ABSTRACT
We consider de Certeau’s concepts of maps and tours to portray the ‘spatial stories’ of urban places for marketing/branding purposes. The current emphasis on visual representation, encompassed within the ‘map’ metaphor, is we argue, indicative of a ‘top-down’ perspective on place representation. We suggest that de Certeau’s ‘tour’ metaphor more effectively accomplishes the articulation and narration of the actual experience of a locale. We go on to argue that technological developments have enabled the potential participation of a wider array of stakeholders in the creation of place image, and its representation. This places greater emphasis on developing a co-created experience in and of place, with implications for how urban locales are represented, through more participatory, ‘bottom-up’ approaches. This has implications for developing more overt performative dimensions to place marketing, as it moves from an emphasis on materiality (via the static place representation of ‘maps’) to a focus on storytelling and movement (i.e. ‘tours’).
