City branding and the perception of city image: A study in Bolu

The image of a city has a significant impact on people's preference of a city for various purposes such as travelling, education, residence or investment. City image encompasses all the opinions and beliefs reached as a result of positive and negative perspectives, impressions, feelings and thoughts about the city. In this study, based on the importance of city branding, it is aimed to determine the formation stages of brand cities and city image elements from the perspective of Bolu residents. For this purpose, a questionnaire was applied to 384 people living in Bolu. The data obtained were analysed in IBM SPSS programme. Participants' perceptions of city image differed according to demographic variables. The most positively perceived city image elements of Bolu are that it is a city suitable for family life and that visitors to the city leave the city satisfied. Inadequate public transport in Bolu is the lowest perceived city image factor. The natural beauties of the city, the location of the city, the ease of access to the city and the security of the city were found sufficient. International promotional activities were the most inadequate city brand factor by the participants. The study revealed that the best slogan for the promotion of Bolu is the currently used slogan "Heart of Nature Bolu". By evaluating the research findings and survey data, the prominent elements of Bolu's city image were tried to be determined and suggestions for Bolu's branding activities were presented. It is foreseen that the findings obtained will contribute to the development of the branding of Bolu by sharing with all stakeholders of the city. KEYWORDS: City Image, City Branding, Bolu