The battle for municipal PR intensifies! Now it's a competition at the city, ward, and town level!

The year is finally drawing to a close. While the future of this series next year remains uncertain, I won't say goodbye—no, I absolutely won't (listening to Kazumasa Oda's "Sayonara wa Iwanai" while... tears). With such sentimental feelings, the 18th Kōhaku Uta Gassen—no, the Shinmeikai "Strategic PR"—began. Let's do our best again today.

When it comes to year-end, it's gotta be "New Year's Eve soba," right? You can't ring in the new year without eating it. But lately, it seems many people just get by with instant cup noodles. Some might even settle for udon or ramen. Well, to each their own, I guess. I love udon too. Every year I think, "Maybe I should just have New Year's udon instead." And speaking of udon, Sanuki udon. And Sanuki udon means Kagawa Prefecture, but then Kagawa Prefecture says things like "Udon Prefecture. But Kagawa Prefecture is more than just udon!" which actually makes me feel a bit down. Am I just being sentimental...?

Well now, this campaign for Kagawa Prefecture—not just "Udon Prefecture"—really made waves, thanks to the impact of Yuu Kanai's appearance. Following that, Hiroshima Prefecture's "Oh, Shii! Hiroshima Prefecture" campaign, featuring Hiroiki Ariyoshi, also became a hot topic. Both campaigns continue today, each retaining their essence as "Udon Prefecture in Love" and "Tear-jerking! Hiroshima Prefecture." Inspired by this success, prefectures across Japan started launching their own campaigns to attract tourists and residents. Some campaigns are fun, others utilize local mascots. But recently, the battle has moved beyond the prefectural level and become more fragmented. Yes, now the drive to attract tourists and residents is accelerating at the city, town, and village level. The battlefield is fierce, and the administrators fighting there are also spending their days working tirelessly.

How to boost regional appeal? Learning evaluation criteria from the "Regional Brand Survey"

There actually exists a "Regional Brand Survey" that ranks the appeal of all 47 prefectures and their municipalities. Published annually by the Brand Research Institute, this ranking evaluates regional appeal from various angles. In the 2014 prefectural rankings, the top three were Hokkaido, Kyoto, and Okinawa (Source: 9th Regional Brand Survey 2014 Release ). At first glance, you might think, "Ah, so prefectures rich in tourist resources get chosen." Indeed, in the prefectural appeal rankings, the top 9 positions remained exactly the same as in 2013. Unless a new theme park opens or a major tourism campaign launches, the image of these prefectures likely won't change significantly.

But what about the city/town/village level rankings? The top 5, in descending order, are Hakodate, Sapporo, Kyoto, Otaru, and Yokohama. This differs significantly from the 2013 rankings. Positions constantly shift, and some municipalities outside the top 10 make it into the rankings. While the survey covers 1,000 municipalities nationwide, the released rankings only go up to 25th place. Well, that's understandable. Anything below that might be like comparing apples to apples. However, the effort required to make it into that top 25 is no small feat. Areas high in the prefectural rankings might benefit from that, but regions not in those top spots must make unique efforts to get into this ranking. And without that effort, they'll simply fade into obscurity. So what exactly should they do?

If you don't keep promoting your existence, popularity will follow a downward trend.

This research report presents one analysis (see: 8th "Regional Brand Survey 2013" Release ). A region's "attractiveness" is measured by various criteria, but as mentioned earlier, it isn't solely determined by inherent tourism resources or name recognition. In fact, the report states that "information exposure" is where the real power lies. When tracking regions that dropped in the municipal rankings over time, the graphs showing their "attractiveness" and "information exposure" values tend to follow similar trends. To use a nightlife analogy: "Even if someone is famous, if they never show up at the club lately, their reputation plummets!" It means that popularity inevitably declines if you don't consistently make your presence known – not just by frequenting the place, but by actively promoting it.

Doesn't this seem applicable to everyday life too? Continuously seizing opportunities to share information is crucial for maintaining your presence. This isn't just for companies; it's vital for regions and even individuals to consistently handle these basic tasks well. When you drop by nearby, greetings, mid-year and year-end gifts, summer greetings, New Year's cards—you naturally tend to remember people you have frequent contact with (Oh, I need to send New Year's cards! Oh no!).

Actually, I had a similar thought about another case. Recently, I extracted and tallied items and locations featured on Tokyo's key network evening and nighttime TV programs from a database of their 2014 TV exposure, then ranked them. I made one interesting discovery (see: What Items and Places Appeared on TV News Programs? ). There were far more introductions of tourist spots and places to play than I expected, with various theme parks from all over Japan ranking high.

Given that, I expected Universal Studios Japan, which gained attention for its new Harry Potter attraction, to dominate. However, Disneyland actually had more total program appearances. While its location certainly makes it easier for media to cover, it didn't seem to have a major new attraction opening. Instead, Disneyland likely achieved its exposure through meticulous, ongoing communication timed with seasonal staples like Coming-of-Age ceremonies and Christmas illuminations. This shows that consistently doing smaller things can sometimes win out over creating one big peak in terms of total information output.

It's not just external impressions; internal enthusiasm amplifies its appeal.

There's one more point I want you to remember. Returning to the evaluation criteria of the regional brand survey, the prefecture-level assessment includes 74 items for "external perspective evaluation" and 26 items for "internal perspective evaluation." This means it focuses not only on physical appeal seen from the outside, but also on whether the people currently living there genuinely like their region, asking about "attachment" and "pride." In my view, the stronger that love is, the louder the voice becomes in communicating information to the outside world, and the more passionately it gets conveyed. This mirrors how Olympic bid evaluations emphasize how much locals welcome the event and how hard they work for it. Only when those on the inside possess genuine hometown pride can it truly resonate with outsiders. In corporate terms, this relates to internal communication strategies or caring for loyal customers. The key lies in maintaining such dedicated fans and effectively leveraging their voices.

Related to the above, I'd like to conclude by sharing one success story from the city rankings. It's the case of Atami City, which significantly improved its ranking from 23rd in 2013 to 16th in 2014. Like many municipalities, Atami faced an aging population and a steady decline in tourists, despite its former popularity as a honeymoon destination and domestic tourist spot. However, it possessed valuable assets: a prime location just 50 minutes from Tokyo by bullet train, with both coastal and mountain tourism resources. Furthermore, its compact city layout allowed visitors to experience diverse attractions and activities in a short time. Could this potential be repositioned as a trend? The person spearheading this effort was Hisataka Yamada from the Location Support Team within Atami City Hall's Tourism and Economy Division (a team of just one person!).

Mr. Yamada, who came from the private sector, believed that effectively communicating Atami's strengths could boost tourism inquiries. He thought this might also energize residents and revitalize the city. He explored creating an external buzz and feeding that back internally. First, he needed to create opportunities for external buzz. Instead of opening an antenna shop or hosting events in the Tokyo metropolitan area, he adopted a strategy: attract cameras from movies, dramas, and information programs to feature Atami City in the media, then spread that positive reputation. It was essentially product placement for the city itself. The goal Mr. Yamada set was "Aim for Japan's Hollywood!" He believed that if Atami could become a film town like Hollywood, where celebrities walk the streets and movies and dramas are constantly being filmed, the city's reputation would rise.

Thanks to his "divine response," he succeeded in attracting 62 media shoots in 2012—double the previous year's number.

But naturally, Atami wouldn't be chosen as a filming location without proactive efforts. Who should they approach, and how? They realized that "the people deciding filming locations are the ADs (Assistant Directors) on the production teams." They reasoned that if they could catch the ADs' attention through targeted promotion and provide them with thorough support during shoots, it would increase their visibility and lead to more inquiries. Thus, they launched the location support initiative "ADs, Welcome!" and its dedicated website. That's right. We created a site designed to be easily found by ADs—who constantly use the internet for location scouting, story research, and filming arrangements—and filled it with offers they couldn't ignore, offers they'd welcome with open arms. Here are the eight key points:

1.Providing information on locations (material) and facilities that match program concepts
2.Introducing and coordinating contact for local participants (experts in their field, etc.) at filming locations
3.Assistance with filming permit applications for public facilities
4.Information and arrangements for vehicle routes and staging areas (e.g., production buses)
5.Introduction and arrangement of changing rooms, makeup areas, and meeting locations for cast members
6.Arranging and providing location meals
7.Providing information on accommodations during filming and wrap parties
8.Other services: Accompaniment during location scouting, on-set support, various arrangements, etc.

From applying for public facility filming permits upon request, to arranging and negotiating with local experts (such as professionals in specific fields) needed for shoots, planning location bus routes and providing waiting areas, all the way to arranging location boxed meals and post-shoot banquet venues. Wow, this is what you call going above and beyond. What's particularly noteworthy is their service attitude. Their website states: "We are available 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. Even on weekends, holidays, and at night. Call this mobile number." Word of this reputation spread instantly among ADs at TV stations and production companies. Now, Mr. Yamada's work ethic is called "god-tier service" by these ADs. Indeed, his ability to provide swift assistance in tough situations undoubtedly made him seem like a god to them (laugh).

This approach paid off: in 2012, they successfully attracted twice as many media requests as the previous year, totaling 62. In 2013, they recorded a 7.2% increase in overnight visitors compared to the previous year, reaching 200,000 more guests. Television features showcasing Atami's scenery, restaurants, and amusement facilities likely increased its presence as a destination option for potential travelers. Furthermore, visitors to Atami might have encountered filming for such programs or movies, muttering things like "Atami is pretty cool," which amplified its image. Mr. Yamada suggests that the increased tourist numbers also created a synergistic effect: boosting the motivation of local shopping districts and heightening internal awareness. It truly is a wonderful system where the production company, citizens, and city government all benefit together.

Sometimes, one person's passion can yield significant results, and sometimes, a single idea can grow into something substantial over time. However, I strongly felt that both require sustained effort. "Persistence is power." Next year, I vow to break free from my habit of giving up after just three days.