Purpose

This paper aims to focus on the re-presentation of the cultural phenomena hygge in Denmark and fika in Sweden in destination branding and address the inevitability of their essentialization through the branding process.

Design/methodology/approach

Three relevant semi-structured interviews with destination marketing organisation’s employees were conducted, as well as a content-based analysis of three social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram). A total of 465 posts in total were analysed (140 Facebook posts, 109 Twitter posts, 216 Instagram posts).

Findings

This study demonstrates how, when communicated through social media, intangible cultural assets are transformed into tangible elements. It explains why the re-presentation and place branding processes necessarily simplify and essentialize the destination.

Originality/value

Destination branding scholars have traditionally criticised the flattening and essentialization of culture in destination branding and have called for a more nuanced approach to presenting a destination. This paper situates destination branding as a process that necessitates the manipulation of the presentation of the destination, which inevitably essentializes the place; this is intended. Critical destination branding researchers need to rethink their criticisms and acknowledge the inherent essentialization goal of destination branding.

中文翻译：

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目的地品牌文化本质化的必然性：fika 和 hygge 案例

目的

本文旨在把重点放在文化现象重新呈现hygge在丹麦和菲卡在瑞典旅游目的地品牌，并通过品牌塑造过程中解决他们的essentialization的必然性。

设计/方法/方法

对目的地营销组织的员工进行了三个相关的半结构化访谈，并对三个社交媒体渠道（Facebook、Twitter、Instagram）进行了基于内容的分析。总共分析了 465 个帖子（140 个 Facebook 帖子、109 个 Twitter 帖子、216 个 Instagram 帖子）。

发现

本研究展示了当通过社交媒体进行交流时，无形文化资产如何转化为有形元素。它解释了为什么重新呈现和地方品牌化过程必然会简化和本质化目的地。

原创性/价值

目的地品牌化学者历来批评目的地品牌化中文化的扁平化和本质化，并呼吁采用更细致入微的方式来呈现目的地。本文将目的地品牌定位为一个需要操纵目的地呈现的过程，这不可避免地使地方本质化；这是有意的。关键目的地品牌研究人员需要重新考虑他们的批评，并承认目的地品牌的内在本质化目标。