THE IMPACT OF CITY BRANDING ON TOURISTS VS. FOREIGN RESIDENTS. [617577]

THE IMPACT OF CITY BRANDING ON TOURISTS VS. FOREIGN RESIDENTS.
CASE STUDY: PRAGUE

Abstract ​ (=rezumat, max. 2 pag; despre continutul lucrarii; exact, cuprinzator; contine
concepte cheie utilizate in lucrare; reflecta corect continutul lucrarii)
Prague is one of Europe’s ​ most popular tourist destination ​ . Different studies on tourist
destinations place Prague in top ten most popular European destination, together with cities like
London, Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Milan, Vienna or Istanbul. A study
( ​ http://go.euromonitor.com/rs/805-KOK-719/images/Euromonitor%20International_WTM%20L
ondon%202017_Top%20100%20City%20Destinations.pdf , p.26 ​ ) conducted by Euromonitor
International in 2017 is placing Prague on the 4th position as the most visited European city,
with more than 8.5 million visitors in 2017, a 4.5% growth from the previous year. According to
the same study, globally, Prague takes the 18th position from top 100 most visited cities all over
the world. Another study
( ​ https://newsroom.mastercard.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/FINAL-Global-Destination-Citi
es-Index-Report.pdf , p.3) conducted by Mastercard in 2016, places Prague on the 20th position
globally, for international overnight visitors, with almost 6 million. According to the study,
12.8% of visitors had business as their purpose of visit, while 87.2% were leisure or visitors with
another purpose, all together spending 2.7 billion dollars in 2016. Also, TripAdvisor
( ​ https://www.tripadvisor.com/TravelersChoice-Destinations-cTop-g1 ​ ) is placing Prague on the
7th global position in it’s own top 25 called “2018 Travelers’ Choice”.
The city is also ​ an attractive spot for foreign residents from Europe or another continents.
Official data
( ​ http://www.praguemorning.cz/there-are-500000-foreigners-working-in-the-czech-republic-f6qO
DEzK3C ​ ) from 2017 concludes that more than 14% of Prague’s population is composed by
foreign residents. The increase in foreign residents is in continuous growth ever since the fall of
the Communist regime through the Velvet Revolution which took place in the last 2 months of
1989. Tourists and foreign residents come to Prague for a variety of different reasons, such as
education, business, economic reasons, nightlife, architecture, sport events, family reuniting,
conferences, and the list can continue.

The ​ purpose/objective of this dissertation is to understand which is the impact of city branding
on tourists compared to the foreign residents and also, based on the local research results, to
understand how to brand a city differently for two different target publics, the tourists versus the
foreign residents.
The ​ hypotheses/assumptions to demonstrate are that tourists and foreign residents perceive
Prague differently, have different branding needs and one or the other group is more influenced
by past and current city branding efforts.
City branding, logo, slogan, smart city, landmark, positioning, storytelling, unique selling
proposition, reputation, value, consistency are all popular ​ terms/keywords widely
used/mentioned in academic literature for describing a city’s image. These terms/keywords are
decisive/ ​ crucial in examining the different perceptions ​ /opinions that tourists vs. foreign
residents are holding about Prague. The dissertation is ​ using foreign residents and tourists
perceptions in exploring which are the ​ differences between the two groups ​ , by applying very
similar questionnaires to both groups.
The ​ methods applied to this master thesis are mixed, with the purpose to give broader and more
accurate results and to answer the questions asked in this dissertation. Firstly, ​ qualitative official
materials about Prague’s city branding are studied and utilized for understanding the past and
current efforts and how the officials try to position Prague. Secondly, a quantitative
questionnaire is distributed for both target groups, the tourists and the foreign residents, or
so-called “expats”. Both research qualitative and quantitative findings are analysed for gathering
conclusions and for demonstrating the initial hypotheses. It was discovered that … ​ (to be filled in
the end) ​ … . Furthermore, … ​ (to be filled in the end) ​ … . Also, … ​ (to be filled in the end) ​ … . Besides,
… ​ (to be filled in the end) ​ … . Finally, the dissertation findings confirmed/didn’t confirm that
tourists and foreign residents perceive Prague in a different way, (they have different city
branding needs) and they are influenced by city branding differently.
The ​ questionnaire is segmented in four main parts, each category of questions trying to answer
bigger/larger questions/problems. In the first part, the questionnaire is trying to highlight the
initial exposure and stereotypes, by giving an answer for “What was the exposure of tourists and

foreign residents to Prague before stepping in the city?”. The first questions segment is the
equivalent of the first two stages of a sales funnel, the awareness and consideration. In the
second questions category, the focus is on Prague’s uniqueness. To put it short, the second set of
questions are giving the answer for “How do the tourists vs. foreign residents position Prague
and which is the city’s unique selling proposition in their opinion?”. The third segment of
questions is trying to shed light on consumer/user satisfaction, by asking “How satisfied are the
tourists and the foreign residents with the city and how likely are they to recommend Prague for
tourism or relocation?”. The fourth part of the questionnaire is focusing on brand loyalty/fidelity,
giving an answer to “Which are tourists and foreign residents future plans regarding Prague?”.
The third and fourth part are the equivalent of the last stages of a sales funnel, retention and
advocacy.

Keywords: city branding, Prague, foreign residents, tourists, groups differences, perceptions,
identity, unique selling proposition, stereotypes, customer satisfaction, impact.

Table of contents
1.Introduction
1.1.Research questions
2.Theoretical framework
2.1.What is city branding. What it can do for a city.

2.2.How did city branding evolve globally during the last decades.
2.3.Central European destinations – a balance between the East and the West.
2.3.1.Prague – positioning differently as a regional, European and global destination
2.3.2.Competitor neighbor cities that offer similar value/experiences for tourists?
2.4.How to get from a touristic to an expatriate destination.
3.Research methodology
3.1.Qualitative approach
3.2.Quantitative approach
3.2.1.Structure of the poll
3.2.2.How is the data gathered
3.3.Collecting the data
3.3.1.Data from conducting the poll
3.3.2.Official data about tourism and foreign residents in the last decade
3.4.Data analysis
3.5.Limitations
4.Analysis
4.1.Analysing the poll
4.1.1.Poll general/overall results
4.1.2.Poll detailed results
4.1.3.Poll results: Highest/Main differences between tourists vs. foreign residents

4.2.Prague’s official city branding efforts so far
4.2.1.Past city branding efforts/campaigns
4.2.2.Current/Present official visual identity, logo, slogan
4.3.GANTT analysis. Prague as a tourist destination.
4.4.Borrowing ideas/Interchangeability
4.4.1.Elements of Prague’s city branding that other cities could borrow and adapt to their
own city branding
4.4.2.City branding elements that Prague could borrow and adapt from other cities
branding
5.Conclusions
6.Bibliography

1.Introduction
Introducerea ​ va prezenta tema de cercetare și va descrie pe scurt strategia de lucru/de investigare. Permite
situarea problematicii lucrării în interiorul domeniului și trebuie să precizeze aspectele care diferențiază
cercetarea de altele existente, elementele de originalitate și obiectivele cercetării.
O bună introducere trebuie să răspundă la următoarele întrebări – vezi (Chelcea, 2007, 80):
● Care este obiectul de studiu / problema studiată?

● Care este demersul investigativ / de cercetare referitor la obiectul de studiu / problema studiată
întreprins în lucrare? (Ce va arăta / demonstra lucrarea?)
● Care este contextul teoretic al lucrării, iar dacă lucrarea are implicații teoretice, cum vor influența
acestea cunoașterea în domeniu?
● În ce bază au fost derivate concluziile?
La fel ca rezumatul, introducerea ar trebui redactată în mare proporție abia după realizarea cercetării.

This paper is trying to ​ stress the impact Prague’s city branding efforts have on tourism, on
the foreign residents, and eventually on city’s economic development ​ . In the more and more
globalized 21th century society, identity is one of the most valuable assets a city can maintain. A
strong identity creates a strong culture around it, which leads to a higher attractiveness both for
residents and tourists. This thesis is ​ analysing the way Prague is positioning itself on the
global scene/market as a brand, the city’s unique selling proposition and how is differently
seen amongst it’s tourists and expatriates/foreign residents ​ communities.
Following the poll, the paper will be able ​ to establish which are/is the unique selling
proposition/s for Prague city. The poll will show ​ how the expat community vs. tourists in
Prague perceive the city and which was the USP that made them take the decision of moving
to vs. visiting Prague. In relation to the USP, it will become clear which were ​ their exact
expectations, including stereotypes ​ , and in which ways were they enhanced or
destroyed/crumbled. Was it the bohemian atmosphere, was it the architecture, was it the location
right in the heart of Europe, was it the Czech culture, was it the well-known beer or the lack of
inhibition, was it the business environment or something else?
It is definitely true that a ​ unique selling proposition can be different for various types of public.
There can be major influences in the way both expats and tourists perceive Prague, given their
geographical background and the information they were exposed too.
Following the research, it will be possible ​ to come up with a few elements/ideas that were
successfully implemented and helped at raising tourism, increasing the city’s brand, and

eventually, bringing new businesses which have a positive effect on Prague’s economical
development. Some of the dissertation findings are going to be beneficial for companies that deal
with relocating foreigners and to tourism agencies or city council’s tourism planners.
Having the conclusions, it will be possible to ​ create a small paralel regarding proven
ways-to-do/best practices/successful ideas that Prague city is using, and in which ways these
ideas could be implemented in building a stronger brand for another cities, for example
Cluj-Napoca.
1.1.Research questions
The ​ research’s purpose is to answer a few important questions, with the final objective of using
the outcome/answers to better understand how to brand a city differently for tourists, compared
to the foreign residents, based on their specific needs. The research focuses on four main
questions and for each of them there are a few equivalent/detailed questions in the poll.
The first question this paper is trying to answer is connected the reach of the city branding efforts
and the perceived image outside of the country. More exactly, the question is “ ​ What was the
exposure and the brand awareness that tourists and foreign residents had regarding
Prague, before arriving to the city? ​ ”. The segment of questions is composed of 7 open-ended
and closed-ended questions, for both tourists and foreign residents. The 7 questions will try to
find out from which channels did the two groups heard about Prague, will try to bring to light the
expectations the two groups had and in which measure were they met. They will also focus on
the stereotypes the 2 groups were exposed to and to which extent did they prove true or false.
The second question this paper is trying to answer is “ ​ How is Prague seen from the visitors
and the foreign residents points of view and which is the unique selling proposition of
Prague city in their opinion? ​ ”. To be more exact, this part of the poll is trying to understand as
detailed as possible in which way Prague is perceived differently by the tourists and the foreign
residents. Terms such as top of mind, uniqueness, emotion and best brand are stressed here. The
last 3 questions from the set focus on the tourists and foreign residents positioning of Prague in
regard to other cities. Besides, combining the answers from this part with the answers from the

third part of the poll, should be able to give a much clearer view on which can be the top assets
that Prague could focus on strengthening or reinforcing/dusting.
The third question can be summed up to ​ “How satisfied are you with Prague?” ​ . The set of
questions starts with the perception tourists and foreign residents have about Prague and their
suggestions for improving the city. The survey continues with something that is similar to a short
SWOT analysis, with the respondents being asked to enumerate which they believe are Prague’s
greatest strengths and weaknesses. The last questions from the set are meant to be scaling the
respondents’ likelihood to recommend Prague as a tourist or residence destination.
The last question is somehow highlighting the last or current impression the two groups have on
Prague. More exactly, it is trying to answer the question ​ “Which is your future intent
regarding Prague?” ​ . In tourists’ case, the set of open-ended and scale reflecting questions is
trying to find out how willing are they to revisit or even relocate to Prague. As for the foreign
residents, the focus is on their desire to remain in Prague for a longer time.

2.Theoretical framework
In the following pages, a literature review regarding several authors’ ​ definitions of city
branding and place branding is detailed. Also, is described a view at city branding evolution
during the last decades, including the trend/concept of de-marketing. After that, there is a part
concerning ​ the central European destinations ​ , and how they combine both Eastern and
Western characteristics, but also about the fact that they have characteristics that are very
different from other Eastern or Western destinations.
Following that, there is a clear ​ zoom-in of Prague and its main competitors in terms of city
attractiveness and branding, analysing the previous and current city branding efforts that Prague
has undergone in positioning itself not only into the regional and European markets, but also on
the global stage.

The research goes further and looks at ​ Prague’s neighbor similar cities ​ , analysing the ways in
which they can be compared to Prague. The comparison indicators taken into consideration are
related to the quality of life in each city. Besides, a deeper analysis revolves around one
important question, seen from two opposites perspectives. The question asked for the neighbor
cities that have seen an increase in the cost of living is: “Does high quality of life compensate for
the growing cost of living?”, while “Does low cost of living compensate for the low quality of
live?” is asked to the neighbor cities that have a lower cost of living compared to Prague.
This chapter also looks at the characteristics of a city that can transform it ​ from a touristic
destination into a destination that appears appealing to foreign residents ​ , or the so-called
“expats”. There are analysed the motivations that foreigners have when deciding to relocate and
also are the most common factors for choosing a certain location, instead of another one.
Furthermore, it is shown the percentage increase regarding the foreigner residents during the last
years/decade in Prague, through official statistical data.
One of the most ​ important book for this master’s thesis is “Branding Places” written by Philip
Kotler and Irving Rein. To sum it up, the book’s focus is on how different cities around the
world are dealing with bringing foreign residents, tourists and new businesses to the branded
city. As Philip Kotler himself describes, “this book presents a fresh approach — called strategic
place marketing — for the revitalization of towns, cities, regions, and nations. […] Place
marketing succeeds when stakeholders such as citizens, workers, and business firms derive
satisfaction from their community, and when visitors, new businesses, and investors find their
expectations met” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and
Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 320-323). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
The most important chapters in regard to this dissertation are “Chapter 8: Attracting the Tourism
and Hospitality Business Markets” and “Chapter 11: Attracting residents”.
2.1.What is city branding. What it can do for a city.
To be able to discuss about what city branding represents, it is important to first define ​ what a
place is ​ , together with the meaning of place branding. Kotler (2002) views places as “ more than
budgets and businesses”. According to him, the places are composed of “people, cultures,

historical heritage, physical assets, and opportunities”. He is also arguing that nowadays different
places are rated, ranked and evaluated regarding unlimited factors, which include personal or
professional reasons, such as the place to start a business, where to raise a family, the place to
have a meal or go in vacation or where to look for a partner ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places:
Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations
68-70). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
Sometimes referred as place marketing or place imaging, ​ place branding represents “an urban
governance strategy for projecting images and managing perceptions about places” (Eshuis &
Edwards, 2013; Klijn et al., 2012; Peel & Loyd, 2008; Zhang & Zhao, 2009). ( ​ p. 2,
file:///C:/Users/iasmi/Downloads/cities-2014-braun-eshuis-klijnTheEffectivessofPlaceBrandCom
munication-rggateversion.pdf ​ ). As defined by Anholt (2007), place branding is a combination
between creating, managing and maintaining a place’s image, by using strategic marketing and
advertising campaigns. Place branding has a fundamental role in the creation of a positive place
image, image that helps at identifying and distinguishing a place through selecting the most
appropriate brand element mix (Cai, 2002; Acharya & Rahman, 2016) ( ​ Acharya, Alok, &
Rahman, Zillur. (2016). Place branding research: a thematic review and future research agenda.
International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, 1-29 ​ ). Place branding, or place
marketing, how it is sometimes called, has its own challenges. Kotler (2002) explains that
improving the communities and regions capacity to adjust in a rapidly changing marketplace, to
seize the available opportunities and to support their vitality is the main challenge of place
marketing ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 319-320). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ). Also, the
same author believes that cities should compete with each other more and more, so they are able
to achieve the status of a place with great potential in attracting innovation, investment,
globalization, and human resources such as foreign residents and tourists (Kotler, 2002; Klijn,
Eshuis & Braun, 2012; Riza et al.2012) ​ (Klijn, E., Eshuis, J. & Braun, E. (2012). The influence
of stakeholder involvement on the effectiveness of place branding. Public Management Review,
14(4), 499-519.) ​ . Kotler (2002) goes even further and compares places with products, in an
attempt to highlight the importance of designing and marketing places, by contributing with the

idea that “places that fail to market themselves successfully face the risk of economic stagnation
and decline” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 188-189). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
The competition to transform a place into an attractive destination gave birth to the term known
as ​ city branding ​ . So, branding might be viewed as a tool to promote a city´s attractiveness.
(Zhang & Zhao, 2009; Bjorner, 2013). Braun (2012) defines city branding as a type of place
branding despite the fact that it conveys a broader selection of strategy features. For example, it’s
focal points consist also of foreign residents, potential investors or the city’s own citizens.
Therefore, the main objective of city branding is to design a city which would be unique and
distinguishable (Ashworth, 2009; Riza, Doratli & Fasli, 2012). Similar words are used by Klijn
et al. (2012), who believes that the main objective of city branding is to fashion a positive image
of a competitive and different city, even if it is tedious to estimate how efficient city branding
actually is.
According to Kavaratzis (2004) ​ , city branding represents “the means both for achieving
competitive advantage in order to increase inward investment and tourism, and also for achieving
community development, reinforcing local identity and identification of the citizens with their
city and activating all social forces to avoid social exclusion and unrest”. ( ​ p.70
file:///C:/Users/iasmi/Downloads/From_city_marketing_to_city_branding_Tow.pdf ​ ). ​ Hansen
(2010) ​ contributes to this idea by stating that cities seek to distinguish themselves through
branding, so they can be more competitive in attracting human capital such as foreign residents,
tourists and foreign investors. A more community-related perspective comes from Hernandez &
Garcia (2013) ​ , who state that city branding is an instrument for attaining community
development and the residents’ identification with their place of living. ​ Kavaratzis (2008) and
Bjorner (2013) go even further, bringing a tourism-related perspective, stating that city branding
is a process that is connecting marketing efforts with tourism planning.

-theoretical findings about turning a location to a destination

The journey from turning a location into a destination is different for each case/place. Of course,
some locations are rich in history or other assets which can be considered interesting for/by an
external audience.
“Images aren’t easy to develop or change. They require research into how residents and outsiders
currently see the place; they require identifying true and untrue elements, as well as strong and
weak elements” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism
to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 608-610). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
Prague can be considered to be one of the “lucky” ones, as rich history and medieval architecture
represent an important part of the city.
-city branding and tourism promotion
Merrilees et al. (2012, p. 1032) observed that “many cities now understand the value of their
brand and to some extent, how it could be designed and managed.”
Kavaratzis (2008, p. 41): “everything a city consists of, everything that takes place in the city
and is done by the city, communicates messages about the city’s image.”
https://www.atiner.gr/journals/tourism/2014-1-3-4-Fernandez.pdf
Strategy for communication the city brand through three main factors: Kavaratzis (2004, 2008)
developed a place brand communication model that includes three types of place brand
communication: (1) Primary communication, which includes not only the architecture, urban
design, infrastructure, museums and other real place offerings, but also the city’s behavior – for
example, by government agencies and residents (e.g., Braun et al., 2013); (2) secondary
communication, which includes the formal and intended communication through all forms of
advertising, public relations, graphic design, and the use of logos and slogans, which is similar to
promotion in the traditional marketing mix; (3) tertiary communication, which refers to
word-of-mouth reinforced by the media and a wide variety of city users, thus serving as a form
of communication largely beyond the control of place marketers.

-the real cultural identity vs. promotional materials
Designed image (=is transmitted by the subject about itself) ⇔ noise ⇔ effective image (=is the
perception of the receiver about the subject)
→ the 2 are different because of the noise in the middle
→ so in the dissertation I may be able to compare Prague’s branding plan with the poll
responses
2.2.How did city branding evolve globally during the last decades
Examples of campaigns that have set a milestone or a trend or changed the face of city branding
forever or gave a new direction.
“A product’s place of origin can have a positive, neutral, or negative effect on nonresident
buyers” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Location 4523). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“Consumers have preferences for products from places, based on personal experience and
inferences about quality, reliability, and service. Johny Johansson contends that consumers use
the made-in label as a cue to draw inferences about the product’s worth” (Kotler, Philip.
Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations
( ​ Kindle Locations 4527-4529). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ + ​ Johny K. Johansson,
“Determinants and Effects of the Use of ‘Made In’ Labels,” International Marketing Review
(UK) 6, no. 1 (1989), pp. 47-58 ​ ).
“In The Competitive Advantage of Nations, Michael Porter argues that nations succeed in
particular industries because their home environment is the most forward-looking, dynamic and
challenging. Porter found that companies facing tough, effective competition at home are more
likely to be successful abroad. Competitive advantages are generated whenever rivals are
geographically concentrated and are vying for supremacy in innovation, efficiency, and quality.”
( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States,
and Nations (Kindle Location 4578-4582). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ + ​ Michael Porter, The
Competitive Advantage of Nations( New York: The Free Press, 1990), pp. 131-78 ​ ).

-about the trend of anti-marketing/de-marketing
There is a growing trend/tendency of de-marketing, mostly in highly developed countries,
especially used in their political message by extremist politicians.
“Some have launched no growth or “demarketing” campaigns that seek to limit their physical
and population growth. Some places have even created negative images of themselves to
discourage people from settling there ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment,
Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 445-446). Free Press.
Kindle Edition ​ ).
because “to be the most livable city may be an honor but it may also bring waves of immigrants,
traffic congestion, rising costs, and all sorts of other problems” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places:
Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations
1137-1138). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
Such an example is United Kingdom, which used campaigns against a category of foreign
residents that is unwanted there. One important campaign was the one against the Romanians,
which would advertise United Kingdom as an unpleasant country.
-about the politicians who promote their countries as welcoming for foreign residents, even in
2018, when the tendency is the opposite
At the opposite end can be found the Canadian Prime-Minister, who is encouraging foreign
residents to choose his home country. Of course, the countries that use these kind of messages
are the ones that need an influx of immigrants to sustain their growth, in order to avoid
“economic weaknesses, commonly measured by loss of population, high unemployment, and
falling income and investment” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment,
Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 62-63). Free Press. Kindle
Edition ​ ).
2.3.Central European destinations – a balance between the East and the West.

How these destinations combine both the west and east. How they are similar between each
other. But in the same time, how Prague is different in terms of atheism, beer consumption etc.
…a city such as Prague “possess abundant attractions. These places need not invent new
attractions to add place appeal. Their basic problem is maintaining the infrastructure and services
to support the huge numbers of tourists and business visitors who continuously descend on them
to enjoy their treasures” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and
Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 1999-2001). Free Press. Kindle
Edition ​ ).
“To attract tourists, places must respond to the travel basics of cost, convenience, and timeliness.
Tourists, like other consumers, weigh the costs against the benefits of specific destinations— and
investment of time, effort, and resources against a reasonable return in education, experience,
fun, relaxation, and prospective memories” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting
Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 3429-3432).
Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“Tourists, like other consumers, constantly make trade-offs between cost and convenience,
quality and reliability, service and beauty, and so on” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places:
Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations
3441-3442). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
Branding and city competitiveness are two terms that became more popular because of
globalization and the higher and higher mobility ​ (Turok, 2004) ​ .
2.3.1.How Prague is positioning itself differently as a regional, European and global
destination.
To better understand the entire “picture”, it is necessarily to look at the strategic plan/vision
prepared and implemented by the city administration. First, In the late ‘90s, “Prague has
identified its historical background as the main axis for its development”
( ​ file:///C:/Users/iasmi/Downloads/SDP010402f.pdf ,p.410 ​ ) and the strategic plan created then
represented the first step towards what Prague is today. A few important activities and policies

from the 1999 strategic plan include: “preserving and making use of Prague’s uniqueness” by
branding it as a dynamic and attractive city and “preparing the city for the step into the 21st
century and finding its place in the ‘market of European metropolises’ ”, through reviving and
developing relations with other cities and through coordinating “development goals with
important central European cities”. ( ​ file:///C:/Users/iasmi/Downloads/SDP010402f.pdf , p.
410-411 ​ ). Secondly, …………………… in 2008 strategic plan for Prague
( ​ http://www.iprpraha.cz/uploads/assets/soubory/data/strategicky_plan/angl2008_web.pdf ​ , p. ​ ).
Thirdly, …….. in 2012 Prague’s strategic plan
( ​ http://archive.icann.org/en/meetings/prague2012/node/31751.html ​ , p. ​ ).
Prague: central by geographical location, eastern by history – iron curtain
ex: for us it’s a central european historical capital city not to miss on, to western european
countries it’s a place for fun that is cheap or a place to relocate a business to reduce costs, for
other central european capitals it’s a weekend getaway or a possible business partner, for asia it’s
a city with many jobs or an architectural wonder etc.
http://www.brandhorizons.com/papers/Dinnie_Czech_Slovak_Poland_HungaryNB.pdf
http://www.mmr.cz/en/Regionalni-politika-a-cestovni-ruch/Cestovni-ruch
-city break destination or longer vacation? (see tourism reports)
Saying that Prague is in the heart of Europe can be confusing, because Bruxelles is saying about
itself to be the heart of Europe, because it is actually the main headquarters for European
Parliament and other European institutions.
Prague “is one of the metropolitan cities of Central Eastern Europe, which, after its transition
into the new European environment, is seeking a new identity and mechanism to adapt to the
standards of the Western European metropolitan
areas”( ​ file:///C:/Users/iasmi/Downloads/SDP010402f.pdf , p. 400 ​ ).
“Great character in design and history may support tourism and visitors but may lose other vital
or new businesses unconcerned with nostalgia and aesthetics” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places:

Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations
2254-2255). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
Studies conducted by Matlovičová and Kormaníková (2014) highlight the fact that Prague
benefits of a rich architecture, for which reason it is considered attractive by many groups, such
as tourists, workers, entrepreneurs and students ( ​ Matlovičová K., Kormaníková J. (2014): City
Brand-Image Associations Detection. Case Study of Prague. SGEM 2014, Psychology &
Psychiatry, Sociology & Healthcare, Education, Conference Proceedings, Volume II., Sociology
and Healthcare, Albena, Bulgaria ​ ).
2.3.2.Which are the competitor near cities that offer similar value/experiences for tourists?
but “improving the image is not enough to ensure a place’s prosperity. The place needs special
features to satisfy the residents and attract outsiders” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places:
Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations
612-613). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“Clearly, neither image nor attractions can provide the whole answer to a place’s development.
They cannot compensate or cover up for a place’s deficiencies. The real fundamentals have to do
with infrastructure. A place has to work: Its citizens and visitors must have good transportation,
not gridlocks” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 644-646). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
due to the difference in key factors taken into consideration. As Kotler (2002) argues, for
vacation sites, “climate, recreation, attractions and cost” are the main factors, while for places to
live, “job opportunities, educational system, transportation, cost of living and quality of life” are
the most important ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and
Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 837-839). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
must determine “what is the place’s “livability” when it comes to attracting new residents” and
“what is the place’s “visitability” when it comes to attracting tourists” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing

Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle
Locations 1353-1354). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
to refer to city competitiveness. A clear definition is that it consists of three main dimensions:
social, economic and environmental ​ (Bailey, Docherty & Turok, 2002) ​ . One more dimension is
added by ​ Rogerson (1999) ​ , who believes that quality of life influences city competitiveness in
the same manner as the previous three dimensions.
It is necessarily for “a place to identify its main competitors in each specific competitive arena”
( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States,
and Nations (Kindle Locations 1359-1360). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“strengths and weaknesses are internal to the place, opportunities and threats are external”
( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States,
and Nations (Kindle Location 1428). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“An ideal place is one that is high in major opportunities and low in major threats. A speculative
place is high in both major opportunities and threats. A mature place is low in major
opportunities and threats. Finally, a troubled place is low in opportunities and high in threats”
( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States,
and Nations (Kindle Locations 1487-1490). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“A place can possess a fine infrastructure and many attractions and vet be unsuccessful because
of the way visitors perceive its people. The hospitality of a place’s residents can affect the
place’s attractiveness in a number of ways” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting
Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 2217-2218).
Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“Places also must understand their current and prospective competitors. They must see
themselves as competing with specific places that are trying to attract many of the same tourists,
business firms, and investors. Because place competition has been fundamentally altered by the
inescapable forces of technology and globalism, place rivalry extends far beyond city and
suburbs, centers within a region, or even between regions” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places:

Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations
5248-5251). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).

ex: Vienna, Berlin, Nuremberg, Wroclaw, Munchen, Bratislava
https://www.numbeo.com/quality-of-life/in/Prague
Cost of living, quality of life (index, numbeo). Does high quality of life compensate for the
growing cost of living? ​ Vs. Does low cost of living compensate for the low quality of live? ,
depending on the background people are coming from
-how many UNESCO heritage destinations has Prague compared to its neighbors
In conclusion, the competitor cities of Prague can differ for each individual case, based on what
each specific group of tourist is looking for.
2.4.How to get from a touristic to an expatriate destination. ​ Examples.
-popular European startup hubs
The journey from a tourism-friendly destination to an expatriate-friendly destination can be long
and complex, as ​ the decision of choosing a new residence city takes into consideration more
factors than the decision to visit a certain city for a short vacation ​ . There are more possible
target markets, such as businesses and investors, but this master thesis is only focusing on two of
the groups: first, the visitors and secondly, the foreign residents.
City attractivity …………………
A pragmatic ​ approach about/to cities potential ​ , which can very well keep its validity for the
topic of transforming into an expatriate destination, comes from Kotler (2002), who argues that
“a place’s potential depends not so much on a place’s location, climate, and natural resources as
it does on its human will, skill, energy, values, and organization”. ​ [(Kotler, Philip. Marketing

Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle
Locations 344-345). Free Press. Kindle Edition).]
Most of the time, ​ places plan to attract different buyer categories in the same time ​ . “When a
place wants to attract a buyer category such as tourists the place must carefully define this
category in order to achieve its goals” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment,
Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 378-379). Free Press.
Kindle Edition ​ ).
“When cities undertake to attract specific residents or workers, they must develop appropriate
incentives. Young families, for example, place emphasis on schools and on public safety as
major factors in choosing a place to settle in” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting
Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 447-449).
Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“Yet as an industry, [tourism] it is subject to cycles, fashions, and intense competition” ( ​ Kotler,
Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and
Nations (Kindle Location 3139). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
Before discussing both the main benefits and disadvantages that foreign residents can bring to a
city, it is important ​ to highlight the main impact tourism has ​ for a city.
“Tourism’s primary benefit is jobs through hotels, restaurants, retail establishments, and
transportation. The second benefit of tourism is its multiplier effect as direct and indirect tourist
expenditure is recycled through the local economy. Tourism’s third benefit stems from state and
local tax revenues that tourists provide. Tourism helps a place shift its tax burden to
nonresidents” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 3180-3185). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
One of the “strategies that places use to improve their competitive positions” is “expanding the
population or changing the mix of residents” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting

Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 3753-3756).
Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
Different researchers/authors believe that ​ different reasons are the main decision making
factors when it comes to migration ​ . For example, Philip Kotler believes that ……………….. .
Other authors, such as ​ Chen and Rosenthal (2008) (Chen, Y. & Rosenthal, S. (2008). Local
amenities and life-cycle migration: Do people move for jobs or fun?. Journal of Urban
Economics, 64(3), 519–537.) ​ , have concluded that depending on the category a group belongs to,
the reasons for migrating are different, with highly skilled individuals preferring business
oriented locations, while retired people are looking for cities that can offer a large variety of
consumer amenities.
“Places seek to attract certain groups, and by the same token, discourage other groups. The
targeted groups typically include professionals, investors, the wealthy, young families, retirees,
and those with specific skills such as physicians. At the same time, they may try to discourage
low-income families, the homeless, criminal types, and illegal immigrants” ( ​ Kotler, Philip.
Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations
(Kindle Locations 4696-4698). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“A World Problem: Competing for Talent and Identity: No nation or group of nations without a
substantial population can hope for lasting global influence.” 2 At the same time, several nations
are resisting adding to their population growth through immigration” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing
Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle
Locations 4730-4738). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ + ​ Allen L. Otten, “Birth Dearth … Mr.
Wattenberg’s Crystal Ball,” Wall Street Journal, June 18, 1987, p. 17. Also, Ben J. Wattenberg,
The Birth Dearth( New York: Pharos Books, 1987) ​ ).
“states and localities are proactively competing for residents who meet certain characteristics and
profiles” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 4806-4807). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).

“Places seeking to attract or retain people by skills, income, or other characteristics must also
accommodate the life-style needs of these population segments”. ​ [(Kotler, Philip. Marketing
Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle
Locations 4968-4969). Free Press. Kindle Edition).]
In their situation, among the most important requirements can be mentioned quality and
affordable real estate, good public transportation and infrastructure, richness in cultural events,
performant health system, rich nightlife any others.
“human capital has become an increasingly important determinant of a place’s economic
well-being” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 4810-4811). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“Places ultimately thrive or languish on the basis of what they do to create skilled, motivated,
and satisfied citizens— workers, teachers, inventors, entrepreneurs, managers. Human capital is
emerging as the most vital resource places possess or can develop in place competition” ( ​ Kotler,
Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and
Nations (Kindle Locations 5263-5265). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“With the nation’s overall population growth slowing and major metro center growth slowing as
well, growth occurs from (1) natural increases: birth less death rates; (2) largely slowed
migration from nonmetro areas; (3) migration from other metropolitan areas; and (4) migration
from abroad” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 4860-4862). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
Among the ​ risks of population growth through aggressive attraction ​ of new foreign
residents,
“In some cases, population growth failed to produce presumed benefits of more jobs, higher
incomes, and lower taxes. On the contrary, the dynamics of growth produced rising taxes for
infrastructure and schools, traffic congestion, and pollution that many sense detracts from quality

of life” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities,
States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 4820-4822). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
There is an increase in individuals mobility ​ , especially among the millennials. And the reasons
for migration are not anymore just economic, but an increase in other reasons has arise,
especially with the higher ease of mobility and the work environment changes brought by the
digital era. Also, Kotler (2002) believes that this increased population mobility is very important
for attracting people, as in the digital era the place someone chooses to call home is not defined
by their workplace, while in the past the opposite variant was true. ​ [“The increased mobility of
the population is a major factor in the business of people attraction. In the information age,
people are able to define where they live to work rather than where they work to live” (Kotler,
Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and
Nations (Kindle Locations 4943-4944). Free Press. Kindle Edition).]
It is not only an increase in individuals mobility, but also of ​ individual lifestyles ​ , which is
actually made easier by mobility. Kotler (2002) argued that attracting and retaining a more and
more mobile population comes with new challenges, stating that places have to understand how
to promote themselves for different individual lifestyles. ​ [“To attract and retain a mobile
population, places must learn to market to various individual life-styles” (Kotler, Philip.
Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations
(Kindle Locations 4957-4958). Free Press. Kindle Edition).]
For example, a growing trend of an individual lifestyle are the so-called digital nomads ​ , who are
mostly young professionals that are doing jobs which allow them to be location independent. For
such a lifestyle, Prague could be an attractive destination for certain reasons, which might
include a lower cost of living or a beautiful landscape. The question here is weather Prague is
more competitive than other similar destinations, given the large mosaic of cities that digital
nomads have the freedom of choosing from.
Another segment to take into account are the ​ Erasmus students ​ . Most of the time, they have the
opportunity of choosing from different destinations. If they are choosing Prague for their
Erasmus exchange, some of the main reasons can include faculty curriculum, good reputation of

the university, or nightlife. It is known that Erasmus students enter the country as short-term
foreign residents, but a small amount of them can become potential long-term foreign residents.
International students are also a category that can be associated with the profile of the Erasmus
students.
Retirees ​ are yet another segment of people who might be willing to relocate. Most of the time
they are pensiones from richer European countries who, encouraged by the open borders, lower
cost of living and more affordable healthcare prefer to relocate to countries such as Czech
Republic or to Southern European countries, if they are in search of a friendlier weather.
One more segment are ​ the ones who came to visit Prague but fell in love with the city and
decided to relocate and become foreign residents. For them, the transition from tourist to foreign
resident was influenced almost entirely by the factors that made fall in love with the city.
Besides the common categories of short and long term expatriates mentioned earlier and besides
the economic migrants, ​ self initiated expatriates categories were investigated by Selmer and
Lauring (2012) ​ ( ​ Selmer, J. & Lauring, J. (2012). Reasons to expatriate and work outcomes of
self-initiated expatriates. Personnel Review, 41(5), 665-684. ​ ). They split the self-initiated
expatriates into four big categories: the refugee, the mercenary, the explorer and the architect.
( ​ http://pure.au.dk/portal/files/56668232/Master_Thesis.pdf ​ ) The refugee self-initiated expatriate
is motivated to leave its home country because of a strong desire to escape the current situation
or because of boredom. This type of expatriate is willing to search for opportunities and
undertake a new career in the host country. The second type of self-initiated expatriate, more
exactly the mercenary, is motivated by financial benefits. They are looking at the opportunity of
saving a lot of money in relatively short time and not necessarily planning to settle in the new
location for a very long time. Another category of self-initiated expatriate is the explorer, who is
looking for new adventures, to discover new cultures, to travel as much as possible and to grow
personally, through confronting challenges that relocation brings. The last category is the
architect self-initiated expatriate, whose main motivation for relocating is career. The architect
believes that international work experience enhances their resume and leads to faster promotion.

Definitely, the decision making processes of the digital nomads, the Erasmus students, the
retirees, the tourists who fell in love with the city and other categories of foreign residents, such
as the four self-initiated expatriates, are all unique and complex.
An Internations study
( ​ https://www.internations.org/expat-insider/2017/the-best-and-worst-cities-for-expats-39279
) from 2017 which examines ​ the best and worst cities for expats from all over the globe, places
Prague in the second position, due to its excellent public transportation system, diverse local
leisure options, personal safety, affordability of healthcare and lower cost of living. The negative
aspects which placed Prague on the second position are related mainly to the bad ratings in the
Getting Settled Index, where the city ranks very low for friendliness of the local population,
attitude towards foreign residents and local language barrier.
Also, data published by the Czech Statistical Office
( ​ https://www.czso.cz/documents/11292/44321488/c01R02_201709.pdf/d5111138-1697-4739-8e
61-e24b424d6158?version=1.0 ​ ) is showing ​ an increase in foreign residents ​ , year over year. In
2017, foreigners made about 5% of the country’s population, with about half a million foreign
residents. Besides, data
( ​ http://www.praguemorning.cz/there-are-500000-foreigners-working-in-the-czech-republic-f6qO
DEzK3C ​ ) about registered foreign residents states that 14% of Prague city’s population is
composed of foreign residents, making it the highest concentration in Czech Republic’s cities. A
strong motivation for this is the economic boom that Prague experiences, which is influenced
mostly by a move towards a more business-friendly and attractive environment. A study
( ​ http://www.doingbusiness.org/reports/global-reports/~/media/WBG/DoingBusiness/documents/
profiles/country/CZE.pdf , p.52 & p.4 ​ ) conducted by the World Bank Group, which is comparing
business regulation for domestic firms in 190 economies, positions the country in the top for
trading across borders and ranks it on the 30th place for ease of doing business, globally.
In conclusion, the journey from a tourist to an expatriate destination is different for every city,
mostly depending on the categories of foreign residents which is trying to attract.

3.Research methodology
…………………………………………
The poll’s questions are also helping Prague to fulfill the need to “identify which of its
characteristics represent a major strength, minor strength, neutral factor, minor weakness, or
major weakness in terms of what specific place buyers are seeking” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing
Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle
Locations 1382-1384). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
3.1.Quantitative approach
definition, why I chose it for the thesis
“Targeting specific audience groups is required to avoid the problem of unstable or inconsistent
images” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to
Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Location 2369). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
3.1.1.Structure of the poll
*to argument why I chose every single question (what I think is relevant, what I plan to get from
it, how is it helping/enriching the research)
…and how tourists and foreign residents make their choice and which could be some of the
reasons for choosing Prague, from a literature/already researched/established perspective.
“A stereotype suggests a widely held image that is highly distorted and simplistic and that carries
a favorable or unfavorable attitude toward the place. An image, on the other hand, is a more
personal perception of a place that can vary from person to person” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing
Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle
Locations 2325-2327). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).

which data I am gathering, list of questions, questions with fixed answer vs. 1 to 5 answer,
structuring the questions into 6 main areas/perspectives
file:///C:/Users/iasmi/Downloads/CityBrand-ImageAssociationsDetection.CaseStudyofPrague20
14.pdf
3.1.2.How is the data gathered
online poll for foreign residents, physical poll for tourists, how I am choosing the people to be a
balance between the regions they come from, how many polls are in total, how many questions
in the polls
3.2.Collecting the data
………………use of typeform for online polls and hard paper for offline polls…………
3.2.1.Data from conducting the poll
how i am going to translate it into valuable results
3.2.2.Official data about tourism and foreign residents (increase) in the last decade/years
………………………………………………. ​ -tourism figures from 2017:
https://prague.tv/en/s72/Directory/c217-Sightseeing-Attractions/n12722-Prague-Castle-tops-list-
of-tourist-attractions
3.3.Tools used for analysing the data
………………software called ……..for polls………………………………….
3.4.Limitations
given by this research methodology, ex. It is just numbers, maybe i cannot see the wide picture
of it, maybe i am missing on some info

4.Analysis
……………………….
4.1.Analysing the poll
………………………….
4.1.1.Poll general/overall results
In which way is Prague seen as a brand, through the eyes of its tourists vs. foreign inhabitants.
4.1.2.Poll detailed results
Prague’s strengths and weaknesses detailed, from all (6) perspectives
“Quality services are noted not only by the residents and business firms but also by those
considering moving to, visiting, or investing in a place” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places:
Attracting Investment, Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations
5278-5279). Free Press. Kindle Edition ​ ).
“Beyond infrastructure, success turns increasingly on the service quality provided by industry
and governments alike” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment, Industry, and
Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Locations 5280-5281). Free Press. Kindle
Edition ​ ).
because “On a day-to-day basis, people judge a place not as much by its grand vision as they do
by the quality of its everyday services” ( ​ Kotler, Philip. Marketing Places: Attracting Investment,
Industry, and Tourism to Cities, States, and Nations (Kindle Location 5276). Free Press. Kindle
Edition ​ ).

4.1.3.Poll results: Highest/Main differences between tourists vs. foreign residents

Does Prague have a single most important unique selling proposition? Is the USP different/the
same for its tourists vs. foreign residents?
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272020088_CITY_BRAND-IMAGE_ASSOCIATION
S_DETECTION_CASE_STUDY_OF_PRAGUE
file:///C:/Users/iasmi/Downloads/CityBrand-ImageAssociationsDetection.CaseStudyofPrague20
14.pdf
4.2.Prague’s official city branding efforts so far
…………………………………… ​ -touristic marketing plan for CZ:
http://www.czechtourism.com/Czechtourism/files/f6/f653c7cf-a476-471f-bbd4-6c769299fa5b.pd
f
-unified identity:
http://www.pragueconvention.cz/news/prague-has-a-unified-destination-branding/
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10941665.2017.1410195?journalCode=rapt20

The present city branding efforts can sometimes be found together with the old ones. While the
past efforts tried to highlight the image of multiculturalism and architecture for Prague, the new
visual identity is focusing on positive emotions.
4.2.1.Past city branding efforts. Logo and slogan.
Prague’s previous city logo ( ​ https://inkbotdesign.com/top-10-city-logos/ ​ ) is composed of four
name variations: Praha, Prague, Praga and Prag. The logo stands out because of its focus on the
multilingual characteristic, depicting the different ways in which foreigners address the city in
their own languages. The logo has a square shape, with the suffixes being differentiated by
space. It speaks to the tourists – who find it more like “at home”, it speaks to the foreign residents
– who feel a sense of acceptance of multiculturalism and multilingualism, and to foreign

businesses and investors, a sight of richness in diversity. The colors used are red and yellow, the
official Prague city’s colors. As a conclusion, Prague brands itself as a multicultural city.
Prague’s long-known, old slogan was “The city of a Hundred Spires” and it came from Josef
Hormayer, a Czech writer from the 19th century. The message transmitted is of a big city which
differentiates itself through architecture.
The designated/designed image, or the way Prague wants to be seen was as a multicultural city,
through its logo and as an architectural jewel, through its slogan.
4.2.2.Current official visual identity. Logo and slogan.
Prague’s current visual identity ( ​ http://www.dynamodesign.cz/cs/prague-city-tourism ​ ) consists
of a logo and a slogan, quite different compared to its previous visual identity.
The statement about Prague being “The city of 100 spires” is still valid today, but the current
slogan branding effort is focusing on twelve different interjections which express positive
emotions, such as wonder/amazement, excitement and pleasure. “Yeah”, “Shhh”, “Yum”,
“Cheers”, “Wow”, “Ohhlala”, “Whoa”, “Oooh”, “Gosh”, “Yippee”, “Mmm”, “Yay” are all
sounds that could be heard while having a walk in the touristic part of Prague. The slogan is truly
international because of the use of universally valid interjections.
The current logo gives a dynamic feel and its design is similar to Prague’s hills. The logo is
actually 12 logos, which have the same design, with only the interjection changing. The colors
used this time are not so strong, probably because the emotions illustrated are “screaming” loud
enough in order to be seen by the passers-by.
The effective image, or the way people see it, depends on more elements and its detailed in the
results from the poll, where tourists and foreign residents view of Prague are analysed.
The main promoting channel consists of offline efforts. Print is highly visible, with the new logo
being present together with the old logo in public spaces such as bus stations, mostly in the

highly touristic historical center. Also, the visual elements are present at touristic info points, in
maps and guides translated into up to 16 languages.
The values Prague is trying to transmit are related to openness towards foreigners – due to an
internationally universal visual identity and positive emotions – through the slogan text.

4.3.GANTT analysis. Prague as a tourist vs. expat destination.
***maybe use PEST or PESTEL analysis?
Add the gantt infographic here
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0261517716301832
WHO IS PRAGUE? PRAGUE’S DIFFERENT UNIQUE PERSONAS BOTH FOR TOURISTS
AND FOREIGN RESIDENTS
-city brand hexagon
4.4.Borrowing ideas/Interchangeability
………………………………….
4.4.1.Elements of Prague’s city branding that other cities could borrow and adapt to their
own city branding
ex: becoming a smart city, more bike friendly etc.
-becoming a smart city (ex: banci smart in oras, etc.) started transition to become a smart city
http://www.smart-cities.eu/?cid=7&ver=4
https://www.smartprague.eu/projects#attractive-tourism
https://www.smartprague.eu/?gclid=Cj0KCQiA2NXTBRDoARIsAJRIvLww0VvHEOAjInwZ_
gbwlPiSYx7d3VjVVIysBDpcnKLruIalJlu2VK4aApMBEALw_wcB

Plan till 2030: ​ https://www.smartprague.eu/about-smart-prague/attractive-tourism
https://www.smartprague.eu/projects#attractive-tourism

Smart cities are boring. Give us responsive cities.

https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en/policies/smart-cities
http://internetofthingsagenda.techtarget.com/definition/smart-city
https://www.smartprague.eu/projects#attractive-tourism
4.4.2.City branding elements that Prague could borrow and adapt from other cities
branding
ex: changing the behavior towards tourists and foreign residents, drug problem, xenophobic hate
groups etc.
+best practices from other cities; i will check the weak points of prague and come up with other
cities examples of best/good practices for those weak points

5.Conclusions
about the impact of Prague’s city branding on tourists and foreign residents, with numbers
https://prague.tv/en/s72/Directory/c217-Sightseeing-Attractions/n12722-Prague-Castle-tops-list-
of-tourist-attractions
http://www.praguemorning.cz/there-are-500000-foreigners-working-in-the-czech-republic-f6qO
DEzK3C

6.Bibliography
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2.Dinnie, K. (2011) City Branding: Theory and Cases

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3.Dinnie, K., (2015, 2nd edition) Nation Branding – Concepts, Issues, Practice

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4.Simon Anholt, (2009) Places: Identity, Image and Reputation

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5.Simon Anholt (2007) Competitive Identity: The New Brand Management for Nations, Cities
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6.Ari-Veikko Anttiroiko, (2014) The Political Economy of City Branding

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7.Melissa Aronczyk, (2013) Branding the Nation: The Global Business of National Identity

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8.Nigel Morgan, Annette Pritchard, Roger Pride, (2011) Destination Brands: Managing Place
Reputation

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9.Mihalis Kavaratzi, (2014) Rethinking Place Branding: Comprehensive Brand Development for
Cities and Regions
https://www.amazon.com/Rethinking-Place-Branding-ComprehensiveDevelopment/dp/3319124
234/ref=as_li_ss_tl?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1446464749&sr=11&keywords=rethinking+place+b
randing&linkCode=sl1&tag=placbranobse20&linkId=93174d87ad4f61e474f3e42e0bb62277

10.Govers, R., Go, F., (2009) Place Branding: Glocal, Virtual and Physical Identities,
Constructed, Imagined and Experienced

=placbranobse-20&linkId=SLNH342TJ5AG6U75

11.Ashworth, G.J. (2009) The Instruments of Place Branding: How Is It Done? European
Spatial Research and Policy
http://esrap.geo.uni.lodz.pl/uploads/publications/articles/v16n1/Gregory%20J.%20ASHWORTH
.pdf

12.Kavaratzis, M. (2005) Branding the City through Culture and Entertainement
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.583.4167&rep=rep1&type=pdf

-from an economical perspective, how developed do you think Prague is:
http://www.efos.unios.hr/repec/osi/journl/PDF/InterdisciplinaryManagementResearchVI/IMR6a
13.pdf
http://www.economics-sociology.eu/files/ES_Vol8_1_Herget.pdf
-from an entertainment/nightlife perspective, how rich do you think Prague is:
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.583.4167&rep=rep1&type=pdf
-from an infrastructural perspective, how developed/user-friendly do you think Prague is: Ex:
public transportation, airport, highways, bike friendly
http://eu-smartcities.eu/conversation/eleven-eu-cities-join-eliptic-project
https://www.mercer.com/newsroom/2017-quality-of-living-survey.html#personal-safety
https://www.mercer.com/search.html?q=prague
https://www.mercer.ca/en/newsroom/cost-of-living-2017.html
-from a climate perspective, how friendly do you think Prague is: Ex: not extreme weather
http://eu-smartcities.eu/conversation/mayors-adapt-twins-22-cities-urban-adaptation-climate-cha
nge
-from a political perspective, how much do you think the presidential election results from
January 2018 are going to influence tourism and the expat community in Prague:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/nations-brands-why-justin-trudeau-bigger-than-kim-kardashian-
sable/?trackingId=FShEVNyFHDfDeRBSZGEPBg%3D%3D
-from a human perspective, how friendly/helpful/sociable do you find Praguers to be:
=> each of these factors/topics have a higher or lower influence on the way Prague it’s perceived
by its tourists vs. expats.

-de consultat:
http://tbs.ubbcluj.ro/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/ghid-licenta-disertatie-2012-2013.pdf
http://fspac.ubbcluj.ro/jurnalism/ghid-pentru-pregatirea-lucrarii-de-licenta-si-disertatie/

-de cautat mai multe pe:
https://www.researchgate.net/

-exemple de bune practici pt masters thesis:
-de la aalborg, danemarca:
http://projekter.aau.dk/projekter/files/216692758/Master_s_thesis_Birgitte_Wraae.pdf

-pentru prezentarea din iulie:
Mi-am propus…(maybe use a smart objective: to show the way in which city branding influences
tourism and foreigners relocation to Prague city)
Am realizat… (I succeeded to come to conclusions after conducting a research)
cu ajutorul…(with the help of quantitative research, more specifically online and offline polls
conducted for tourists vs. foreign residents from Prague)

https://www.google.cz/search?q=anna+raubo+city+branding&oq=anna+raubo+city+branding&a
qs=chrome..69i57j69i60.4335j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

https://www.google.cz/search?q=IMPACT+OF+CITY+BRANDING+ON+TOURISM&oq=IMPAC
T+OF+CITY+BRANDING+ON+TOURISM+&aqs=chrome..69i57.5414j0j1&sourceid=chrome&ie
=UTF-8

-what is the story Prague is telling?
-people buy the why: ​ https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action
(to check the book maybe)

-Anholt brand index – to check

+the 4 marketing stages: attract – convert – close – delight

https://www.surveymonkey.com/

*Detailed, well structured resource: ​ https://measuringu.com/branding-survey/

*4 main questions that the paper is trying to answer:
1. “What was the exposure of tourists and foreign residents to Prague before stepping in the
city?”
2.“How is Prague seen by the tourists vs. foreign residents?”
3. “Which is the USP (unique selling proposition) of Prague city?”
4. “Which is the impact of city branding on tourists vs. foreign residents?”

The poll is composed of open-ended, closed-ended and scale questions split in 6 categories:
1.Screening questions for building up the demographic profile ​ (closed-ended and open-ended
questions; 5 questions for tourists & 4 questions for foreign residents) ​ :
a.Are you a tourist or an expat/foreign resident in Prague?
b1.only for tourists: What is your reason for visiting Prague?
b2.only for foreign residents: What is your reason for moving to Prague?
c.only ​ for tourists: Are you visiting Prague as part of a larger tour or your trip includes only
Prague?
d.What is your country of origin?
e.What is your age?
2.City brand awareness/exposure before coming to Prague (open-ended and closed-ended
questions; 7 questions for tourists & 7 questions for foreign residents) ​ :
a.From which channels have you heard about Prague in your country, before coming here? (e.g.
family, friends, social media, promotional videos etc.)
b.What were your expectations before coming to Prague?
c.Were your expectations met or not?
d.What were the stereotypes about Prague that you were exposed to before coming here?
e.Which of the stereotypes proved to be right?
f.Which of the stereotypes proved to be wrong?
3.City brand individual positioning/affinity ​ (open-ended questions; 7 questions for tourists & 7
questions for foreign residents) ​ :
a.When you think of Prague, what comes first to your mind?

b.What makes Prague unique?
c.How does Prague make you feel?
d. ​ Which do you think is the most well known brand from Prague?
e.Would you define Prague as more Eastern or Western European?
f.Which city is Prague reminding you or making you think of?
g.Which city from neighboring countries would you visit instead of Prague?
4.Product satisfaction ​ (scale and open-ended questions; 4 questions for tourists & 4 questions
for foreign residents) ​ :
a.How has your perception about Prague changed since you arrived here, compared to the
perception you had before?
b.Which are Prague’s greatest weaknesses, in your opinion?
c.Which are Prague’s greatest strengths, in your opinion?
d. ​ What suggestions, if any, do you have for improving the city of Prague?
5.Likelihood to recommend Prague ​ (scale questions; 1 question for tourists & 2 questions for
foreign residents) ​ :
a.How likely are you to recommend your friends to visit Prague? (to rate from 1 to 5)
b.only for expats: How likely are you to recommend your friends to relocate to Prague? (to rate
from 1 to 5)
6.Future intent ​ (open-ended and scale reflecting questions; 3 question for tourists & 2
questions for foreign residents) ​ :
a.1.only for tourists: How likely are you to visit Prague again? (to rate from 1 to 5)
a.2.only for residents: How likely are you to remain in Prague at least for the following 2 years?
(to rate from 1 to 5)
b.1.only for tourists: Why would you like to visit Prague again?
b.2.only for foreign residents: Why would you like to remain in Prague? (expecting to later split
the answers into: personal, professional and city-related answers)
c.only for tourists: How likely are you to relocate to Prague (for at least 1 year)?

*notes from branding classes:

Designed image (=is transmitted by the subject about itself) ⇔ noise ⇔ effective image (=is the
perception of the receiver about the subject)
→ the 2 are different because of the noise in the middle
→ so in the dissertation I may be able to compare Prague’s branding plan with the poll
responses

→ to write about today’s Prague brand image: to cover all visual elements and channels (e.g.
logo, colors, visual style, tone, customer service, environmental planning etc.)

The image of Prague is created by:
→ development → spontaneously developed: city branding
→ time/history → previous or factual image: the city of 1000 spires; rich in medieval
architecture
→ time/history → future/wish image: smart city

The process of branding → Elements of branding:
→ Storytelling: is easier for cities ⇒ does Prague have a strong story to tell? One that creates
attachment?
→ Positioning: find the element of uniqueness
→ Design: all the visual elements + senzorial design (e.g. the smell of Prague, the sounds of
Prague)
→ Price: positioning through the price/cost of living/cost of visiting
→ PR: The inner groups are the main target => because they will confirm the image (=> maybe
increasing the feeling of belonging too?)

Why do we need brands?
-they raise the value of the product (people pay more for a brand)
-they guarantee standard quality: e.g. Prague didn’t change (I suppose it refers to the iconic
architecture)
-they consolidate the reputation

Brand = identity; clarity, security, status, belonging, consistency

*try to find out/calculate which is the brand value of Prague (e.g. the brand value of Coca-Cola
is more than 90%)

Brandul are rol: intern (focalizant, stabilizator) si extern (continuitate, claritate, coerenta) → I
believe it applies to city branding too, not only to companies

Levels of brand awareness:
-top of mind: the most precious; the first brand popping up in the mind
-spontaneous awareness: the consumer is able to list/mention a specific brand
-supported awareness: the consumer recognizes the brand from a multitude of brands

-eliminative awareness: the consumer doesn’t know the brand
e.g.: Croatia is one of the best well-branded countries in Europe

→ I should write smth about word of mouth (& recommendations) too

Brands of cult: connection with fans & a commitment to promote for free the values of the
brand among their social network ⇒ maybe I can say about the Prague expats who share on
facebook

“Made in … ” → beer brands are highlighting their national origins ⇒ it is like a quality
certificate

Nation branding: is in charge of consistency and coherence

→ tourists are easier (than investors) to be influenced, when it comes to city branding
attraction

Brand evaluation reports/methods:
1.Country brand index (CBI):
https://www.futurebrand.com/uploads/CBI2014-5.pdf
https://www.futurebrand.com/country-brand-index
2.Nation brand index (GfK) → I need to find the original PDF that has all the countries listed
there:
http://www.gfk.com/fileadmin/user_upload/2017-11-16_Anholt-GfK_NBI_2017_press_release
_global_vfinal.pdf
http://www.gfk.com/insights/press-release/germany-reclaims-top-nation-brand-ranking-with-u
sa-dropping-to-sixth-place/
3.Eurostat:
-resource:
http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/sources/docgener/studies/pdf/urban/survey2015_en.pdf

-to get inspiration: ​ http://interbrand.com/

-branding is more than segmentation, it is about preferences

-someone’s attitude toward a city brand is designed/influenced/given by: education; the
community you live in; your developed preferences

“Chameleon identity” => targeting different elements of the branded city (, depending on the
targeted public)

*Meaning of the colors used in the visual branding elements:
green=sensitivity to environmental problems
red=…………..

-never use politicians in branding, as some people will like the politicians and some won’t

City branding process:
1.Brief overlook:
-1st thing that pops up in your mind when you think about Prague
-what does the target group know about Prague? (e.g. use a focus group or a press analysis)
-Y and Z generations are getting informed from Google & Wikipedia
2.Examining the market:
-evaluating the strengths and weaknesses
-evaluating the competition
-developing a unique position
UAP=unique advertising position
UEP=unique emotional position
3.Principles of branding:
-ultimate goal=make it unique+to remember
-the phases of branding (check Olins)
-the elements of branding (check Healey): positioning, storytelling, design, price, PR
4.The results so far:
-is there credibility through interviews?
-is there an emotion involved?
-does it have a PR movie?
-is Prague promoted together with Czech Republic, or as part of Bohemia?
[Brand pillars of Prague:
-economy? PROBABLY YES
-culture? YES
-education? NOT SO SURE
-sport? YES
-multiculturalism? MAYBE
-is there HoReCa at a high level? YES]
5.Conclusions:
-give me smth unique!
-let the local/regional(/national) brands elevate the brand of the city: e.g.Pilsner, Skoda, etc.

-find a symbol or create one (the city of 1000 spires?)
-start/join a rumor, an event or a project
-define “Prague feeling” (=>the poll question about how does Prague make you feel)
-brand the city, not just advertise it! => through events, people will share their
experience/insights (=> maybe I will check the Instagram # and research which is most
popular?)

Promoting a country/Nation branding:
-there is a branding process
1.Positioning:
logo – slogan – anthem
-what can you find in the country (e.g. culturally, traditionally, naturally, locally)
-impress with places you can get attached to
-pass a feeling, build an image
– the first target group is the internal one (=> including the foreign residents)
-they go together: place branding + touristical branding, because the city is branding itself also
to attract more tourists
-it it better to use the name in the slogan (e.g. Prague did/not it?)
-the message needs to be clear & catchy, to be retained by the target group
-don’t show elements which are connected to conflicts
-don’t ignore a controversial subject
-for video: use musical instruments specific to that country
-for video: use local artists, sports people, filmmakers, writers etc.
-for video: say smth shocking, out of the usual, smth to be remembered
-when google-ing a country, the Ministry of Tourism should appear within the first 20 positions
-pick max. 3 elements to promote the country
-use humour
-a video spot should be max 1 minute
-a place branding campaign needs: visuals, events, prominent PR
-presence at international sports events helps branding (e.g. Prague hockey teams)
-internal target: make people join & help you to move the campaign forward; people have to
contribute, make them do it.
-us the already creating image (by mass-media, etc.) in your own benefit
-to check: if there are any products/brands that link themselves to Prague in ad campaigns
-video spots can: play on stereotypes, while showing the values.

→ to compare Prague’s slogan with other slogans (=> Prague’s slogan is static, etc.)

What has been done so far:
*videos: ​ http://www.czechtourism.com/tourists/stories/praha/
*logos:
*campaigns:

https://www.futurebrand.com/uploads/CBI2014-5.pdf

and creative way to transmit it’s message, to “speak it’s target’s own language”, in order to
connect with the public at a deeper level and reach the expected results. When addressing a
specific public, we have to take into account not only the individual characteristics, such as age,
sex, social status etc., but also the collective characteristics that have the power to shape an
individual, such as geographical location, rural/urban background, ethnic group, political
background (communist, capitalist, monarchy etc.), religion/beliefs etc.