Forming the tourist brand of a territory (example of Meleuzovsky district)

Increased competition between different levels of territorial entities for the declining volumes of different types of resources, especially for human and investment capital, makes it expedient to transfer to the meso-level the approaches that are effectively applied at the micro level and contribute to strengthening the competitiveness of the territory, its ability to attract and retain the population and labor migrants, tourists and investors. In this regard, it seems appropriate to apply the principles of strategic marketing, including branding tools that ensure the creation and promotion of the territory brand. The tourist brand of the territory is the key to its recognition, uniqueness, significant competitive advantages. In the article, within the framework of testing marketing approaches to the formation of a territory brand from the standpoint of considering it as a special type of product with a multi-use value on the example of Meleuzovsky District, the authors developed the concept of the tourist brand of the district with a focus on its unique natural resources, friendliness and openness, clean water and fresh air, family vacation in harmony with nature, the brand name “Aqua Terra - Aqua Nugush” and its color visualization, proposals for the promotion of the tourist brand. When developing the brand concept, both objective characteristics of the municipal district, its territorial individuality, and subjective opinion of respondents who participated in the sociological survey on the characteristics and competitive advantages of the district are taken into account. The research novelty lies in the development of theoretical foundations of territorial marketing in terms of clarifying the category of “territory brand” with its subsequent use as a basis for formation of the tourist brand of a territory. The practical significance of the research is that the results can be used by local authorities of Meleuzovsky district in the framework of the Strategy for socio-economic development of a municipal district Meleuzovsky District of the Republic of Bashkortostan up to 2030.