Article Preview
Top1. Introduction
In 21 century, many Asian countries, which used to be called the Third World, are on the rise owing to economic and political changes. Some economists have suggested that these Emerging Countries will negatively that have impact the strong high-tech and economic position Taiwan has held in East Asia for the past twenty years. In the face of this growing crisis, the government of Taiwan has been striving to expand the already-established high-tech industry. In addition, as a result of cross-strait relations, Taiwan and China have signed mutually-beneficial agreements to accelerate growth of their economies. China has also loosened its restrictions on tourism for Taiwanese residents. To make the best use of this opportunity and avoid the coming of M-structure society as well as uneven distribution of wealth resulting from the development of industries, Taiwanese government is now attempting to stimulate the growth of domestic demand-driven industries. Tourism, transportation, and catering industries are first to benefit. The aim is to strengthen the skills of corporate operations in preliminary industries, create job opportunities, boost local economies, and achieve a vision sometimes called One Town One Feature, One Integrated Industry One Nation (Council for Economic Planning and Development, 2009).
World Tourism Organization (WTO) announced that both tourism and high-tech sector are prospective industries in twenty-first century. Thus, in developing a non-chimney economy, the government of Taiwan is hoping to bring prosperity to domestic industries through tourism, creating more job opportunities. Furthermore, the government is dedicated to the transition of industries to develop a more diversified economy. Meanwhile, by integrating independently managed government functions, the administration aims to improve tourism quality and create more added values.
As globalization and Internet penetration prevail, tourism information can be delivered without space limitations through networks or other media. In this context, city marketing has become a critical issue and how a metropolis delivers metropolitan impressions via media. A city resembles a brand, and the marketing strategy of a city should be formulated based upon its unique products or services. As a result, it is important to strengthen people’s brand impression. (Ashworth & Kavaratzis, 2005). Local features of individual cities become important elements of city marketing. As Bramwell and Rawling (1996) suggested, participating in hosting international events and local cultural festivals increases public exposure and boosts local economies. Both local and national governments have become involved in recent years.
City marketing is an emerging issue. Instead of focusing on attracting foreign corporations, governments are now putting a greater emphasis on developing tourism, an industry that stimulates domestic demand. The most effective advertising, in terms of media, is producing commercials or promotional videos featuring celebrities. For example, Kaohsiung integrates film-making into city marketing, and many cities are following this model. In previous studies, city marketing is often discussed mainly in the context of strategies of individual cases, or city impressions are evaluated from the demand side. These approaches city development, case studies, and integrated marketing are the most common. In regards to city marketing videos, very few studies analyze cities that employ advertising videos.
In terms of production, the city-marketing video is often scrutinized and edited by different stake-holders and institutions during initial stages. Various criteria will used to determine the video content. For instance, local policies may influence the impressions a city government intends to deliver. Reviewers may have established specific conditions for the content of video. Even consideration of political achievements plays a role in the video production. In addition, the video creator may add his or her own original ideas, inspiration, icons, and celebrity impressions, all of them are determinant factors. Therefore, either on the side of media purchaser or that of production, many uncertain and conflicting factors directly influence the video output and the following advertising effects.