Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
Department of Geography, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran
Abstract
In recent decades, cities have encountered increasing challenges, including the erosion of urban identity, declining competitiveness, and difficulties in achieving sustainable development. In this context, urban branding has emerged as a strategic approach for redefining a city's position at both national and international levels. At the same time, technological innovation and urban entrepreneurship have become key drivers of urban transformation by enhancing quality of life and strengthening the city’s image. Moreover, contemporary outdoor advertising supported by digital technologies and creative interactive designs provides an effective platform for fostering meaningful engagement between citizens and the urban brand. Despite these opportunities, the relationship between entrepreneurship, outdoor advertising, and sustainable urban branding has rarely been examined within a comprehensive strategic framework. Therefore, this study aims to identify critical success factors and develop strategies for enhancing the role of entrepreneurship in outdoor advertising design to achieve the sustainable revitalization of urban brands.
The study is applied-developmental in terms of purpose and descriptive-analytical in terms of methodology, drawing on a literature review, expert judgment, and quantitative analysis. First, factors and indicators related to urban entrepreneurship, outdoor advertising, and city branding were extracted and initially organized through a review and analysis of relevant studies and scholarly sources. Subsequently, the extracted factors and indicators were purposively reviewed and refined based on the opinions of 15 academic experts, outdoor advertising specialists, and urban managers. In the quantitative stage, the finalized indicators were assessed using a researcher-developed questionnaire based on a five-point Likert scale, and the collected data were analyzed using SPSS and the Meta-SWOT model. The face and content validity of the questionnaire were confirmed through expert judgment, and its reliability was found to be satisfactory, with a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.92. The findings revealed that, based on the Meta-SWOT analysis, the five most important factors were entrepreneurial innovation in urban spaces (Mean = 4.67), enhancement of the city’s image (Mean = 4.62), the use of emerging technologies (Mean = 4.61), digital and smart outdoor advertising (Mean = 4.59), and alignment of the city brand with sustainable development (Mean = 4.58). In addition, factors such as limited citizen participation, insufficient regulatory transparency, and environmental constraints were identified as major barriers. The results indicate that the success of strategies for revitalizing the city brand requires alignment among entrepreneurial capacities, urban governance, social capital, and innovative outdoor advertising. Furthermore, aligning the city’s internal resources with external environmental opportunities plays a decisive role in achieving sustainable city branding.
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