The city as a brand

City marketing is hot! London, Berlin, Madrid, Amsterdam and last but not least New York have become famous because of the use of simple marketing and PR trics in order to increase their inbound visitors. I love New York and I AMsterdam are just a few slogans, that made both cities booming and recognizable. City marketing has become very popular since a few years and is expanding rapidly.

GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media, a division of GfK Custom Research North America, today announced highlights from the 2009 Anholt-GfK Roper City Brands IndexSM (CBI) report, which captures consumer perception of the image and reputation of 50 major cities worldwide. Paris ranks as the top overall city "brand”, followed by Sydney, London, Rome and New York. The top 10 cities from the global survey are:

1. Paris
2. Sydney
3. London
4. Rome
5. New York
6. Barcelona
7. San Fransisco
8. Los Angeles
9. Vienna
10. Madrid

The index measures the world’s perception of each city, which influences people’s choices on where to live, work and vacation. Particularly in the face of today’s uncertain economic climate, it’s vital to understand the forces and opinions that drive (business) tourism towards and away from these cities. The index is based on a global survey in which respondents from across 20 major developed and developing countries are asked to rate their agreement with statements about each of 50 cities.