I agree with you. Each segment is motivated by distinct needs and desires, which means that the factors investors will use to evaluate geo-brands will be different from the ones used by tourists. While investors will look for infrastructures, local government, taxes, cost and availability of labour the tourist might not be so worried about those aspects and might be looking for other aspects such as natural beauty, sun, adventure, gaming, events/sports, cultural/history, status, etc. Tourists will choose a place that better suits and fulfils individuals’ motivations.

The question appears to suggest that this is an either/or proposition. My experience is that we live in an "and" world and that a community or region needs to develop an overarching brand to become visible in a global business environment as well as a differenciation strategy in order to bring focus to local or regional economic development strategies. One critical asset often overlooked in traditional economic development discussion is talent. As we continue to evolve from a manufacturing-based to a knowledge-based economy, intellectual capital is becoming increasingly important. Looking ahead, creativity, problem solving and understanding the market represent America's best chances for economic success.

First there was specialization as the father of capitalism Adam Smith identified in the Wealth of Nations. Henry Ford built one car in one color for everyone. Then the business mantra preached diversification throughout the 1970, 1980, and 1990's. Corporations like Proctor and Gamble carried every product from ammonia to zinc oxide. Now with globalization and technology advances the new business mantra is niche products and services which is really new language for old school "Specialization." I say, "stay true to what you do best but refresh your packaging to appeal to each new generation." I.E. update your logo every ten years.

I believe that one brand is essential to a community's brand being successful. However, there are two problems that I see today in the execution of such campaigns: First, very few branding firms or community leaders know how to see their community objectively, meaning that what they execute will be self serving, myopic, or too basic. Second, the brand created must be flexible enough to be executed in multiple ways simultaneously for visitors, residents, businesses, and prospective businesses. This in my opinion is almost never done. We recently finished a project for Gainesville Florida where we used the master brand (which was originally developed for tourism) and then applied it to the business audience. In our minds, it has been successful, but time will tell. See the website at www.businessgainesville.com.

A brand is a promise. In place branding it sets an expectation of what somebody can expect when investing time or money in a location. In order to be effective, a brand must be relevant, authentic and competitive.

Branding is hard work, but an effective brand will help guide local decisions that affect the location offering. Great brands are mind and heart opening. They grab attention, generate interest, create desire and motive the target to a positive action. Net, they impact behavior in ameaningful way.

One important step in branding is to define target segments and understand their needs. The hard part is to generate insights that allow you to understand the emotional needs in addition to the rational (obvious) needs. The common thread between different target segments is often on the emotional side of the equation. But, that is also where the greatest power of a brand is.

The best analogy I have found for place branding is corporate branding. Many corporations serve multiple target audiences with very different product offerings. Yet, the corporation makes an overarching promise to consumers and that promise guides business decisions. There is a lot that can be learned from the corporate branding model for place branding, and it is well worth the time to research so you can have an informed opinion.

Does place branding work? In my opinion yes. This is based on my own experience in managing the Ohio brand and from studying the global success models like Dubai and Northern Ireland where true place branding has made a dramatic difference in helping create sustainable and vibrant economies.

I will readily agree that if done incorrectly, or poorly, branding will turn out to be a poor strategic investment.

For increased confidence in the potential power of place branding, read some of the scholarly work of Dr. Kevin Keller, Dr, Philip Kotler, or Simon Anholt. They are releat with practical, real world examples of place branding success. Also consider visiting the Place Branding Journal website and read some of the free articles available on the topic.

I would also agree that there is a critical need to strengthen the quality of place branding practiced in the United States. In my opinion, the Europeans are about a decade ahead of our country in effective application of branding principles to help build strong economies. In my opinion, this is a skill that must be mastered by the public sector at the State, Regional and municiple level if we want to compete in the global market.

Yes, and agree with your comments 100%. It's ok to do the branding reseach of target audiances but we all have many customers and meeting each customer's needs is more important than a "community" branding. With regard to a logo, unless a community has a billion dollars to promote their logo like Nike does, they should focus on who they are targeting and direct their efforts in that direction.