REGIONAL POLICY OF FORMING BRAND ATTRACTIVENESS OF AGRARIAN REGIONS

Abstract

The relevance of the article is determined by the need for systematic and competent support of brands in the agricultural sector and agricultural regions of Ukraine using modern strategically oriented marketing and branding tools.

The purpose of the article is to  research theoretical and practical aspects of regional policy in forming the attractiveness of agricultural region brands; to substantiate the architecture of brand attractiveness marketing policy based on STP marketing methodology.

The research was conducted at theoretical and empirical levels, based on the modern concept of regional development, which involves forming attractiveness by focusing on the needs, expectations, values, and utilities of the region for defined target audiences, creating a comfortable environment for living, doing business, investing, and visiting within its boundaries (or in partnership with neighboring regions).

The regional policy for forming the attractiveness of an agricultural region brand is defined as a set of goals, tasks, intentions, actions, methods, means, institutions aimed at attracting target audiences' attention to the agricultural region, developing, legitimizing, and supporting the brand of the agricultural region. It is emphasized that the regional brand attractiveness policy is developed and implemented by territorial authorities with active participation from community members, agricultural producers (farms, holdings), professional associations, scientific institutions, representatives of processing, logistics, distribution infrastructure, and other stakeholders; formalized in regional development programs and strategies. It is noted that such a policy is based on modern organizational, financial, marketing tools, which positively impact the business, investment, innovation, tourism, social, migration, environmental, and infrastructural attractiveness of the region, considering national, regional, and local interests.

The feasibility of applying the STP marketing technology in the regional brand attractiveness policy of an agricultural region is proven in the article, which allows identifying and engaging target audiences of the agricultural region through systematic and consistent segmentation, targeting, positioning procedures and developing strategic, tactical, and operational marketing activities based on them. At the strategic level, segmentation technology is applied to highlight groups with similar needs and perceptions of the region's brand attractiveness; at the tactical level, targeting procedures are used to assess the region's brand attractiveness for different target audiences and to form a set of marketing mechanisms creating new attractiveness that meets the target audiences' interests; at the implementation level, positioning of the region is carried out, understood as forming the correct perception of the agricultural region's brand among the target audiences.

The article presents measures within France's regional policy for developing agricultural regions, which today aims to develop the attractiveness of specific territories for living and employing new residents through special programs and strategies, which are advisable to implement in the practice of Ukrainian regions. Examples of strategies for increasing the attractiveness of agricultural regions in Germany illustrate a wide range of opportunities and unique proposals that German regions implement for new modern positioning, strengthening, and updating their brand.

The necessity of applying a marketing approach to increase the regions' attractiveness to youth is substantiated, which involves not pressure to study, live, work in the agricultural region, but correct persuasion, that is, using marketing technologies and tools that promote the need for youth in the region, demonstrate opportunities for self-realization, self-development, career building in the region.

It is concluded that the regional brand attractiveness policy of an agricultural region is long-term, flexible, adaptive, oriented towards increasing the attractiveness of the regional product and brand compared to other regions not only for residents but also for other target groups. Branding of an agricultural region forms and manages a composition of unique features, attributes, characteristics, and advantages of the region, allowing the region to position itself successfully, differentiate from competitors, and create a positive perception of the regional brand. The architecture of the marketing policy for the agricultural region's brand attractiveness is based on the STP marketing attractiveness model “strategy - tactics – implementation”.