VILLAGE AND RURAL BRANDING: Strategies for Developing Distinctive Values in Rural Areas

Abstract

The development of geographical branding has made any place and space valuable if it is well communicated. This is no exception in the context of village and rural branding. Countries with rich villages and rural areas, such as Indonesia, should consider village and rural branding as a distinctive strategy in increasing the value of an area both economically, socially, culturally, and politically. Some research on village branding and a little on rural branding shows that there are complications and vagueness about the meaning of both. Moreover, the two terms' concepts are almost indistinguishable from other geographical branding concepts, such as place branding, city branding, destination branding, nation branding, or even tourism branding. Using self-reflectivity and in-depth literature review methods, this article clarifies the differences and similarities between the village and rural branding concepts. The seven strategic dimensions for developing village and rural distinctiveness are locality, rurality, spatiality, cultural identity, communality, naturalness, and homeliness. The difference between village branding and rural branding is related to the region's scope, the character of the space, and governmental administration.

Keywords

• locality
• natural modesty
• landscape modality
• communality
• cultural identity