Thesis Purpose: The purpose of this study is to develop an increased knowledge of place branding, study the perception of inhabitants’ regarding Alvesta as a place and to explore an extended relationship between Alvesta and Växjö municipality. Methodology: The methodology of the study is conducted with qualitative and quantitative approach. There were two interviews in Alvesta and Växjö municipality office. A total number of 216 questionnaires were gathered in three urban areas in Alvesta municipality. Theoretical Framework: For this study place branding theory has been used as a guideline and SWOT, Gap analysis and Co-opetition theory were used to analyze Alvesta municipality as a place and its inhabitant’s perception. Empirical Finding: A total of 210 questionnaires were analyzed statistically through SPSS with functions such as cross tabulation, compare means, and scale reliability analysis. Also the results of two interviews with the Alvesta and Växjö municipality are written in this chapter regarding the theories used in this thesis. Analysis: The analysis chapter integrates the theory and the results of the empirical findings. Alvesta’s brand and service were evaluated based on SWOT and gap analysis. A co-opetition relationship was suggested between Växjö and Alvesta municipality in different issues such as branding, infrastructure and education. Conclusion: From this study we have attained insight that Alvesta municipality is in the initial stage in branding and there is a service gap in the inhabitants’ perception. Finally this study contributes how Alvesta municipality can create mutual value by cooperating and competing with Växjö municipality.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att analysera en enkät som Expansiva Växjö genomfört för att få en bild av Växjös image och undersöka hur nära denna ligger den önskade profilen. Därefter jämförs den strategi som valts för platsvarumärket Växjö med teorier om place branding och i vilken grad dessa tillämpas. Utifrån vår analys av Växjös image och strategi, samt med hjälp varumärkesteori, undersöks också om skapandet av varumärket har potential att bli framgångsrikt eller ej.

Starting with the 1970s, cities have found themselves in a trouble which is caused by economic changes, technological improvements and local-global power shifts. Under the impact of these changes, cities have started to act as independent units and try to get a higher their position in the hierarchical system of the globalised world. Therefore, competition started between cities other than states and entreprenurial strategies are developed by local governments and actors for sustaing local economic development. One of the most popular place marketing strategies, mega-events such as EXPO, Olympic Games are considered as a valuable instrument to promote a region as a tourist destination, business location, and an attractive place to live and work. This study investigates an understanding of how to use a mega event as a tool in the place marketing strategy and building up entrepreneurial governance by examining the stakeholder organization of Izmir EXPO 2015 candidacy period. The research analyzes the approaches of different stakeholders of Izmir to EXPO opportunity and the impact of bidding on the stakeholder organization of Izmir. The most important conclusion of the study is that collaborative study of stakeholders can help to build up the entrprenurial city even if the city does not host a mega event.

<p>Thesis Purpose: The purpose of this study is to develop an increased knowledge of place branding, study the perception of inhabitants’ regarding Alvesta as a place and to explore an extended relationship between Alvesta and Växjö municipality.</p><p>Methodology: The methodology of the study is conducted with qualitative and quantitative approach. There were two interviews in Alvesta and Växjö municipality office. A total number of 216 questionnaires were gathered in three urban areas in Alvesta municipality.</p><p>Theoretical Framework: For this study place branding theory has been used as a guideline and SWOT, Gap analysis and Co-opetition theory were used to analyze Alvesta municipality as a place and its inhabitant’s perception.</p><p>Empirical Finding: A total of 210 questionnaires were analyzed statistically through SPSS with functions such as cross tabulation, compare means, and scale reliability analysis. Also the results of two interviews with the Alvesta and Växjö municipality are written in this chapter regarding the theories used in this thesis.</p><p>Analysis: The analysis chapter integrates the theory and the results of the empirical findings. Alvesta’s brand and service were evaluated based on SWOT and gap analysis. A co-opetition relationship was suggested between Växjö and Alvesta municipality in different issues such as branding, infrastructure and education.</p><p>Conclusion: From this study we have attained insight that Alvesta municipality is in the initial stage in branding and there is a service gap in the inhabitants’ perception. Finally this study contributes how Alvesta municipality can create mutual value by cooperating and competing with Växjö municipality.</p>

<p>Syftet med denna uppsats är att analysera en enkät som Expansiva Växjö genomfört för att få en bild av Växjös image och undersöka hur nära denna ligger den önskade profilen. Därefter jämförs den strategi som valts för platsvarumärket Växjö med teorier om place branding och i vilken grad dessa tillämpas. Utifrån vår analys av Växjös image och strategi, samt med hjälp varumärkesteori, undersöks också om skapandet av varumärket har potential att bli framgångsrikt eller ej.</p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2008. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed April 9, 2009). Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 489-534).

Thesis (PhD) -- AUT University, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references. Also held in print (xiii, 265 leaves ; 30 cm.) in the Archive at the City Campus (T 338.47910688 BHA)

Thesis (M.A.) -- University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2006. / Title from title page screen (viewed on Sept.21, 2006). Thesis advisor: Robert J. Norrell. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Abstract The purpose of this study is to explore how place marketing manifests within foreign direct investment (FDI) in the new era of information and communications technology. The study reviews the literature on place marketing that emphasises FDI and defines place marketing as a tool to pursue FDI more systematically and efficiently in order to increase the value of a place. The study shows that place marketing can be used in multiple ways to pursue inward FDI activities and that it is multifaceted, not just a service offered by investment promotion agencies. This empirical study of place marketing within FDI follows a multiple case study method. The data are drawn from interviews with nine FDI case companies and their respective investment promotion agency representatives and facilitating research, business and funding actors. The study approaches place marketing within FDI from an explorative perspective, studying how place marketing can improve FDI by interpreting investment decisions through the lenses of place marketing and place branding elements, management and assessment. The analysis identifies the place marketing factors that impact the FDI process from the preparation phase through the post-investment phase. Through the FDI process, a regional image is generated, and the place becomes visible. This study develops a conceptual model that proposes that place marketing manifests within FDI through goals, networks, individuals and regional competences. The goals are set to develop the framework for place marketing within FDI. Stakeholders’ engagement forms a strong ecosystem network that can be a major regional asset to attract and sustain investments. Each FDI case creates, develops and sustains its own network, within which the contributions of individuals with technical and managerial skills are key to successful place promotion. The competence of the regional ecosystem sets the scene for the investment opportunity. Regarding managerial implications, this study proves that strategic, inward FDI activity requires long-term regional commitment from stakeholders and an allocation of resources during not only the pre-investment phase, but also the post-investment phase. / Tiivistelmä Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on selvittää, miten paikanmarkkinointi edistää suoria ulkomaisia investointeja ICT-teknologian uudella aikakaudella. Tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan paikanmarkkinointia koskevaa kirjallisuutta, jossa käsitellään ulkomaisia suoria sijoituksia ja määritellään paikanmarkkinointi keinona hankkia sijoituksia järjestelmällisemmin ja tehokkaammin paikan arvon kasvattamiseksi. Tutkimus osoittaa, että paikanmarkkinointia voidaan käyttää monin tavoin ulkomaisten investointien houkuttelussa ja että se on monipuolinen kokonaisuus eikä pelkkä investointien edistämispalvelu. Tässä empiirisessä paikanmarkkinoinnin tutkimuksessa käytetään usean tapaustutkimuksen menetelmää. Tiedot perustuvat yhdeksän ulkomaisen kohdeyrityksen ja heidän edustajiensa sekä alueellisten tutkimus-, yritys- ja rahoitusalan toimijoiden haastatteluun. Tutkimus lähestyy ulkomaisiin sijoituksiin kohdistettua paikanmarkkinointia eksploratiivisesta näkökulmasta selvittämällä, miten paikanmarkkinointi voi edistää investointeja paikanmarkkinoinnin ja brändäyksen elementtien, johtamisen ja arvioinnin kautta. Analyysissä yksilöidään ne paikanmarkkinoinnintekijät, jotka vaikuttavat suorien ulkomaisten investointien prosessiin valmisteluvaiheesta investointivaiheeseen ja sen jälkeen. Investointiprosessin kautta alueellinen kuva vahvistuu ja paikka tulee esille. Tässä tutkimuksessa kehitetään käsitteellinen malli, jonka mukaan suorien ulkomaisten investointien houkutteluun suunnattu paikanmarkkinointi ilmenee toiminnan tavoitteiden, verkostojen, yksilöiden ja alueellisten valmiuksien kautta. Tavoitteet luovat viitekehyksen ulkomaisten suorien sijoitusten paikanmarkkinointiin. Sidosryhmien sitoutuminen muodostaa vahvan ekosysteemiverkoston, joka voi olla merkittävä alueellinen voimavara houkutella ja ylläpitää investointeja. Jokainen investointitapaus luo, kehittää ja ylläpitää omaa verkostoaan, jossa teknisten ja johtamiseen erikoistuneiden yksilöiden osallistuminen prosessiin on keskeistä. Alueen ekosysteemissä osaaminen luo mahdollisuuden investointiin. Johtamisen vaikutusten osalta tämä tutkimus osoittaa sen, että strateginen, suorien ulkomaisten investointien houkuttelu edellyttää sidosryhmien pitkäaikaista sitoutumista ja resurssiallokaatiota paitsi investoinnin esivaiheessa myös niiden myöhemmässä vaiheessa.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-16T14:49:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ArquivoTotalFabiana.pdf: 1740834 bytes, checksum: d764ab5ccbdbbee88f3d653848bca4be (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-11-25 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / This study aimed to understand the relationship between resident s place satisfaction, place attachment and perceived quality of life. The study is situated under place marketing s umbrella, which is an area of marketing studies that has been explored by research conducted mainly from the 2010s. A preliminary analysis of previous studies showed that focus of place marketing has lied predominantly on applying traditional marketing tools to places, seeking to attract visitors, investors and new residents, with little emphasis on residents. This justifies our focus on residents. From the literature review, we propose a model of relationships between the constructs, empirically tested using structural equation modeling on a sample of residents from the cities of João Pessoa, Campina Grande, Guarabira, and its surrounding cities, in the state of Paraíba. Along with proposing a model, we have also tested and proposed as cale to measure place satisfaction since existing scales turned out to be insufficient for our purposes. Hypothesis were confirmed, presenting place satisfaction and place attachment as predictors of perceived quality of life; a place satisfaction scale is developed and proposed; and specific factors contributing to overall place satisfaction were identified. The research makes a contribution to the field in that it explores a marketing view focused on resident s interests, offers in formation that can assist place managers over elements that shape residents perceived quality of life,and proposes a scale for measuring place satisfaction. / Esse estudo teve como objetivo compreender a relação entre a satisfação ao lugar, o apego ao lugar e a qualidade de vida percebida pelos residentes de um lugar. O estudo se insere, disciplinarmente, no campo de marketing de lugares, que é uma área de estudos de marketing que vem sendo explorada por pesquisas realizadas principalmente a partir da década de 2010. A análise preliminar dos estudos realizados mostrou que o foco de marketing de lugares tem sido predominantemente voltado para aplicar as ferramentas tradicionais de marketing aos lugares, na busca de atrair visitantes, investidores e novos residentes, com menor ênfase aos agentes residentes dos lugares. Isto justificou o foco deste estudo nos residentes. A partir da revisão da literatura, foi proposto um modelo de relações entre os construtos, testado empiricamente através de modelagem de equações estruturais em amostras de residentes das cidades de João Pessoa, Campina Grande, Guarabira e suas cidades circunvizinhas, no estado da Paraíba. Além do modelo, também testamos e propomos uma escala para medir o construto satisfação com o lugar, já que as escalas existentes na literatura se mostraram insuficientes para os nossos propósitos. Os resultados confirmam as hipóteses e apresentam a satisfação com o lugar e o apego ao lugar como preditores do construto qualidade de vida percebida; uma escala de satisfação com o lugar foi desenvolvida e proposta; e foram identificados os fatores específicos de um lugar que contribuem para a satisfação geral com o lugar. A pesquisa contribui para a área na medida em que explora uma visão de marketing de lugares voltada para o interesse do residente, oferece informações que podem auxiliar os gestores de lugares sobre os elementos que influenciam na formação da percepção de qualidade de vida pelos residentes de um lugar e propõe uma métrica para o construto satisfação com o lugar.