Place Branding and Civic Pride: Comparative Case Study of Two River Cities in Northern Kentucky

ABSTRACT Place branding is an important activity for many communities, bolstering their economic and community development. While there is literature examining the role residents can play in the co-creation and co-production, little has been done to examine the relationship between residents’ “civic pride” and the brand, or lack thereof, in their community. We developed case studies on two northern Kentucky communities, Bellevue and Ludlow, examining their attempts to create a brand, and surveyed residents in both communities on their views of “civic pride” and the current branding in their community. In general, we found that residents in Bellevue, which has a brand, had a much more prideful view of their community compared to those residents in Ludlow, which lacked a brand.