The importance of place marketing in relation to rural tourism
is emphasised by Sharpley (2002) and Wang and Pfister (2008)
who each recognise that it can bring about economic and social
development and regeneration. Additionally, place marketing can
encourage business development in rural areas, improving
employment opportunities in the area and generally encouraging
inward investment (Richardson & Gillespie, 1996). The problem
with marketing in this particular context is that it is often difficult
to establish a direct link between marketing efforts and tourist
arrivals or business development in a given region (McKercher,
1999). It is not as straightforward as marketing a product and
monitoring sales, making it more challenging to secure marketing
investment by regional agencies in tough economic climates