2012 Second International Conference on Business Computing and Global Informatization

Research on Work Mechanism of Image Resources of City for Brand

Xu Ying

Yin Juanjuan

Jilin University
School of Management
Changchun, China
xy@jlu.edu.cn

Jilin University
School of Management
Changchun, China
zzu.yinjuan@163.com

AbstractThis paper is based on the close degree of the city

image resources and the urban brand positioning. The city
image resources are divided into the core image resources, the
auxiliary resources and the derivative resources. By analyzing
the way that each of the image resources acted on city
branding, we explain how the urban image resources affect on
the building of the city brand. Then we propose method to
build the city brand with the help of the urban image
resources.

B. State of the field in domestic

Professor Zhang Hongyan put forward the city's cultural
capital theory in the research of the city brand image. He
pointed out the importance of the cultural resources in the
urban image resources, and indicated the city branding
should create a city with the culture elite and cultural figures
[4]
group . Sun Ray proposed an idea that named "urban
environment brand", which said that the urban environment
construction had a great influence on enhancing city brand.
His views described the importance of environmental
[5]
resources in the city brand building . Xia Yuzeng and Xie
Jian thought the city brand was the geographical formation
of popularity and reputation of an industry in a region or a
product, and they described the effect of industrial resources
[6]
to shape the city brand . In short, it set off a wave of city
branding research in China, due to the rapid economic
development and further requirements of urbanization in the
21st century. However, the theory was not yet mature
without the systematic research.

Keywords- urban image resources, city brand, city brand

positioning

I.

STATE OF THE FIELD AT HOME AND ABROAD

A. State of the field at abroad

The city's image theory in the Western is early.
However, the research based on the relationship between the
resources factor and city branding dated from 1960, in
which Kevin lynch defined the major factor of the city
image in his book, "the Image of the City". He was the first
person to propose the concept of the image of the city , and
he emphasizes the significance of five elements of the city
[1]
image .In 1981, from the point of view on the city's social
and cultural structure, human activity and space form with
the environment, in his another book "A Good Urban Form
Theory" , Professor lynch proposed that the key elements of
urban design were how to ensure that the activities of the
city intertwined from spatial arrangement, so as to realize all
[2]
kinds of coexisting value of human being . Form the 1980s
to the early 1990s, PhilipKotler and others, who
systematically put forward the "urban marketing" theory,
considered that any country, city or town can be conducted
[3]
"place marketing" . To a certain extent, their views
indicated that urban brand construction should be
accomplished by the city's image resources. It can be seen
that the research on urban image resources and urban brand
was fairly mature in Western theorists. It had already been
pointed out that the relationship between city branding and
urban image resources. However, this study was not
thorough enough.

II.

CITY IMAGE RESOURCES AND CITY BRAND

A. Connotations
City image is the subjective feeling of the city's internal
historical heritage and external features. In other words, it is
the characteristic and style of the overall city that can be felt.
The city image resources are the unique resources possessed
by a city and they could bring certain benefits. Such as the
city's history and tradition, the economic pillar, cultural
heritage, leading industry, can bring some benefits for the
development of urban economy. The city brand is the
process that the city image resources elements be molded
into the presentation can be felt and the apprehensive
intension, on the based of the positioning of the city
function. As far as we know, city brand is the form of the
city specific assets and a distinctive mark distinguished with
other cities. The urban image resources are the city's unique
asset that is unique to distinguish it from other cities. That is
to say, city branding is based on the resources of the city's
image.

Basic scientific research expenses of project of Jilin University (2012QY031) ; Changchun soft science research project (09RY07)

978-0-7695-4854-8/12 $26.00 2012 IEEE

DOI 10.1109/BCGIN.2012.245

923

B. Constitute elements of the city image resources

Constitute elements of the city image resources are the
core resources, the auxiliary resources and the derivative
resources. This classification is mainly based on the
correlation between city image resources and brand
positioning. The core image resources refer to the resources
that have most closely relationship with city branding, that
are the basic resource for the city branding. The merits of the
urban core image resources have a crucial role for the
success of city branding. In general, the city's industries
advantage, unique natural scenery, cultural heritage,
landscape and so on can be the core of the city's image
resources. Urban auxiliary image resources are those
provided direct services for city branding except of the core
image resources. Different from the core image resources,
whether the auxiliary image resources are power or not,
which is not directly related to the success of city branding.
The derivative image resources of the city themselves are
not part of the city branding, but greatly associated with the
image resources for the city branding. Derivative image
resources can be resources that the city itself present while
indirectly serves the city's image branding, it can also be the
resources that formed along with the process of the city
branding, and served the city's image branding at the same
time.

resource of the historical and cultural city branding.4

Factors of production. The main production elements of the
city brand contain natural resources, human resources,
financial capital resources. The city branding directly affects
the gather and towards of the urban cash flow, information
flow, logistics and other resources. City's comprehensive
strength will be more powerful since various factors of
production is powerful, which shaped the comprehensive
strength-based city brand.
III.

ANALYSIS ON THE ROLE OF THE CITY IMAGE

RESOURCES ON THE CITY BRANDING

As the classification of city image resources was based

on its relationship with the city branding, roles of the
intensity of different types of city image resources on the
city branding are vary.
A. The role of the core image resources on the city
branding
The core image resources are most closely related to the
city branding, which are the leading resources for city
branding. Therefore, it has a decisive role in the city
branding. The more unique and valuable core image
resources owned by the city, the greater of the likelihood of
success of city branding. Second, the urban core image
resources also determine the type of city branding. The city
that wanted to create a distinctive urban brand must rely on
its own core image resources. And with different types of
the core image resources, cities will be able to shape the
different types of urban brand. It is worth mentioning that,
once the core image resources of the city are disappear, or
lose the unique position, the city brand value will be lost.
Therefore, the core image resources have a vital role on
shaping the urban brand.

C. The formation of elements of the city brand

City brand shows the most characteristic part of the city
image resources, while it doesn't means that a city brand can
be created just with image resources. The development of a
city brand is not without foundation but has the rich history
and reality. The elements of the formation of the city brand
can be followed in number:1Industries advantage. If the
city's industry has played a large market share both
internally and externally, with strong radiation and
competitiveness, it will form the city's advantages resources.
To a large extent, it drives the development of other related
industries and even drives the development of peri-urban
areas. The advantage industries are the core image resources
of the city branding. Thus, this city brand type can be called
as the economic-oriented
city branding. 2
Geographic resource. The unique advantages, owned by a
city from the natural environment, can become the source
of the city brand. The city branding that regarded natural
resources as the dominant factor can be divided into two
categories. One is called tourism-oriented city brand,
which has a unique natural resource and its tourism is
known to all. It makes tourism as a fundamental driving
force of the city. The other is called transportation-oriented
city brand, which would be domestic or international
traffic
center
based
on
its advantages of
location.3Cultural heritage. It contains two important
aspects. The first is the city's history and culture. The
second is the urban culture came from the accumulation.
These two aspects cultural heritage are concrete
manifestation of the city's intangible image resources.
If a city's cultural resources are very rich, then its cultural
heritage will be the basis of its branding and the invisible
image resource has become the core image

B. The role of the auxiliary image resources on the city

branding
The auxiliary image resources do not have a very close
relationship with the city branding, which is not directly
related to the success of city branding whether it is powerful
or not. Only when the auxiliary image resources of their own
cities produced a higher correlation with the resources that
urban branding needed, it services city brand. The auxiliary
image resources provide services such as manpower,
intelligence, information and so on, to urban branding. Such
as the manpower that urban branding needed would be
developed from school, and the information would be
provided by urban communications equipment. The higher
quality of the auxiliary image resources, the better services
provided to the city brand, and the role will be greater on
city branding.
C. The role of the derivative image resources on the city
branding
Urban derivatives image resources and city branding has
a great relevance. It plays a promotional role in shaping the
urban brand, which has a direct impact on the proliferation
of urban branding effect. Derivative image resources may be

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something the city itself present while indirectly serves the

city's image branding. And it also may be things formed
along with the process of the city branding, and served the
city's image branding at the same time. Due to the
derivatives image resources have a relatively large
correlation with urban branding and derived from the
process of urban branding, it has a good spread of the city
branding process.

The roles of the city image resources on city branding

process are shown as below:

times, it can be fresh with new vitality, demonstrating a new

charm.4public recognition principle is means that the
city brand positioning should be able to fully reflect the
psychological needs and values within the city's public and
external target audiences and will gradually won the public's
recognition and support, through the perception of the city's
various elements and contacting with the dissemination of
information. City brand positioning should reflect public
values, and reflect the public's social and psychological
needs and the needs to improve quality of life, which could
gain public recognition and support.
On the foundation of clear city brand positioning, the
city image resources can be integrated based on the principle
of the city branding. First, the urban core image resources
should be integrated. It can be excavated the existing core
image resources as soon as possible. Highlight the core
image resources, and enhance the efforts that the core image
resources in the city branding with the help of other image
resources. Second, if the city's core image resources are not
obvious or it has no core image resources, a characteristic
image resource can be highlight from many image resources
through integrated, making use of media, government action
activities and so on. Or, it may get help from neighboring
cities' image resources, making relatively strong correlation
with their own image resources and providing high quality
services, to get the success of the city branding.

IV. INTEGRATION OF THE URBAN IMAGE

RESOURCES ,SHAPING THE CITY BRAND
A. According to the urban core image resources conducted
urban brand positioning
Before shaping the city brand, firstly it should be well
known the type of the urban image resource and make it
clear that what the core image resources of the city branding
are. To improve urban brand positioning, the key is to grasp
the four principles: the principle of practical feasibility, the
principle of competition, the principles of combining
traditional and times and public recognition principle.1
The principle of practical feasibility required that the city
must position its brand with the resources from its own
actual situation, which is not far-fetched and blind
competition, but consistent with or close to the city reality.
2The principle of competition is to highlight the city's
personality. In the specific operation, it be selected the
resources with the difference characteristics that both
reflected the differentiation of the city's image, and can lead
to higher reputation. 3 The principle of
combining traditional and times is that it should reflect the
traditional characteristics of a city, and make full use of
cultural resources. The more quality of history that the city
has, the more attractive it is. At the same time, it also has a
sense of the times forward-looking in the city brand
positioning process. Only when city brand embodies the
spirit of the

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B. Taking advantage of the auxiliary image resources,

expanding the city's brand influence
The city's auxiliary image resources directly serve the
urban brand building, although not the main image resources
of the city branding. On the one hand, urban auxiliary image
resources can enhance the influence of core image resources,
which enable to show the multiplier effect on the action of
the core image resources. On the other hand, the strong of
urban auxiliary image resources can promote the city brand
even stronger, which provide better support and services for
the city branding, expanding the influence of the urban
brand. Therefore, it will be able to further expand the
influence of the city's brand, through strengthening the
construction of the city auxiliary image resources.
Generally, auxiliary image resources possessed a strong
production capacity. The higher vocational colleges that
associated with the city branding provided intellectual
support and manpower support for urban brand. The sound
and comprehensive infrastructure provided a quick and easy
and comfortable external environment for the city brand
building. The good quality citizen and public events are
essential power of the masses for a successful city brand
construction. The government administration and the right
policy support are an important guarantee for brand building.
It can be seen that the auxiliary image resources are not born
with naturally present. They can be formed or created in the
follow of the objective law and the initiative. However the
auxiliary image resource building activities and urban
branding projects should complement each other when the
image resources were formed or created. It should be avoid
that auxiliary image resources are unrealistic or it has not
much correlation with urban branding. So, it should be paid
attention to the auxiliary image resources when the city
brand was constructed and try to expand the correlation
between the city auxiliary image resources and the city
brand-building. The larger is the correlation, the greater that
the auxiliary image resources can provide services for the
city brand construction.
C. With the help of urban derivative image resources,
strengthen the dissemination of the city's brand image
Whether the city branding success or not largely depends
on the city brand reputation both internally and externally.
To improve the reputation degree of city brand, it should be
spread the city brand image and make it enjoy popular
support. The urban derivative image resources that derived
from the core image resources, auxiliary image resources or
the original derivative image resources, have a strong
dissemination function by themselves. It has an important
role in expanding the reputation of the city brand by using
the city's derivative image resources to develop the
dissemination of the city brand. Concerning the process of
derivative image resources derived, which itself is the
dissemination process of image resources. The more
abundant is the derivative image resources, the more
complex is the dissemination process, and the greater
influence that the derivative image resources on the city
brand is. At the same time, as the derivative image resources
have a strong correlation with the urban brand, it also has a

strong influence on the city branding by strengthened their

power. Therefore, on one hand, the main body of the city
branding can improve the impact of the urban brand both
domestic and international with the help of the strong urban
derivative image resources. On the other hand, the derivative
intensity of the derivative image resources can be
strengthened to enhance the dissemination of the city's brand
image and raise the impact of the city's brand. It is worth
mentioning that, it should not abuse of city image resources
or hold the subject activity without any characteristics and
even vulgarization use the urban derivative image resources
when expand and build urban derivative image resources,
which would only lead to worse results, and have no sense
for the city brand creation.
In short, it is inseparable from the city's various
resources when creating a distinctive city brand successfully.
The city's core image resources are the basis of branding the
city. We should keep the development of the city's core
image resources and created them constantly. The auxiliary
image resources provide manpower support, intellectual,
financial and other support for the city branding and it
should expand the correlation of the auxiliary image
resources and the city branding as much as possible. The
derivative image resources are the primary means of
expanding the influence of the city brand, strengthening the
intensity of communication of the city brand effect, which
needs to be made full use of and reasonable development.
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