Tracing for One Voice — The 5Cs of Communication in Place Branding

What makes a brand successful? The question has been covered extensively from the perspective of consumer goods, but do the same rules apply to place brands? One of the challenges in the branding of places is the excessive number of stakeholders and too little management control (Skinner, 2005). The aim in this chapter is, from an integrative analytical perspective, to design a strategic communications framework that will enable cultural entrepreneurs to deal effectively with the problem of maintaining two-way communication in good times and bad. It is worth pointing out here that there are various rational, social, emotional and aesthetic strategies that cultural entrepreneurs can use to build a multiplex of identities, in other words identities with many facets that engage stakeholders in different ways cognitively, emotionally and aesthetically (Rindova, 2007: 169). This is where integrated communication (IC) may be of use. As compared to the familiar concept of integrated marketing communication (IMC), IC covers all strategic organizational communications (see e.g., Niemann-Struweg, 2014). This chapter discusses five key strategic requirements for communication — consistency, continuity, commitment, coordination and content — from the perspective of place branding. The assumption is that the strategic control and integration of the branding and IC processes via the 5Cs foster synergy, one-voice benefits and profitability.