Title: Requirements for rural tourism branding: a case study in Trenggalek

Authors: Muhammad Saiful Hakim; Berto Mulia Wibawa

Addresses: Business Management Department, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember Surabaya, Kampus ITS Sukolilo, Surabaya, Indonesia ' Business Management Department, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember Surabaya, Kampus ITS Sukolilo, Surabaya, Indonesia

Abstract: City branding is a prominent subject in city development for tourism. However, the number of studies that focus on city branding process for rural areas is still limited. In this paper, we demonstrate the city branding process of Trenggalek and compare the process and results with those of major city branding. This study employed content analysis to investigate key icons of Trenggalek city branding using an in-depth interview as a primary research instrument to collect data from Trenggalek stakeholders, followed by a focus group discussion and a survey using a structured questionnaire addressed to Trenggalek citizens. The results showed that the city components used in branding comprised beach, mountain, and Turonggo Yakso. This research results confirm the outcomes of previous research that for small cities, icons, in most cases, will consist of related historical or cultural themes. City branding process for rural areas has been proven to be much simpler than that for major cities.

Keywords: city branding; tourism; rural areas; city logo; Trenggalek.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2018.098946

International Journal of Tourism Policy, 2018 Vol.8 No.4, pp.337 - 347

Received: 07 Feb 2018
Accepted: 28 Jan 2019
Published online: 09 Apr 2019 *

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