Assessing citizens' satisfaction with the food and entertainment axis in urban branding (Case study: Shahrak-Tohid of Sabzevar)

A B S T R A C T
Sustainable urban brands are formed from social contexts and interactions between humans and ‎the environment. The evaluation criterion is the level of satisfaction recorded in the ‎minds of citizens as a result of environmental experience. This study aims to measure citizen ‎satisfaction with the selective street branding trial project in Tohid-Shahr of Sabzevar, entitled ‎‎"Food and Recreation Street." This study uses a descriptive-analytical approach in which, at first, ‎the TOPSIS technique was exerted to determine which street would be the best to implement a ‎pilot branding plan and to analyze citizens' perspectives based on traffic patterns and physical ‎characteristics. Accordingly, Ferdowsi Street was selected as a trial platform for the branding ‎plan. Then, through the Food and Recreation Street pilot festival, the level of satisfaction ‎and identification of citizens' main needs, if the project continues, was measured. In this regard, ‎through Cochran's formula, 384 questionnaires were distributed among all citizens, and ‎according to Cronbach's test, the validity of these questionnaires was calculated to be 0.713. ‎Finally, the data collected was evaluated by a t-test. Accordingly, the components' meaning level was less than 0.05, and the hypothesis of citizens' satisfaction with the proposed ‎plan was confirmed. The only component that needs more attention in plans is ‎climatic comfort, with a level of meaning of 0.10.  Finally, the Friedman test ranked user ‎satisfaction's four categories for the branding plan: satisfaction with social attributes, ‎functional-physical attributes, managerial attributes, and environmental attributes
 
Extended Abstract
Introduction
The subject of branding has long been a competitive tool in the world to attract an audience ‎and highlight the unique features of a product, region, or place. The most critical goal in ‎branding is to create a distinguished identity. While in harmony with its similar cases, it has ‎significant differences that have separated it from its homogeneous context as a pattern. In branding, we face the audience's perception of the environment to analyze their level ‎of satisfaction. This recorded image in the minds of users, which is due to the experience of the ‎environment, can be the result of external and internal forces of each person's mind, which ‎ultimately leads to highlighting a place or product with a positive feeling, in this way the ‎audience of the brand will continue to reuse it; Or by recording an unpleasant image on the ‎mind, it creates a kind of negative emotions arising from the brand for users, so it destroys the ‎desire of the audience to reuse that product or place‏. Sustainable urban brands are formed from social contexts and interactions between humans and ‎the environment. The evaluation criterion is the level of satisfaction recorded in the ‎minds of citizens as a result of environmental experience‏. ‏This study aims to measure citizen satisfaction with the selective street branding trial project in ‎Tohid-Shahr of Sabzevar, entitled "Food and Recreation Street‏."
 
Methodology
The methodology of this research is descriptive-analytical in nature. In order to choose the best ‎street in the Tohid Shahr district for the implementation of the trial branding plan, the traffic ‎and physical indicators of the streets have been weighed with the interposition of experts, using ‎the TOPSIS technique. In order to measure the citizen's satisfaction with the qualities presented in the ‎trial project, 384 questionnaires were distributed among the project visitors, which were ‎analyzed with a one-sample t-test and Friedman test through SPSS software‏.
 
Results and discussion
In evaluating citizens' opinions on creating food and entertainment streets, the validity of the ‎questions was evaluated with expert views and after frequent corrections during meetings ‎between the mayor and NGO members. Likewise, the reliability of this questionnaire was ‎calculated at 0.713 through Cronbach's alpha test. It should be noted that reliability higher than ‎‎0.700 confirms the appropriateness of the research questions. Initially, to select the best ‎platform for the trial project, the AHP method was used to weigh the traffic-performance ‎criteria of the streets. In this method, the validity of the calculated weights was confirmed ‎through the inconsistency rate (0.02). The TOPSIS weight matrix is calculated based on the ‎effect of the weight and type of criteria on the ratio of each street to its traffic-functional ‎component. Finally, the best platform for the experimental implementation of the food and entertainment street plan has been determined by determining the ideal and non-ideal options and calculating the distance ‎between the proposed options and the ideal solution. The results of ‎the TOPSIS technique indicate that Ferdowsi Street, with its large width, low branches, proximity ‎to the central green space of Shahrak-Tohid, short length, easy access of citizens, and less ‎traffic volume, was selected as the platform for the pilot project to become a food and ‎entertainment street‏.‏ To measure satisfaction, the study group is all citizens of Sabzevar, who are divided into four ‎groups: residents of Ferdowsi Street, Neighborhood Businessmen, residents of Shahrak-Tohid ‎, and residents of the central core of Sabzevar comprehend the needs of each group. Therefore, ‎among the respondents, 4.4% (17 people) are residents of Ferdowsi Street, 63.8% (245 people) ‎are residents of Shahrak- Tohid, 25.8% (99 people) are residents of the central core of Sabzevar ‎and 6% (23 people) local Businessmen‏. ‏ The sample t-test results show that the average of the sample population in all components ‎except environmental quality was more than the mean, and its significance level was less than 0.05. ‎It denotes that the conditions provided in the trial festival of the Food and Recreation Street ‎project have had a positive effect on citizens' perceptions and have been able to satisfy them. ‎Among all the proposed components, citizens consider the easy access to Ferdowsi Street and ‎the existence of various modes of transportation, with an average of 4.13 as the most significant ‎component in Ferdowsi Street, which is the most prominent executive advantage of the project ‎in Ferdowsi Street. Moreover, the readability of the environment, which is directly related to the ‎relationship between the nature and appearance of the festival, after access, has been the most ‎popular factor among food festival participants and has been influential in introducing the ‎potential of Ferdowsi Street to users‏.
 
‏Conclusion
According to the significant level of the components, which was less than 0.05, the hypothesis ‎of citizens' satisfaction with the proposed plan, called food and entertainment street, was ‎approved. The only component that needs attention from the citizens' point of view is the ‎climate comfort issues. In this street, the average of calculated satisfaction is lower than ‎the set average of 3, and its significant level was calculated at 0.10. The Friedman test is a suitable ‎tool for identifying the prioritization of environmental components by citizens and guides city ‎managers in diagnosing problems and providing solutions according to the real needs of users. ‎Users' priority of the qualities presented in the trial project includes social qualities, functional-‎physical qualities, managerial qualities, and environmental qualities. Finally, with 79.2% of the ‎votes, the citizens consider Ferdowsi Street a suitable platform for implementing the ‎food and entertainment street. With 67.9% of the votes, they declare they welcome the ‎proposed project if the plan continues. This shows that the food and entertainment ‎street brand, in general, has recorded a positive image in the minds of users and citizens. In order to increase ‎vitality in districts, such streets are needed for spending time‏.