Value co-creation – what we can learn from for place branding

The value co-creation approach is broadly studied in marketing and management from different perspectives (Galvagno and Dalli, 2014; Ranjan and Read, 2016). In this work it is considered as the interaction between actors in a territory/place aimed at common purpose – wellbeing and quality of life. In a territory/place context wellbeing and a high level of quality of life are considered as shared purposes to be achieved by actors or stakeholders involved to work together. The place branding approach is meant to support the achievement of place goals and as such, the place brand strategy helps governments, managers and actors within a territory/place to collaborate toward the desired place brand image. These efforts are, however, not always rewarding because the place image is affected by a multitude of factors, and not only these being under control of place managers who design and manage the place brand identity. This work tries to explain how value co-creation approach can contribute to the process of achieving a desired place brand image. Different actors involved in building place value proposition have to recognize the shared final purpose of the place. Although they act following own goals, they should respect at the same time the general place ambitions and place branding strategy aims. For instance, the role of universities, public relations, international exchanges, internationalization of investments, seem to be relevant to stimulate the place value co-creation through knowledge, traditions and culture diffusion.