The World Heritage as a Brand : Case study of World Heritage brand usage by sites and their stakeholders in context ofSweden and Denmark

Abstract: The UNESCO World heritage inscription has become popular with 1000+ sites nowadays, when it was introduced after the Second World War in order to protect significant areas such as landscapes and buildings. The popularity is visible in terms of touristic benefits and shows an attractive feature for the designated site, transforming the World Heritage label into a brand. However, this research finds the World Heritage brand is becoming weak in its ability to attract tourists which is in contrast with prevailing views found in preceding studies. The point of departure of this research is the situation on World Heritage Southern Öland what has influenced the scope of research focusing mainly on Nordic perspectives (Sweden, Denmark and Germany). The purpose of this paper is to call for improved stakeholder management at World Heritage sites to improve the brand and analyses the situation and practices in Sweden, Denmark and to a very limited extent, Germany. The research is based on theoretical stakeholder framework and cross-case analysis based on two case studies done in Denmark and Sweden employing data collection by interviews and questionnaires. It describes the stakeholder management and networking as contributors to the branding of the World Heritage sites. This paper shows various limitations of using the World Heritage brand and how World Heritage sites may attempt to strengthen themselves by creating a common network as well as using it as a local destination brand for commercial purpose.