Cities don't die: the life cycle of a place
Cities don't die. Once declared bankrupt, Detroit has now bounced back. Anyone visiting the city today will have to admit that cities do recover. Who could have predicted forty years ago that the coal and steel industrial cities like Newcastle, Lens, Charleroi, or the cities of the Ruhr region would find their second wind? Just like products, cities have a life cycle, and it should be a crucial part of every strategy or study to be aware of where a city is situated within that cycle.
The VivaCITY project is in collaboration with CityDNA, the member organisation that brings together European cities around tourism and city marketing. During conferences, you often hear comments like, "this solution won’t work for our city because it’s too young /old /large /small /poor /wealthy," and so on. But those comments miss the point. In practice, we observe that some very large and famous cities (we won’t name names...) take a particularly traditional approach. On the other hand, small, relatively unknown cities, often constrained by budgetary limitations, dare to be more creative and bold. What is crucial to understand is which phase of the place life cycle your city is in.
Every product has a life cycle, as is well known. You have the introduction phase, where your product is completely unknown, and this is where you invest most in marketing. Then there is the growth phase of a city, where marketing is largely driven by supporting the stories and feedback from those who use the product. When you reach the peak of your life cycle, you use more retention marketing techniques to keep your customers. But those at the top must be mindful of what comes next: either you inevitably decline, or you engage in radical innovation. This is when product development comes back into the spotlight, but also when marketing is reimagined. For example, segmentation is entirely redrawn, or – as we often see in Europe – there’s a radical shift from ‘promotional marketing’ (promises) to ‘meaningful marketing’ (value creation).
It’s no different for cities. Let’s set aside the word ‘branding’ for a moment. Anyone who has faced a group of angry residents understands why the idea of branding is best left behind. But no one can deny that every city has a reputation, and if you don’t attempt to manage that reputation, others will do it for you. If reputation is a part of your overall success story (or not), then it’s vital to understand where that reputation stands within its cycle.
We’re currently in the place lifecycle of Helsinki. Is your city using research into its place life cycle? Are you aware of which phase your city is in, and do you align your marketing accordingly? Let us know...
If you have any further adjustments or questions, feel free to ask!
