Bogota As A Trending Topic

During the second week of July, Bogota became a trending topic in social media in Colombia; and it was not something that happened by chance. A whole movement was set in order to create a different view of the city.

Technology has almost deleted the gap between massive media and common citizens who have decided to construct themselves a new view of their own realities. This new system of communicating has given tools to some creative people who, by using blogs, Youtube, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, and all kinds of resources on the web have created a new network in which they can construct an alternative city. The city marketing strategy and city brand that Bogota is developing is using these new technologies to break the gap between reality and perception and show a new positive and real city.

An example of what was done in Bogota for the presentation of the city marketing strategy was the sound cartography of a typical music from the plain land called ‘musica llanera.’ Camilo Cantor, the creator of ‘Cartografias Sonoras,’ went to the streets of Bogota looking for sounds that identify the city. For this work, Cantor found a street group which represents the cultural diversity that makes Bogota so special.

Creating a city brand or implementing a city marketing project requires an enormous effort- not just from governmental entities but also from all citizens because they are the hearth of the city itself. During the past years, Bogota has become one of the most important places for business, tourism, and culture, and now, the city plans to put itself as a top five destination in these topics for which social media will become a major tool.

Over 20 major bloggers and social media contents producers worked together under the hashtag #marcabogota, and this innovative movement was the best way to put technology as an approach to achieve the big mean which is creates a strategy that helps to place Bogota as a new must visit destination.

About this Guest Blogger: Invest in Bogota is the investment promotion agency for Bogota and Cundinamarca, a public-private partnership between the Bogota Chamber of Commerce, the Bogota City Government and the Government of Cundinamarca. You can follow them on Twitter, @investinbogota, and learn more here.