Abstract: Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to learn how brand heritage and retro brands can help HQM strengthen their brand identity. Background: Companies with a long history have a strategic choice to make re-garding the use of their heritage in marketing communications. Such companies also enjoy a history of interesting products, for which some may exist the possibility for a retro relaunch. Husqvarna is such a company, which made it interesting to find out how these two strategic tools can or cannot strengthen the studied company‘s brand identity. Method: Through an inductive and exploratory case study with interviews of the personnel at Husqvarna Motorcycles, Italy, three theoretical areas emerged to be researched, brand identity, brand heritage and retro brands. The latter two required the help of real life examples for better understanding. The analysis had a deductive approach where the studied theory was applied to the companies, and conclu-sions were drawn from the accumulated knowledge to help streng-then the brand identity of Husqvarna Motorcycles. Conclusions: HQM is a brand with heritage in the process of taking a strategic de-cision to use its heritage as a tool to strengthen the brand identity, hence on the way to become a heritage brand in the true meaning of the definition. As the oldest brand on the market, HQM can use its heritage to differentiate itself from the competition, creating uni-queness impossible to copy. A retro product can be a useful vehicle to carry the newly uncovered heritage to surface. With the help of theory and a real life example, a contender within the historical company product portfolio was recognized. Finally, the band identi-ty as stated by HQM was redefined according to the findings.

<p>Bakgrund: Fotografering är på tapeten mer än någonsin. Försäljningen av systemkameror slår nya rekord för varje år och här Canon och Nikon de världsledande kameramärkena. Många av deras respektive kunder anses vara mycket lojala gentemot varumärket och kan inte tänka sig att byta till det konkurrerande kameramärket. Hängivenheten kan dock tyckas märklig då de två fotogiganterna inte skiljer sig nämnvärt från varandra i sina produktutbud.</p><p>Syfte: Syftet med studien är att beskriva eventuella lojalitetsskillnader mellan Canons och Nikons hobbyfotografer i Sverige. Vi vill vidare reda ut varför dessa skillnader eller icke-skillnader finns då kameramärkenas produkter knappt skiljer sig åt.</p><p>Avgränsningar: Studien utförs främst utifrån ett konsumentperspektiv – producenternas perspektiv har således inte behandlats. Vidare är vi enbart intresserade av att kartlägga och analysera lojaliteten bland hobbyfotografer i Sverige som använder Canon eller Nikon.</p><p>Genomförande: Utifrån de tre områdena individ, grupp och märkesprodukt skapade vi en enkät som skickades ut till drygt 850 studenter på distanskursen Digital bildbehandling på Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation i Jönköping. Därmed använde vi oss av en kvantitativ ansats i form av en respondentundersökning. Med undersökningen ämnade vi kartlägga lojaliteten bland Canons och Nikons hobby-fotografer, vilket senare låg till grund för analysen där vi utifrån nämnda teoriområden undersökte varför lojaliteten uppkommit.</p><p>Resultat: Varumärkeslojaliteten bland Canons och Nikons fotografer visade sig vara likformad. Dock kunde tendensen att användare av Nikon generellt är mer extrema i sin lojalitet tydas; deras beteenden och attityder genererar högre såväl lojalitet som hyperlojalitet. Vidare kom vi fram till att de tre delarna individ, grupp och märkesprodukt tillsammans utgör grundstenar i varumärkeslojaliteten; denna process har vi sammanfattat i en modell. Vi menar vidare att nuvarande lojalitetsteorier borde fokusera mer på gruppen.</p> / <p>Background: Photography is more popular than ever. The number of sold single-lens reflex cameras increases every year. Canon and Nikon are the two leading brands when it comes to this type of camera. Many of their buyers are considered as being very loyal to their respective brand, and thus they cannot imagine switching to the competiting brand. The preference for a certain brand does seem somewhat strange as the products that the two giants offer do not differ a lot.</p><p>Aim: The aim of the study is to describe possible differences concerning loyalty among Canon’s and Nikon’s non professional photographers in Sweden. Also, the purpose of the study is to investigate why these differences exist even though the products are so much alike.</p><p>Demarcations: The study has been carried out first and foremost from a consumer perspective. Hence, the producers’ perspective has not been taken into consideration.</p><p>Method: A questionnaire based on the three main variables individual, group and brand was formed and sent to more than 850 students that have taken the distance course Digital Image Editing at the School of Education and Communication in Jönköping.</p><p>Result: Loyalty towards a specific brand turned out to be fairly similar among Canon’s and Nikon’s photographers. Yet the tendency that the loyalty of those who use Nikon is in general more extreme was discernible; their behaviour and their attitudes generate both stronger loyalty as well as stronger hyper loyalty. The study also shows that the three different variables individual, group and brand act jointly as foundation stones in the brand loyalty; this process has been summarized in a model. Furthermore, we suggest that present loyalty theories should focus more on one of the variables, namely the group.</p>

Bakgrund: Fotografering är på tapeten mer än någonsin. Försäljningen av systemkameror slår nya rekord för varje år och här Canon och Nikon de världsledande kameramärkena. Många av deras respektive kunder anses vara mycket lojala gentemot varumärket och kan inte tänka sig att byta till det konkurrerande kameramärket. Hängivenheten kan dock tyckas märklig då de två fotogiganterna inte skiljer sig nämnvärt från varandra i sina produktutbud. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att beskriva eventuella lojalitetsskillnader mellan Canons och Nikons hobbyfotografer i Sverige. Vi vill vidare reda ut varför dessa skillnader eller icke-skillnader finns då kameramärkenas produkter knappt skiljer sig åt. Avgränsningar: Studien utförs främst utifrån ett konsumentperspektiv – producenternas perspektiv har således inte behandlats. Vidare är vi enbart intresserade av att kartlägga och analysera lojaliteten bland hobbyfotografer i Sverige som använder Canon eller Nikon. Genomförande: Utifrån de tre områdena individ, grupp och märkesprodukt skapade vi en enkät som skickades ut till drygt 850 studenter på distanskursen Digital bildbehandling på Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation i Jönköping. Därmed använde vi oss av en kvantitativ ansats i form av en respondentundersökning. Med undersökningen ämnade vi kartlägga lojaliteten bland Canons och Nikons hobby-fotografer, vilket senare låg till grund för analysen där vi utifrån nämnda teoriområden undersökte varför lojaliteten uppkommit. Resultat: Varumärkeslojaliteten bland Canons och Nikons fotografer visade sig vara likformad. Dock kunde tendensen att användare av Nikon generellt är mer extrema i sin lojalitet tydas; deras beteenden och attityder genererar högre såväl lojalitet som hyperlojalitet. Vidare kom vi fram till att de tre delarna individ, grupp och märkesprodukt tillsammans utgör grundstenar i varumärkeslojaliteten; denna process har vi sammanfattat i en modell. Vi menar vidare att nuvarande lojalitetsteorier borde fokusera mer på gruppen. / Background: Photography is more popular than ever. The number of sold single-lens reflex cameras increases every year. Canon and Nikon are the two leading brands when it comes to this type of camera. Many of their buyers are considered as being very loyal to their respective brand, and thus they cannot imagine switching to the competiting brand. The preference for a certain brand does seem somewhat strange as the products that the two giants offer do not differ a lot. Aim: The aim of the study is to describe possible differences concerning loyalty among Canon’s and Nikon’s non professional photographers in Sweden. Also, the purpose of the study is to investigate why these differences exist even though the products are so much alike. Demarcations: The study has been carried out first and foremost from a consumer perspective. Hence, the producers’ perspective has not been taken into consideration. Method: A questionnaire based on the three main variables individual, group and brand was formed and sent to more than 850 students that have taken the distance course Digital Image Editing at the School of Education and Communication in Jönköping. Result: Loyalty towards a specific brand turned out to be fairly similar among Canon’s and Nikon’s photographers. Yet the tendency that the loyalty of those who use Nikon is in general more extreme was discernible; their behaviour and their attitudes generate both stronger loyalty as well as stronger hyper loyalty. The study also shows that the three different variables individual, group and brand act jointly as foundation stones in the brand loyalty; this process has been summarized in a model. Furthermore, we suggest that present loyalty theories should focus more on one of the variables, namely the group.

The advent of social media has witnessed a transformation in how audiences interact with marketers online. While previous research has shown that media consumers generally hold a negative view of advertising, today’s media consumers are engaging with brands more than ever. This study examines what it means to be an active fan of marketers in social media to the modern media consumer through an investigation of how audiences relate to brands in the social media space. Centered around audiences’ uses and gratifications of three successful brand communities within Facebook through qualitative (field observations and individual interviews) and quantitative (surveys) methods, this study intends to gain further knowledge about the role of social media and its impact on forming new cultural trends. The findings suggest that while the uses and gratifications of Facebook brand pages and what becoming a fan of a brand on Facebook signifies to social media users vary, the prevailing motivation for and function of brand community membership is the construction of one’s digital identity in association with the brands of one’s choosing. Furthermore, despite being aware that Facebook brand communities are marketing platforms, fans were largely receptive to and held a positive attitude towards the brands. This critical study of brand fans on Facebook presents the importance of studying social media’s uses and implications in order to better understand new audience cultures within the interactive media landscape.

粉絲專頁是Facebook在2007年推出，提供給Facebook用戶作為公司企業、機關組織或個人品牌經營之用。隨著Facebook成為一個巨大的社交平台，Facebook粉絲專頁也成為一個全方位的品牌社群行銷利器(Nov.2009, Inside Facebook Pages, Sysomos Ins.)。 本研究以品牌聲譽高的象徵性品牌、品牌聲譽低的象徵性品牌、品牌聲譽高的功能性品牌、以及品牌聲譽低的功能性品牌四種類別的品牌粉絲專頁為研究對象，以Oliver(1980)的期望-失驗理論為基礎，並參考Muniz 和O’Guinn(2001)的品牌社群三角模式，將品牌社群成員(粉絲)對品牌社群(品牌粉絲專頁)之期待與加入動機，分為社群成員與品牌間的「品牌互動」、以及社群成員與其他成員間的「社群互動」兩類，探討社群成員對所參加之品牌粉絲專頁的品牌互動及社群互動期待，以及參加後實際知覺績效與期待間的落差，對其社群滿意度及品牌態度造成的影響。本研究有以下重要發現： 1.社群成員並不會因為品牌聲譽高低不同，而對粉絲專頁有不同的期待；但品牌概念形象的不同會影響社群成員對粉絲專頁的期待。 2.社群成員的涉入程度有助增強其粉絲專頁滿意度對其品牌態度的正向影響。 3.四類粉絲專頁的社群成員對於粉絲專頁中品牌互動的平均期待皆高於對社群互動的平均期待。 4.品牌互動方面，社群成員加入品牌粉絲專頁的主要動機與期待集中於資訊強化和產品交易兩個構念。 5.在社群互動方面，四類粉絲專頁的社群成員皆最重視粉絲專頁內的與其他成員間的意見交換。 6.相較於象徵性品牌粉絲專頁的社群成員，功能性品牌粉絲專頁的社群成員較期待能夠透過粉絲專頁的參與，感受到身為品牌愛好者之一的歸屬感。

[pt] A rápida propagação e alta popularidade das mídias sociais digitais criaram um ambiente favorável à instalação de comunidades de marca. Cada vez mais, empresas criam comunidades - as chamadas fanpages no Facebook - como forma de se aproximar dos seus consumidores e alcançar a lealdade dos mesmos. Neste contexto, este estudo elaborou dois novos modelos conceituais para investigar como as comunidades de marca baseadas em mídias sociais afetam a lealdade à marca. A revisão de literatura realizada permitiu que esta relação fosse explorada por meio dos seguintes construtos: benefícios funcionais, psicossociais e hedônicos, comprometimento com a comunidade e boca-a-boca. Os dados da pesquisa foram obtidos através de uma survey on-line que, aplicada a membros da comunidade da Netflix no Facebook, gerou 1.236 respostas válidas. Estes dados, analisados por meio de modelagem de equações estruturais (SEM), confirmaram todas as hipóteses propostas e sugeriram que as comunidades de marca baseadas em mídias sociais influenciam positivamente na lealdade à marca. Os modelos finais da pesquisa indicaram, ainda, que os benefícios hedônicos são os que exercem maior influência sobre o comprometimento com a comunidade e sobre o boca-a-boca. Além disso, indicaram que o boca-a-boca decorrente da comunidade apresenta influência significativa sobre a lealdade à marca. / [en] The digital social media s quick spread and its big popularity has built a favorable environment to the creation of brand communities. Increasingly, companies launch communities - known as fanpages on Facebook - as a way to approach their customers and reach brand loyalty. In face of that, this study sought to develop two new models in order to investigate how social media based brand communities affect brand loyalty. The literature review allowed this relation to be explored through the following constructs: functional benefits, social-psychological benefits, hedonic benefits, community commitment and word-of-mouth. The research data was collected via an on-line survey applied to Netflix s community members on Facebook, which had 1.236 valid responses. Structural equations modeling (SEM) was employed and confirmed all the research hypotheses, suggesting that social media based brand communities affect positively brand loyalty. The findings reveal that hedonic benefits are the major influencers of community commitment and word-of-mouth. Therefore, results show that the word-of-mouth from the community significantly influences brand loyalty.

Bakgrund och problem: Konsumenter värderar individualism vilket leder till hög efterfrågan av unika produkter. Massproducerade produkter anses inte längre vara lika värdefulla vilket har utvecklat drop till en vanligt förekommande affärsstrategi. Modeföretag kan tillämpa drop i syfte att signalera unikhet genom att begränsa dess tillgänglighet. Marknadsföringen inom drop handlar om att framhäva produktens knapphet och på så sätt förstärka dess unika attribut. Modeföretag väljer att använda sig av sociala medier som marknadsföringsplattform för att stärka varumärkets community och skapa en hype kring lanseringen. I samband med att produkter behöver ha en förmåga att särskilja sig samtidigt som de kan tillfredsställa konsumenternas behov av att vara unika, behövs effektiva marknadsföringsstrategier som betonar produkternas knapphet, framkallar efterfrågan och skapar en känsla av gemenskap för konsumenten. Syfte: Studiens syfte är att undersöka och kartlägga vad affärsstrategin drop innebär och hur det utvalda modeföretaget anpassar strategin i sin verksamhet, samt undersöka i vilken utsträckning knapphet, sociala medier som marknadsföringsplattform och unikhet kan utnyttjas i samband med drop. Avsikten med studien är att öka förståelsen för drop som strategi samt bidra med att berika forskningsområdet genom nya effektiva analyser och slutsatser kring vilka effekter limiterade produkter inom drop har på efterfrågan. Metod: Studien bygger på en kvalitativ forskningsmetod där tre semistrukturerade intervjuer samt en observation har genomförts. Datainsamlingen har utgått ifrån fyra teman och frågeställningar som har förankring till studiens teoretiska referensramen. Resultat och slutsats: Resultatet i denna studie indikerar på att drop generellt ökar produktens exklusivitet och efterfrågan genom att skapa en illusion av knapphet. Vidare visar resultatet på att företag med hjälp av knapphet kan upprätthålla konsumenters uppmärksamhet och därmed öka lönsamheten. Studien indikerar på att det är väsentligt att begränsa antalet drop samt att det är viktigt att ständigt uppdatera produkterna så de upprätthåller sina unika attribut. Marknadsföring via sociala medieplattformar har en förmåga att höja värdet av varumärket och skapa en hype bland konsumenterna innan ett drop. Sociala medier är dessutom lönsamt att tillämpa då det inte kräver stora investeringar samtidigt som det möjliggör att nå ut till en bredare räckvidd konsumenter. / Background: Consumer value individualism which leads to a higher demand for unique products. Mass produced products are no longer considered as valuable which has developed drop into a common occurring business strategy. Fashion companies can apply drop in order to indicate uniqueness by limiting it’s availability. Marketing within drop is about emphasising the products scarcity and thus enhancing its unique attribute. Fashion companies choose to use social media as a marketing platform in order to strengthen the brand community and create a hype around the launch. As well as products need to be able to differentiate and at the same time satisfy the consumers need for uniqueness, it requires effective marketing strategies that emphasizes the products scarcity, provokes demand and creates a feeling of a community for the consumer. Aim: The aim of this study is to examine and map what the business strategy drop means and how the chosen fashion company adopts the strategy into their business, also examine to what extent scarcity, social media as a marketing platform and uniqueness can be utilized within drop. The intention of this study is to increase the understanding about drop as a business strategy as well as contribute to the research area through new effective analyses and conclusions about the effects limited products within drop have on the demand. Methodology: This study is based on a qualitative research method where three semi-structured interviews and one observation have been done. The data collection derives from four themes and the questions which are anchored from the theoretical framework. Findings and conclusion: The result of this study indicated that drop generally enhances the products exclusivity and demand by creating an illusion of scarcity. Furthermore the results show that companies can by scarcity gain the ability to maintain consumers attention and thereby increase the profitability. The study indicates that it is significant to limit the amount of drops as well as it is important to constantly develop the products in order to maintain their unique attributes. Marketing through social media platforms have the ability to increase the value of the brand and create a hype among the consumers before a drop. Social media is also profitable to apply because it doesn't need large investments even though it is possible to reach a wider range of consumers.

Esta investigación pretende analizar la relación entre la comunidad de marca en línea, la lealtad de marca y el boca a boca respecto a la intención de recompra de marcas dermatológicas. El modelo de investigación cuantitativo correlacional es evaluado a través del cuestionario como herramienta y la encuesta en línea como técnica, utilizando la hibridación para su elaboración. La muestra no probabilística está conformada por 400 encuestados como población finita; también, se aplica la escala de medición de Likert de cinco puntos para la consolidación de las respuestas. Se utiliza el software SmartPLS para procesar la información recabada y el análisis multivariado con ecuaciones estructurales y Cronbach para evaluar la magnitud de los ítems correlacionados. Las implicaciones señalan que las marcas deben centrarse en crear comunidades de marca virtuales con el fin de generar pertenencia, vínculo y beneficios para los miembros de la comunidad, ya que los motiva a participar en línea, produciendo la lealtad a la marca, el boca a boca y la intención de recompra. Así, esta investigación contribuye a la teoría y práctica del marketing al analizar la relación entre la comunidad de marca en línea, la lealtad de marca y el boca a boca respecto a la intención de recompra de marcas dermatológicas. / This research aims to analyze the relationship between the online brand community, brand loyalty, and word of mouth regarding the intent to repurchase intention dermatological brands. The correlational quantitative research model is evaluated through the questionnaire as a tool and the online survey as a technique, using hybridization for its elaboration. The non-probabilistic sample is made up of 400 respondents as a finite population; Also, the five-point Likert measurement scale is applied to consolidate the responses. The SmartPLS software is used to process the information collected and the multivariate analysis with structural equations and Cronbach to evaluate the magnitude of the correlated items. The implications indicate that brands should focus on creating virtual brand communities in order to generate belonging, link and benefits for community members, since it motivates them to participate online, producing brand loyalty, word of mouth and repurchase intention. Thus, this research contributes to the theory and practice of marketing by analyzing the relationship between the online brand community, brand loyalty and word of mouth regarding the intention to repurchase intention dermatological brands. / Trabajo de investigación

本研究以社會資本理論為基礎，探討品牌社群中社會資本對於品牌共鳴的影響，並以多種產業的品牌社群為研究對象，針對九個品牌社群發放問卷，抽樣方式為便利抽樣，共計回收250份有效問卷。所有樣本以線性結構模式進行分析(LSREL)後，獲得下列結論： 1. 社會資本的形成 社會資本的形成是有順序性的，必須先從結構面開始，進而影響群體的認知面，最後促進關係面，如此才可以讓成員對社群發展高參與和承諾。 2. 社群參與無法正向影響品牌社群承諾 積極參與品牌社群的活動，有可能只是為了滿足成員自己的關係需求。因此，不一定能把社群成員對其他成員的承諾轉為對整體品牌社群的承諾。 3. 品牌社群承諾的前因後果 社會資本的關係面與認知會提升成員的品牌社群成承諾，而品牌社群承諾會正向影響抵抗性與品牌愛慕。 4. 抵抗性、品牌愛慕與品牌共鳴的互相關聯 (一)、抵抗性與品牌愛慕正向影響品牌共鳴 品牌愛慕能正面影響顧客的品牌忠誠度、口碑效應，讓顧客對品牌事務有更高的參與動機；抵抗性則能加深成員對於品牌的情感，促使成員對於品牌的信念更加堅定。本研究證實，抵抗性與品牌愛慕都能幫助品牌共鳴的發展。 (二)、抵抗性正向影響品牌愛慕 顧客在抵抗針對品牌的負面訊息的過程中，抵抗性可以幫助顧客加深自身對於支持品牌的態度，使自己的信念更加堅定，有助於顧客對品牌產生更深層的情感。因此，本研究結果證實抵抗性能夠幫助品牌愛慕的發展。

Dans un contexte de mondialisation, la concurrence accrue entre les territoires, dont l’objectif premier est de capter des habitants, des touristes et des entreprises, exacerbe les enjeux liés à leur attractivité. Afin de se différencier les collectivités territoriales et leurs agences de développement adoptent des approches de marketing territorial et commencent à mettre en place des techniques de marquage (dites place branding). Le place branding reprend plusieurs outils issus du domaine de la marque commerciale. Toutefois, le territoire est un « produit particulier » qui regroupe diverses parties prenantes dont les visions et les attentes peuvent diverger. Le succès d’une marque territoire reposera alors en partie sur la gestion de ces parties prenantes. Dès lors, ce travail doctoral entreprend d’adapter au contexte du place branding des concepts de marketing, en considérant les perceptions de trois groupes de parties prenantes, en vue d’améliorer l’efficacité de la marque territoire. Cette problématique de recherche est abordée selon trois questions de recherche: (1) Quelle est la légitimité publicitaire d’une marque territoire, telle que perçue par ses habitants ? Influence-t-elle l’efficacité des actions de place branding ? (2) Dans quelle mesure les gestionnaires de marques territoires ont recours à des stratégies de marketing communautaire afin d’implémenter une communication marketing intégrée (CMI) ? (3) Dans quelle mesure l’image de la marque région constitue-t-elle un vecteur pertinent de la promotion d’une destination, complémentaire à celle de la marque pays, auprès des touristes internationaux ? D’un point de vue théorique, cette recherche doctorale souligne l’importance d’adopter une approche parties prenantes à la compréhension de la marque territoire. Ce faisant, ce travail contribue à développer des preuves empiriques dans le domaine, notamment à l’échelle de la région qui est sous-représentée dans la littérature. Cette thèse met en évidence les similitudes entre la marque territoire et la marque commerciale, et renforce ainsi la validité externe de trois concepts issus du marketing classique. Différentes approches méthodologiques ont été développées et mobilisées. Ces éléments renforcent par ailleurs la validité interne de la présente recherche et contribuent à exclure l’existence d’un biais déclaratif. Les contributions managériales de cette thèse sont liées à ses implications méthodologiques dans la mesure où diverses grilles d’analyse sont proposées aux gestionnaires de marques territoires. Ces outils prennent en compte les spécificités et les enjeux associés aux principales parties prenantes de la marque, et visent à les impliquer dans les initiatives de place branding. Enfin, la mise en place d’une approche de communication marketing intégrée est conseillée. Premièrement, il est proposé que cette approche soit appliquée entre les différents acteurs du territoire. Les résultats montrent ainsi que l’intégration des habitants dans la démarche de place branding est un véritable enjeu qui nécessite une approche distincte de celle préconisée traditionnellement en marketing. Deuxièmement, l’approche de communication marketing intégrée devrait s’appliquer entre les différents niveaux de territoires de façon à tirer parti de l’image du territoire d’ordre supérieur. / In the globalized world, Nowhere, Place, is directly competing against Powerful, World, to attract residents, tourists and talent, as well as firms and investments, whether the place is a meta-region, a country, a region, a city or other locations. Whilst places and destinations around the world have been proclaiming their qualities for a long time, mainly to create awareness or maintain preference, those marketing communications campaigns are short-term and don’t contribute to unifying the place. To compete in such cutthroat environments, public authorities and place agencies have started to recognize the value of adopting branding techniques by way of practising place branding. Place branding adapts several tools developed in the field of commercial branding to contribute to place development and establish image-building strategies that render places more attractive to identified markets. As such, this doctoral work endeavours to adapt mainstream marketing concepts to the context of place branding, taking into account the views of three groups of stakeholders to enhance place brand efficiency. I address these research questions in a French region-branding context, according to three sub-questions that summarise the chapters of this thesis. First, what is the advertising legitimacy of a place brand as perceived by the residents? Does it influence place-branding efficiency? Second, to what extent do place brand managers use community marketing strategies to operationalize the integrated marketing communications (IMC) role of the place brand? Third, to what extent does the region brand image constitute a relevant vehicle for promoting a destination integral to the nation brand image, as perceived by international tourists? Results show that the representational and functional dimensions of a destination brand impact differently implicit attractiveness and intentions to visit. International tourists also perceive the region and the nation brand images as congruent overall, which contributes positively to their intentions to visit the region. From a theoretical point of view, this research highlights the importance of adopting a multi-stakeholder approach to understanding place branding. Doing so contributes to the development of empirical evidence in the domain, by studying the understudied region branding form. This dissertation also highlights similarities with commercial branding and reinforces the external validity of three classic marketing concepts. The methodological implications of this work come from the different methodological approaches (i.e. measurement tools and methods), developed to meet the specificities and stakes associated with the main stakeholders of a place brand. In addition, this approach reinforces the internal validity of the present research and contributes to ruling out the existence of a declarative bias. The managerial contributions of this thesis are connected with the methodological implications, inasmuch as it provides place brand managers with diverse analysis grids that will enable them to take into account the specificities and stakes associated with the main stakeholders of the place brand, and also involve stakeholders in the place-branding process. Finally, I demonstrate the need for an IMC approach that is per se—for example, through the use of an overall brand positioning that covers shared elements between stakeholders so that they all relate to the place brand, or through the adoption of a bottom-up rather than top-down approach to place branding. This approach also should be able to extend to other place scales, by leveraging the image of a higher-order place.