Challenges of city branding: A comparative study of 10 European cities

Abstract

This article focuses on challenges faced by city brand managers when they attempt to create and sustain the brands of their cities. This comparative study examines challenges faced in the city branding processes of 10 European cities and is based on interviews with 17 high-ranking city branding practitioners. Nine major challenges were identified: large number of stakeholders; limited understanding of branding among key stakeholders; limited internal buy-in amongst stakeholders; difficulties in securing sufficient funding; general slowness and time related challenges; organizational issues and lack of authority to lead; operational level challenges in marketing communication campaigns and in transferring the brand identity to product experiences; and finally, poor situational awareness resulting from poor monitoring.