the image in providing competitive advantages and in describing the key role
of a municipal communication system. The communication is the three-fold
bridge between the identity, the image and the population. It stresses the fact
that all the activities are performed in the name of the inhabitants and that the
final goal is the life quality improving.
The model points out the importance of the identity and the communication,
but also the change of treatment of these elements from functional to strategic
ones. Observing the city communication as a three-fold system encompasses
the primary, the secondary and the tertiary communications. The primary
communication encompasses the communication effects of the city activities. It
is divided into four broader areas of intervention: the landscape strategies, the
infrastructure projects, the organizational and administrative structure and the
city’s behaviour. The landscape strategies include the urban design including
the open spaces and the architectural features. The art in open public spaces
can be also considered part of the cityscaping and has a strong communicative
effect. The infrastructure concerns the city’s accessibility, but also certain
facilities, such as cultural and conference centers etc. The organisation means
the administrative structure, the way of public participation in the decision-
making and the forms of public-private partnerships. The management of the
city marketing and branding by the authorities falls in this category too. The
behaviour includes the city services available, the number and type of organized
events and the way the authorities try to get stakeholders to invest in the city.
The secondary communication contents the formal intentional communication:
the well-known marketing instruments of in-door and out-door branding, the
public relations, the graphic design etc. The tertiary communication is based
on the word of mouth and word of mouse. It is connected to the previous two
modes of communication by an interrupted line and those participating in the
marketing process cannot influence it. The entire process of branding and the
Milena Vukmirović
Fig. 2
The city identity-image
communication model.
(Vukmirović)