Investigetion of the role and function of geographical indication in the branding of manavgat golden sesame

In today's world, branding is the most valid way to reveal the difference of products from other competing goods. Geographical indications (GI), on the other hand, are one of the most important tools that create a market and differentiate them from their competitors in the national and international branding of products. In particular, geographical indications have very important functions in terms of guaranteeing the production method and quality of a product, supporting local production and rural development, and protecting traditional knowledge and cultural values. Considering these effects, it is clear that geographical indications play a very important role for the branding of a product, and it is observed that many branded products have geographical indication registration. Accordingly, there are 967 GI registered products in Turkey as of 2021-December, and one of them is Manavgat Golden Sesame (Manavgat Altın Susamı), which was registered in 2021. In this study, it is aimed to determine the role and function of geographical indication in the branding of Manavgat Golden Sesame, based on the interaction of branding and geographical indication, which are two very important issues. The findings of this research on Manavgat Golden Sesame are expected to set an example for other GI registered products. The research was carried out with a survey application with a total of 80 participants, 60 consumers and 20 sector stakeholders residing in Antalya. The primary data sources of the research are based on the survey study, and the secondary data sources are based on the literature review. The data obtained within the scope of this research were analyzed with the SPSS program, and the results were interpreted. It was determined that all of the consumers surveyed in the research used sesame and its sub-products and only 20% preferred Manavgat Golden Sesame when purchasing these products. It has been observed that the first factor that consumers consider when purchasing products with GI is the price, and the second factor is the brand. They expressed opinions as "I prefer Manavgat Golden Sesame because it has GI registration." and here, the most important demographic factor was determined as income level. As a result of the Anova analysis, it is seen that the higher the income status of the consumers, the more they agree with this idea. Again, 93.4% of the consumers are of the opinion that "Having a GI registration of a product plays a major role in making that product a brand". In addition, the stakeholders are of the opinion that branding is the most important thing to "provide trust and guarantee with a quality product". and Manavgat Golden Sesame are of the opinion that the most important issue is to preserve the product quality in order to protect and ensure its sustainability, and secondly, it is necessary to draw attention to the historical background. It has been determined that the stakeholders are of the opinion that the geographical indication will have a positive effect on the branding of Manavgat Golden Sesame.