Introduction 
In today’s world, branding is one of the key factors in the success of marketing and exporting products and services. The market is not an arena for product competition but for commercial brands to compete [1]. Meanwhile, some brands show the identity of a city [2]. Over the past hundred years, cities have absorbed a large percentage of the world’s population. The United Nations estimates that by 2030, more than 60% of the world’s population will live in cities, growing at a rate of about 55 million people per year [3]. On the other hand, branding has been paid more attention in the service industry today than in the past [4]. Urban branding is a new concept and is introduced as a process that defines the unique physical characteristics of the city and captures the essence of the place [5]. One of the new approaches to the sustainable development of cities is their branding. City branding is fast becoming a popular public policy tool for governments, as it relates to city image, as well as achieving a variety of urban development goals [6]. Urban branding has become one of the primary policies for achieving sustainability in many countries. In this way, many strategies can be used to create city and place branding [7]. In addition, urban branding is not only limited to promoting a positive image of the city, but with further expansion, it can turn it into an urban experience [5].
That rapid development has led to the creation of new standards in market demand. This process of change and growth in demand has profoundly changed the competitive environment and traditional business strategies, models, and processes. Digital technologies have a significant impact on the way to imagine the city and create new businesses in it [8]. Although digitalization is not limited to new developments in entrepreneurship, business models are facing a major shift toward digital environments. In addition to new businesses launched from the opportunities created by digitization, branches, and existing businesses change from offline businesses to online businesses and create “digital entrepreneurship” as a new form of entrepreneurial activities [9]. Therefore, the need for more sustainable business development [11], growing demands for high-quality service businesses [12, 13], and increased competition in markets have helped foster new forms of digital entrepreneurship in creative industries in cities [14]. The rapid and recent development of technology [14] has caused entrepreneurs to innovate in digital entrepreneurship by focusing on new business opportunities [15] and with the development of digital entrepreneurship in creative industries, it is now considered a key motivator of economic growth and attracts more innovative entrepreneurs [13]. As can be seen, urban branding based on digital entrepreneurship in creative industries has not been given the attention it should and the need to study and design a model for planning and development in this regard is quite evident. Considering all the mentioned issues, the purpose of this research is to design and present the mentioned model.
Materials and Methods
In terms of philosophy, the current research has an interpretive paradigm. In terms of purpose, it is developmental-applied and in terms of method; it is in the category of descriptive research. The current research has investigated the city of Tehran using the case study strategy, in which the qualitative content analysis approach has been used to collect data. To collect data, a qualitative content analysis approach has been used. The tool used is a semi-structured questionnaire, which was distributed among 23 experts, including creative industry businesses and digital entrepreneurs in this field (professors and managers of cultural industries), as well as managers of Tehran Municipality. The chain reference technique (snowball) sampling plan has been used in this research. In this way, reaching theoretical saturation, 23 people were interviewed. The three-step coding method (open coding, central coding, and selective coding) was used to code the data obtained from the interviews. The reliability coefficient was also equal to 0.823
Findings
The first part of the analysis is the open coding stage, which is specifically related to naming and categorizing the phenomenon through a detailed examination of the data. In other words, in this type of coding, the concepts in the interviews and documents are classified based on their relationship with similar topics. In this way, the primary codes are extracted in this section. The codes obtained in this step include 172 codes. In the second stage, axial coding is done, the purpose of which is to create a relationship between the generated categories (in the open coding stage). And finally, selective coding based on the results of open coding and axial coding is the main stage of theorizing. In this way, it systematically relates the central category to other categories and presents those relationships in the framework of a narrative, and corrects the categories that need further improvement and development. According to the results obtained in the two stages of axial and selective coding, there are 52 axial codes in ten sub-categories. The final result of this research is to design a model in three main categories: urban branding factors (including infrastructure, branding strategies, competitiveness, and location marketing), digital entrepreneurship factors (including infrastructure, internal and external factors), and creative industries factors (including ecosystem, knowledge and creativity and innovation).   
Conclusion
The results of the current research showed that there is a subset of influential factors in each variable. Attention and application of these factors in economic and development planning can be like a stepping stone for the future branding of Tehran and, of course, other cities of the country. Therefore, according to the mentioned gap, designing a model for urban branding based on digital entrepreneurship in creative industries, the purpose of this research is stated. City branding, which itself refers to the movement of capital to the city, can be strengthened in the context of digital entrepreneurship and lead to urban growth and development with creativity and innovation in creative industries and attract more financial and human capital.
The category of infrastructure in urban branding factors refers to the importance of the role of laws in creating an emotional image. Laws can limit some ads that harm the created image from an emotional point of view. On the other hand, basic comfort and entertainment facilities, services and hotels suitable for tourists, and urban infrastructure such as public transportation, etc., strongly influence the city’s image in the minds of tourists. In the category of branding strategies, the image of a city can also lead to word-of-mouth advertising by tourists who have visited the destination city. On the other hand, by attracting famous and well-known brands in various industries, especially creative industries, the city’s brand can be strengthened and developed. These brands themselves provide extensive advertising for the city and bear its cost. With the presence of these brands in every city, the city’s brand will be strengthened unconsciously.
In the factors of digital entrepreneurship in the category of infrastructure, the importance of basic digital services that make up the modern urban foundation, as well as the role of cultural centers and dependencies, have been expressed. Cultural centers create a cultural infrastructure, as a result of which demanding citizens and responsible managers strengthen the city’s brand. On the other hand, paying attention to internal organizational factors in digital entrepreneurship can attract capital from outside the cities toward the destination city. This is important not only for material capital but also for knowledge capital and human resources. Also, external organizational factors can help the development of the city brand through entrepreneurial support industries from the digital entrepreneurship sector. In this category, the dynamic economy, the diversity of businesses, and the presence of international businesses are all signs of attention to business and entrepreneurship, especially in the digital sector, and the impact these businesses can have on the development of the city’s brand.
The factor of creativity and innovation in the factors of creative industries refers to various ideas that, if invested in, can effectively transform Tehran into one of the most successful megacities in the world. One of these factors is the Iranian Silicon Valley. The existence of the Iranian Silicon Valley can provide conditions for the further development of this city