ABSTRACT
We have seen in the previous chapter that brands are being used more and more in governance processes, but it is not always clear whether we are dealing with a clear example of branding. Is it branding when a municipality creates a new website for their new project in the inner city where they are reconstructing the central district area? Is it branding when they construct logos and advertise the project by telling the citizens what this project will deliver to the city? And is it branding when the municipality together with various stakeholders construct a specific image of the project? And in what way does a brand really differ from the classical policy document in which governmental actors used to communicate their plans? To understand brands and branding we must first sort out what they really are and how they differ from more classical ways of managing perceptions in governance processes.
