Destination Branding : Focusing on Events Contribution on an Urban Level

Sammanfattning: Today´s tourism sector is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the world and that has greatly influenced destinations. The recent development in the use of events to build, reinforce, and increase destination branding has received huge recognition. This paper examines the engagement of public and private stakeholders in creating or buildingthe brand of Cape Coast as a destination. It is important to have all various stakeholders to understand the vision towards a common goal. This is because to build destination branding thebrand needs to replicate the authenticity of the identity of the destination which in turn willassist in differentiating its goods and services from other competitors. Destination branding is seen as an important strategic tool for tourist destination since it underlines the huge significantcontributor to the economic development and market opportunities. Cape Coast city is known for its attractions which is visited by both international and domestic tourists. The aim of this research is to explore how stakeholders can contribute in creating CapeCoast´s destination brand by using events. To achieve this aim, this research uses a qualitativemethod in the form of telephone interviews, which were conducted with representatives of thetourism sector in Cape Coast, Ghana. The collected data were analysed by using content analysis. The findings proved that there is a lack of continuity from the government, that thereis inadequate brand communication among various stakeholders. Furthermore, this researchbrought to light that there is a need for product diversification and inadequate infrastructure in Cape Coast.The overall research openly gives an insight concerning the importance of destination branding, roles of stakeholders, events contribution to brand identity, diversification of products, communication platforms, and challenges of branding a destination in Cape Coast.