With or without you: How place brand can contribute to intangible cultural heritage preservation

Place branding creates favorable associations with a location, such as a city or region, to distinguish it from competing places. Place brands are multifaceted, encompassing elements like natural resources, history, architecture, demographic characteristics, and intangible attributes. Intangible cultural heritage, which includes traditions, skills, and expressions, is a critical element in differentiating place brands. However, it is fragile and needs ongoing community engagement for its preservation. Locations with lower brand awareness, such as remote towns often near more touristic destinations, frequently depend on their intangible cultural heritage to attract tourists. Reinforcing place brand associations related to intangible cultural heritage can boost place branding and shift tourist attention from major cities to less frequented areas, benefiting local economies and safeguarding cultural heritage. This on-going study explores communication strategies to enhance place branding in lesser-known destinations by leveraging communication framing to influence tourist intentions to visit them. This project aims to sustain cultural heritage over time and redirect tourist flows to significant yet less visited destinations, thereby enhancing the power of their place brand and their cultural and economic growth via responsible tourism.