The Long Road Ahead for Building Luoyang's Cultural and Creative Brand
Author: Lu Yongqi
The story must begin with Luoyang's sub-center city construction. The construction of the sub-center is not only economic but also needs to develop together from the cultural level. Cultural resources around Luoyang can also be incorporated into the sub-center construction.
Today I read an article about Fengxue Temple in Pingdingshan. We cannot move Fengxue Temple here, nor should we, but we can bring some cultural connotations and cultural products to Luoyang. This would strengthen economic ties between Luoyang and its surrounding areas while also fostering cultural exchange. Of course, the prerequisite is that Luoyang can provide a better stage for these cultural and creative products, allowing them to leverage their strengths in Luoyang and create a situation where 1+1>2.
For cultural and creative products in Luoyang's sub-center area, the most urgent need right now is brand building. Today, let's discuss branding.
In terms of city recognition, there are not many Chinese cities that surpass Luoyang. But this does not mean that Luoyang's brand is already good, because Luoyang's brand is only about recognition. A true brand is an economic concept; it can build trust between products and consumers, increase added value, and thereby generate better profits. However, Luoyang's current brand is still merely a historical and cultural concept, different from a brand in the economic sense. Therefore, it is difficult for it to provide significant direct help to Luoyang's economic development. This is reflected in the people of Luoyang: they enjoy the pride brought by Luoyang's fame but earn relatively low salaries (Luoyang is famous but economically underdeveloped).
When people mention Luoyang, they might think of the ancient capital, Empress Wu Zetian, the Longmen Grottoes, etc., but there is a lack of direct economic connotations. For example, Jingdezhen porcelain and Yixing purple clay pottery have perfect links between city brand and economic products, bringing huge economic benefits to the local area. Of course, Luoyang has its particularities and cannot promote its brand like Jingdezhen porcelain. Historical culture itself is an excellent名片 (calling card) for Luoyang. We must not abandon our cultural advantages for the sake of economic gain, but we also cannot be constrained by our long history and culture, limiting present and future development. We should make full use of Luoyang's historical cultural recognition to promote the Luoyang brand, contribute to contemporary Luoyang's development, and find an outlet for Luoyang's future.
Luoyang is different from Jingdezhen and Yixing. They have too few cultural and creative products with cultural depth, while Luoyang has relatively more. Coupled with the national plan for building Luoyang as a sub-center city, Luoyang's cultural products are even more abundant. If only Luoyang peonies or Luoyang Tang sancai (tri-colored glazed pottery) are so deeply ingrained in people's minds that they limit the advantages of other cultural products, then Luoyang cannot follow the model of Jingdezhen or Yixing. The best solution is to build Luoyang into a big brand that has both cultural color and economic brand advantages. Then, develop the cultural and creative products in Luoyang's sub-center area together with the Luoyang big brand, allowing both sides to fully leverage their own advantages while also taking advantage of each other's strengths to grow bigger and stronger.
Luoyang has great recognition, but this recognition cannot be fully considered an economic brand because it has not provided strong brand support for the most closely related local cultural and creative brands, nor has it connected Luoyang with users, acting as a bridge between Luoyang's cultural and creative brands and consumers. Simply put, based on Baidu shares and likes, Luoyang's data far exceeds that of Tang sancai, Ru porcelain, Chengni inkstone, peonies, etc. If we could integrate Luoyang with these cultural and creative products in terms of branding, it would provide huge brand support for the development of Luoyang's cultural and creative industry.
Therefore, if Luoyang wants to achieve something in the economic field, it first needs to change people's perception of the Luoyang brand. Luoyang is not only historical and cultural, but also a modern city supported by concrete products. I hope that in the future, in the hearts of many Chinese people, Luoyang will not only represent profound history and distant culture, but also represent "Made in Luoyang" and "Created in Luoyang." In the world, there should be "Made in China"; in China, there should be "Made in Luoyang."
Of course, this is just some discussion on brand building. Besides branding, there are many other industry chains such as marketing and distribution to support it. But step by step, there will be a way. Confucius once said, "If strength is insufficient, one gives up halfway. Now you set boundaries." We must not let these words be verified by us. Suddenly, a picture comes to mind: What would it feel like to see a shop named "Luoyang Cultural Creative" in the lounge of some airport? Or open a shop at the gate of the Forbidden City, with the shop name "Luoyang Cultural Creative."
