmits our culture

29. What’s the role of culture in place branding?
How we house our people
transmits our culture

30. What can we learn from city branding?

31. What can we learn from city branding?
We need to build partnerships
We need to be inclusive

32. What can we learn from city branding?
We need to build associations
between people in place

33. What can we learn from city branding?
We need to foster & encourage
involvement

34. What can we learn from city branding?
We need participative leadership

35. What can we learn from city branding?
We need to harness
the private sector

36. What can we learn from city branding?
We need to harness
the power of community

37. What can we learn from Cork’s
approach to place brand strategy?

38. Where is Cork?

39. Cork Region brand strategy
Objectives
• Elevate Cork/increase awareness
• Attract & retain talented people
• Attract inward investment
• Support sustainable business growth
• Increase employment opportunities
• Attract visitors and their spend
• Generate wealth for Cork & Ireland

40. Cork - overall brand proposition
A powerful mix for your success
(In the best small country in the world to do business)

41. Cork brand strategy
Essentially an economic development brand
proposition

42. Cork Brand Attributes
The cultural offer attracts tourists, learners, workers,
investors and also retains people

43. Cork case study
Traditional culture supports the economic
brand proposition

44. Cork brand strategy
Culturally rich heritage and offer

45. Cork Opera House

46. Cork – Everyman Theatre

47. Cork – pub culture

48. Cork – live music in pubs

49. Cork – live street music

50. Cork – Gaelic sports culture

51. Cork – cosmopolitan food culture

52. Cork – a culture of conservation

53. Cork – a culture of innovation

54. Cork – a culture of independent thinking

55. Cork – a live Gaelic culture

56. Cork Cultural Assets - Festivals

57. Cork – key cultural brand messages
Core Brand Proposition
Cork is “Big on Life”

58. Cork – key cultural brand messages
Cork is a great place to move to for work and
to live, with the bonus of a vibrant and
varied cultural offer

59. Cork – key brand messages
Cork offers you insights into traditional
Irish culture

60. Cork – Quality of life brand messages
You can meet on a mountain
top after work, sail around a
harbour, along the Atlantic
coast or visit an island by boat

61. Cork – Quality of life brand messages
We conserve and protect our natural assets for the
benefit of future generations

62. Cork – Quality of life brand messages
Cork is a place that puts you at ease

63. Cork – Quality of life brand messages
Cork is a place that captures
your heart and soul through
its spirit

64. Communicating culture in place brands
Culture differentiates your place

65. Communicating culture in place brands
Events locate your place in the mind

66. Communicating culture in place brands
Live culture characterises your place

67. Communicating culture in place brands
Your people transmit your culture

68. Be clear and consistent on your messaging

69. One story does not tell all

70. One image and one identity rarely do a
place justice

71. Be focussed on your messaging
Don’t assume your audiences are all alike

72. Avoid the temptation to tell everybody everywhere
everything about your offer all of the time

73. Don’t create a dissonant Tower of Babel

74. A important thought to take away
Regarding nation branding and culture…..
“What countries need is for people around the world to
have a richer, deeper, more complex, more nuanced, more
democratic, more chaotic, more human view of their land,
their population and their civilisation—not a fabricated
stereotype to replace the inherited stereotype.”
Simon Anholt

75. Thank You
Malcolm Allan
Managing Director
Placematters Ltd
P: +44 1342 829 012
M: +44 7803 356 310
E: malcolm.allan@placematters.co
W: www.placematters.co
Twitter: @MalkyAllan
Blog:
www.malcolmallan-placebrander.blogspot.co.uk
Member UK Academy of Urbanism
Member US Placemaking Leadership Council