Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China: The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP)

Dimple Thadani; Lei Li; Faith Ka Shun Chan

doi:10.1007/978-981-15-9605-6_26

Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China: The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP)

Dimple Thadani^*, Lei Li, Faith Ka Shun Chan^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Department of Management, Marketing and Information Systems

Research output: Chapter in book/report/conference proceeding › Conference proceeding › peer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The shift of academic attention from city marketing to city branding heralds a new era of representation and signification of cities as brands. Conscious practices of nationwide program implementation could be used not only for improving urban resilience but for city brands promotion. In China, to cope with the frequent occurrence of urban water issues, a nationwide initiative called Sponge City Program (SCP) has been launched since 2013. Given the significant impact of online social media on brand image, various levels of the Chinese Governments have begun to use online social media for city program promotion. In particular, brand community formed by stakeholders on online social media can significantly influence the brand image by co-creating contents. In this paper, we first analyze the current application of online social media for city marketing in China based on the SCP implementation. Next, we propose a framework/typology to inform how Chinese’ social media could be used for effective city branding. Finally, we conclude by discussing the implications of online social media use in China.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Resource Sustainability
Subtitle of host publication	Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era (icRS Urbanisation 2020)
Editors	Faith Ka Shun Chan, Hing Kai Chan, Tiantian Zhang, Ming Xu
Place of Publication	Singapore
Publisher	Springer
Pages	381-389
Number of pages	9
Edition	1st
ISBN (Electronic)	9789811596056
ISBN (Print)	9789811596049, 9789811596070
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9605-6_26
Publication status	Published - 1 Dec 2020
Event	International Conference on Resource Sustainability - Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era, icRS Urbanisation 2020 - Ningbo, China Duration: 13 Dec 2020 → 15 Dec 2020 https://www.icrsconf.com/images/icrs/icRS_Urbanisation_2020_information.pdf (Conference program) https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-981-15-9605-6 (Conference proceedings)

Publication series

Name	Environmental Science and Engineering
ISSN (Print)	1863-5520
ISSN (Electronic)	1863-5539

Conference

Conference	International Conference on Resource Sustainability - Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era, icRS Urbanisation 2020
Country/Territory	China
City	Ningbo
Period	13/12/20 → 15/12/20
Internet address	https://www.icrsconf.com/images/icrs/icRS_Urbanisation_2020_information.pdf (Conference program) https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-981-15-9605-6 (Conference proceedings)

Scopus Subject Areas

Environmental Engineering
Information Systems

User-Defined Keywords

City branding
Online social media
Sponge city program
Urban water management

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1007/978-981-15-9605-6_26

Cite this

Thadani, D., Li, L., & Chan, F. K. S. (2020). Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China: The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP). In F. K. S. Chan, H. K. Chan, T. Zhang, & M. Xu (Eds.), Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Resource Sustainability: Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era (icRS Urbanisation 2020) (1st ed., pp. 381-389). (Environmental Science and Engineering). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9605-6_26

Thadani, Dimple ; Li, Lei ; Chan, Faith Ka Shun. / Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China : The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP). Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Resource Sustainability: Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era (icRS Urbanisation 2020). editor / Faith Ka Shun Chan ; Hing Kai Chan ; Tiantian Zhang ; Ming Xu. 1st. ed. Singapore : Springer, 2020. pp. 381-389 (Environmental Science and Engineering).

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title = "Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China: The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP)",

abstract = "The shift of academic attention from city marketing to city branding heralds a new era of representation and signification of cities as brands. Conscious practices of nationwide program implementation could be used not only for improving urban resilience but for city brands promotion. In China, to cope with the frequent occurrence of urban water issues, a nationwide initiative called Sponge City Program (SCP) has been launched since 2013. Given the significant impact of online social media on brand image, various levels of the Chinese Governments have begun to use online social media for city program promotion. In particular, brand community formed by stakeholders on online social media can significantly influence the brand image by co-creating contents. In this paper, we first analyze the current application of online social media for city marketing in China based on the SCP implementation. Next, we propose a framework/typology to inform how Chinese{\textquoteright} social media could be used for effective city branding. Finally, we conclude by discussing the implications of online social media use in China.",

keywords = "City branding, Online social media, Sponge city program, Urban water management",

author = "Dimple Thadani and Lei Li and Chan, {Faith Ka Shun}",

note = "The research presented in this paper was funded by Institute of Asia Pacific Studies (IAPS) research grant 2019/20; and the Faculty of Science and Engineering Postgraduate research grant 2018/21– University of Nottingham Ningbo China. We would like to send our gratitude for the support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (Grant numbers: 41850410497); the National Key R&D Program of China (Grant Number: 2019YFC1510400). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2020 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.; International Conference on Resource Sustainability - Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era, icRS Urbanisation 2020 ; Conference date: 13-12-2020 Through 15-12-2020",

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booktitle = "Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Resource Sustainability",

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Thadani, D, Li, L & Chan, FKS 2020, Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China: The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP). in FKS Chan, HK Chan, T Zhang & M Xu (eds), Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Resource Sustainability: Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era (icRS Urbanisation 2020). 1st edn, Environmental Science and Engineering, Springer, Singapore, pp. 381-389, International Conference on Resource Sustainability - Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era, icRS Urbanisation 2020, Ningbo, China, 13/12/20. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9605-6_26

Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China: The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP). / Thadani, Dimple; Li, Lei; Chan, Faith Ka Shun.
Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Resource Sustainability: Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era (icRS Urbanisation 2020). ed. / Faith Ka Shun Chan; Hing Kai Chan; Tiantian Zhang; Ming Xu. 1st. ed. Singapore: Springer, 2020. p. 381-389 (Environmental Science and Engineering).

Research output: Chapter in book/report/conference proceeding › Conference proceeding › peer-review

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AU - Li, Lei

AU - Chan, Faith Ka Shun

N1 - The research presented in this paper was funded by Institute of Asia Pacific Studies (IAPS) research grant 2019/20; and the Faculty of Science and Engineering Postgraduate research grant 2018/21– University of Nottingham Ningbo China. We would like to send our gratitude for the support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (Grant numbers: 41850410497); the National Key R&D Program of China (Grant Number: 2019YFC1510400). Publisher Copyright: © 2020 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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N2 - The shift of academic attention from city marketing to city branding heralds a new era of representation and signification of cities as brands. Conscious practices of nationwide program implementation could be used not only for improving urban resilience but for city brands promotion. In China, to cope with the frequent occurrence of urban water issues, a nationwide initiative called Sponge City Program (SCP) has been launched since 2013. Given the significant impact of online social media on brand image, various levels of the Chinese Governments have begun to use online social media for city program promotion. In particular, brand community formed by stakeholders on online social media can significantly influence the brand image by co-creating contents. In this paper, we first analyze the current application of online social media for city marketing in China based on the SCP implementation. Next, we propose a framework/typology to inform how Chinese’ social media could be used for effective city branding. Finally, we conclude by discussing the implications of online social media use in China.

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Thadani D, Li L, Chan FKS. Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China: The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP). In Chan FKS, Chan HK, Zhang T, Xu M, editors, Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Resource Sustainability: Sustainable Urbanisation in the BRI Era (icRS Urbanisation 2020). 1st ed. Singapore: Springer. 2020. p. 381-389. (Environmental Science and Engineering). doi: 10.1007/978-981-15-9605-6_26

Online Social Media—A Vehicle for City Branding in China: The Case of Sponge City Program (SCP)

Abstract

Publication series

Conference

Scopus Subject Areas

User-Defined Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

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Cite this