The de Bois report set out 12 recommendations to improve the DMO landscape in England – and the UK government has recently published their response, accepting the majority of Nick de Bois’ recommendations. Ahead of City Nation Place UK, we reached out to Patricia Yates, CEO of VisitBritain/VisitEngland, to understand what the broader impact will be across England following these decisions.

What can we learn from New York City, the cultural melting pot of the world? Nancy Mammana, Chief Marketing Officer for NYC & Company joined us to share how they’re giving a platform to marginalised voices and ensuring that the recovery is equitable.

We talked last week about the importance of having reputational resilience as a place brand or marketing organisation, but of course, this is only one facet of the solution. You have to be able to secure the future of your own organisation to be able to continue delivering on your place brand and place marketing success.

Whilst the impact of the pandemic is ongoing, the 2021 Survey has been able to look back on the past year and forward to the next, to explore the longer-term changes this is bringing to the practice of place branding and marketing for cities, regions, and nations around the world. There are a few key issues that places were grappling with that we’d like to highlight and explore…

As the discussions began on how to ‘build back better,’ a key question remains on how a regenerative future can be funded. Could well-designed tourism taxes be part of the answer?

We’re facing one of the greatest global health challenges of the last one hundred years – but how can we promote social and mental wellbeing during a year of uncertainty? We spoke to Dana Young, CEO and President at Visit Florida, to understand how lessons learned from their continued fight for survival allowed the organisation not only to thrive during the pandemic, but to support the wellbeing of their employees throughout the stress of the last six months.

If you’re reliant on government funding, getting your local politicians on board with your strategies is essential. As places re-evaluate their budgets following the pandemic, how can you ensure that you’re speaking your government’s language?

In late 2018 it was announced that the Mexican Tourism Promotion Council would be disbanded. A year and a half on, we spoke with Carlos Alberto González González, Director General of the newly relaunched Visit Mexico, to understand how they’re collaborating with industry partners as well as how data is enabling a low-budget promotion strategy during COVID-19.

What happens when place branding becomes separated from the government? What changes when the private sector becomes the leading driver of a place brand strategy?  Can it work?  We looked to three contrasting examples of private sector-led place branding initiatives to understand some developing trends in private sector engagement.

How do you re-brand a city successfully? Thirty years on from the creation of their original brand, the City of Mississauga decided to relaunch their place brand strategy to bring their identity in line with the diverse population of the city. But how have they made this ambition a reality?