Abstract: Due to the public nature of place branding, coupled with the difficulties in obtaining short-term returns, managers are now confronting the challenge of how to drive firms to get involved in place branding in competitive market. Based on institutional theory, this paper develops a conceptual model of firms’ involvement in place branding driven by institutionalized environment under the moderation of industry competitive intensity in order to respond to this challenge. Evidence from 716 samples of 10 industries in 3 place branding areas of our country shows that the institutionalized environment (regulatory, normative, and cognitive) pressure for place branding has positive influence on firms’ involvement. Among them, the cognitive isomorphism pressure has a significant direct impact on firms’ involvement in place branding. The regulatory and normative isomorphism pressures have indirect effects on firms’ involvement through the mediating effect of cognitive isomorphism pressure respectively. In addition, industry competitive intensity has a moderating effect in institutional pressures driving firms getting involved in place branding. With the increase of industry competition, the effects of regulatory isomorphism pressure on normative isomorphism pressure don’t change significantly, but its effects on cognitive isomorphism pressure become weaker; the effects of normative isomorphism pressure on cognitive isomorphism pressure, and cognitive isomorphism pressure on firms’ involvement become stronger. These results provide managerial insights into developing an institutionalized environment driving firms to get involved in place branding according to industry competitive intensity.

Key words: place branding, institutionalized environment, firm involvement, industry competitive intensity