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Place Brand Identity Model

Identitetni Model Znamke Države

Maja Konečnik Ruzzier and Leslie de Chernatony · University of Ljubljana (Konečnik Ruzzier) · 2011

Introduction
A Brand Identity Shaped by a Country's Stakeholders

Maja Konečnik Ruzzier and Leslie de Chernatony built the model for I feel Slovenia, in 2007 the first systematic attempt at a brand for the country (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, pp. 400, 404). Earlier, Konecnik and Go (2008, pp. 177, 186–187) had examined Slovenia's tourism brand identity from the supply side with Aaker and Joachimsthaler's brand leadership model and named inviting "representatives from different areas that also constitute the destination's stakeholders" as the next step. Identity models of the 1990s mostly served product and service brands and transfer poorly to countries (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 403). The place model takes de Chernatony's identity elements vision, values, personality and distinguishing preferences, adds mission and benefits, and puts functional and emotional values and an experiential promise at its core (p. 404). The outer ring holds the stakeholder groups: because destination brands have specific characteristics, the model treats the relations between stakeholders as a separate and important aspect of identity building (Stubelj, 2018, p. 17) and assumes that key internal stakeholders take part in developing the brand (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 404). For Slovenia, 707 representatives of six key areas rated the proposed elements in 2007; the results went into the brand book (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, pp. 405–406).

The Model

Place Brand Identity Model: three concentric rings; at the core Experiential Promise above Emotional Value and Functional Value; in the middle ring six identity elements, clockwise from top left Benefits, Mission, Vision, Values, Personality and Distinguishing Preferences, each joined to its neighbours by double-headed arrows; in the outer ring six Stakeholder Groups
Redrawn after Konečnik Ruzzier, Petek, Lapajne and Milinović (2011, p. 404), labels translated from the Slovene original.

Elements

Definitions follow Konečnik Ruzzier and de Chernatony (2013) as presented for tourist destinations by Stubelj (2018, pp. 16–23) in a master's thesis supervised by Konečnik Ruzzier, translated from Slovene; the build-up of the model follows Konečnik Ruzzier et al. (2011, p. 404). The journal article itself is not freely accessible, so the profile draws on these sources. Only the six identity elements carry the English names of the Brand Book of Slovenia (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, p. 7); the names of the core and of the outer ring are translated from the Slovene figure. The Slovene names of the figure stand in brackets. All examples come from the Brand Book and from the 2011 study of the brand I feel Slovenia.

Core

  • 01

    Experiential Promise

    The identity elements of a destination brand interact constantly to fulfil the brand promise through functional and emotional values, with the aim of creating an experiential promise (izkustvena obljuba) (Konečnik Ruzzier & de Chernatony, 2013, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 17; translated). The functional and emotional values and the experiential promise of the brand are included in the model and sit at the core of the figure (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 404, Figure 2). All elements later show as promises on three levels, with the experiential promise at the highest (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 414).

    Slovenia: "Slovenian green", which here means not only a colour but the whole experience that can be felt (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 414; translated). The Brand Book calls it "the promise of experiencing Slovenian green" and describes it as "the balance between the calm of nature and the tenacity of Slovenians" (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, pp. 8, 19).

  • 02

    Emotional Value

    Emotional value (čustvena vrednota) is one of the two values in the core through which the identity elements fulfil the brand promise (Konečnik Ruzzier & de Chernatony, 2013, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 17). In de Chernatony's identity model, on which the place model builds, the personality of the brand lives its emotional values (de Chernatony, 2010, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, pp. 16–17; translated).

    Slovenia: "pleasant excitement", the emotional promise of the brand (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, pp. 7, 19). Every presentation of Slovenia should include "a certain dynamic that symbolises pleasant excitement" (p. 19).

  • 03

    Functional Value

    Functional value (funkcionalna vrednota) is the other value in the core through which the identity elements fulfil the brand promise (Konečnik Ruzzier & de Chernatony, 2013, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 17). In de Chernatony's identity model, the positioning strategy of the brand includes its functional values (de Chernatony, 2010, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, pp. 16–17; translated).

    Slovenia: "elemental", the functional promise of the brand (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, pp. 7, 19): a focus "on what we feel under our hands" (p. 8). Presentations of Slovenia are to be "clean, clear, and unobtrusive" (p. 19).
Identity Elements

  • 04

    Benefits

    Benefits (koristi) of a destination are the rewards that people think the destination can offer them; the rewards can result from functional or psychological attributes. Konečnik Ruzzier and de Chernatony (2013) adapted this definition for destinations from Keller, for whom benefits are the personal values that consumers link to the attributes of products or services (as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 17; translated). Benefits are one of the two elements that the place model adds to de Chernatony's identity model (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 404).

    Slovenia: the brand stimulates the wish to contribute and activity, keeps people in touch with nature, and offers accessibility and quality of life (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, p. 7). Konečnik Ruzzier et al. sum up the benefits as genuine contact, quality of life and activity, all linked to nature (2011, p. 414; translated).

  • 05

    Mission

    Mission (poslanstvo) is the second element that the place model adds to de Chernatony's identity model (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 404). Konečnik Ruzzier and de Chernatony (2013) keep mission and vision apart because the two concepts sit differently in time and differ in their focus on the brand's existence and direction: mission looks at the past and present, vision at the future (as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 19; translated). Together, vision and mission give a destination brand a clear direction for its further development and take key macro-environmental trends into account (Konečnik Ruzzier & de Chernatony, 2013, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 20).

    Slovenia: "Forward with nature" (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, p. 9; the wheel on p. 7 reads "Forward to nature"). The phrase points to the importance of nature and at the same time towards the future and development, a development that has to preserve nature in the long term (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 414; translated).

  • 06

    Vision

    De Chernatony, whose identity elements the model takes over, sees vision (vizija) as a clear direction for how the organisation will work for a better future. It has three parts: the desired future environment, the purpose of the brand and the values of the brand (de Chernatony, 2010, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 19; translated). Because a tourist destination is complex, it is important to reach consensus among the key stakeholders of its brand and to involve them in shaping the vision. The Delphi method can reduce the variety of their own visions to some extent; it was also used to shape the identity of I feel Slovenia (Stubelj, 2018, p. 20).

    Slovenia: organic development, niche orientation and technological advancement (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, p. 7); "the vision is clear: green boutiqueness", with organic development at its core (p. 9). In the 2007 survey, the most wanted direction was a Slovenia in which modernity and tradition intertwine without harming the environment and while keeping Slovenian values (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, pp. 407–408; translated).

  • 07

    Values

    Konečnik Ruzzier and de Chernatony (2013) see the values (vrednote) of a destination brand as values that the destination's influential stakeholders share. They play an important role in the identity of a destination because they shape behaviour and the way the stakeholders interact, which can help to lay the foundations for differentiation (as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 20; translated).

    Slovenia: family, "attachment on things local", health and responsibility (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, p. 7). Responsibility "manifests itself in our attitude towards ourselves, others, and the environment" (p. 8).

  • 08

    Personality

    Konečnik Ruzzier and de Chernatony (2013) add that the personality (osebnost) of a destination brand relies heavily on the personality of the people who make up and live the brand, so it can include their main traits and their way of life; they regard this view as a usual part of the identity of any brand (as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 21; translated). They share the definition of destination personality by Ekinci and Hosany (2006) as the set of human characteristics associated with a destination (Stubelj, 2018, p. 21).

    Slovenia: the Brand Book describes Slovenians as tenacious about the things they enjoy doing, active, hardworking, individualists with a wish for recognition who like to be approved of (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, p. 7). In the 2007 survey, respondents named enthusiasm for the things they like doing, diligence, activity and orderliness as the most important traits of Slovenians (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, pp. 408–409).

  • 09

    Distinguishing Preferences

    Distinguishing preferences (razlikovalne prednosti, literally "distinguishing advantages") can refer either to the attractions a destination offers or to its attributes (Konečnik Ruzzier & de Chernatony, 2013, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 23; translated). The attributes divide into functional and psychological ones (Echtner & Ritchie, 2003, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 23) or represent unique characteristics of the destination (Konečnik Ruzzier & de Chernatony, 2013, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 23). A suitable combination of identity elements describes what makes the brand unique (Konečnik Ruzzier & Ruzzier, 2015, as cited in Stubelj, 2018, pp. 22–23).

    Slovenia: preserved nature; a crossroads of the Alps, the Mediterranean and the Pannonian lowland; proximity of differences; safety; the Slovene language and its dialects (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, p. 7). In the 2007 survey, the variety of landscapes came first among the features that set Slovenia apart from other countries (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, pp. 410–411).
Outer Ring

  • 10

    Stakeholder Groups

    The outer ring holds the stakeholder groups (interesna skupina, literally "interest group"). Because destination brands have specific characteristics, Konečnik Ruzzier and de Chernatony (2013) treat the relations between a destination's stakeholders as a separate and important aspect of building its identity (as cited in Stubelj, 2018, p. 17; translated). The model assumes that key internal stakeholders take part in developing the country brand (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 404). For a country, internal stakeholders include the custodians of the brand, mostly appointed by the government, the residents who experience, live and co-create the brand, and groups from public and local administration to the wider economy (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, p. 402).

    Slovenia: opinion leaders took part first through a Delphi study, then 707 representatives of the economy, tourism, science, public administration and politics, culture and arts, and sport, and finally the general public (Konečnik Ruzzier et al., 2011, pp. 400, 405–406). The Brand Book names representatives of the civic sphere, economy, tourism, culture and art, science, sport and politics (Ministry of the Economy, 2007, p. 5).

Source

  1. Konecnik, M., & Go, F. (2008). Tourism Destination Brand Identity: The Case of Slovenia. Journal of Brand Management, 15(3), 177–189. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.bm.2550114
  2. Konečnik Ruzzier, M., Petek, N., Lapajne, P., & Milinović, D. (2011). Znamka I Feel Slovenia: Vključevanje Predstavnikov Ključnih Področij v Proces Njenega Oblikovanja [Brand I Feel Slovenia: Inclusion of the Key Areas' Representatives in the Branding Process]. Management, 6(4), 399–417. https://www.fm-kp.si/zalozba/ISSN/1854-4231/6_399-417.pdf
  3. Ministry of the Economy of the Republic of Slovenia. (2007). The Brand of Slovenia [I Feel Slovenia Brand Book]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from http://web.archive.org/web/20140818020907/http://www.majakonecnik.com/cms/tiny_mce/upload/ifeelslovenia_brandbook.pdf
  4. Stubelj, A. (2018). Uravnotežen Pogled na Znamko Turistične Destinacije Bohinj [A Balanced View of the Tourist Destination Brand Bohinj] [Master's thesis, University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Economics]. http://www.cek.ef.uni-lj.si/magister/stubelj3259-B.pdf
  5. Konečnik Ruzzier, M., & de Chernatony, L. (2013). Developing and Applying a Place Brand Identity Model: The Case of Slovenia. Journal of Business Research, 66(1), 45–52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2012.05.023 This is the originators' work; it is not freely accessible, so this profile draws on the substitute sources listed above.