International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

Li, Bo; Scott, Olan K.M.; Dittmore, Stephen W.

2018 International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

doi: 10.1108/ijsms-04-2017-0030

The purpose of this paper is to examine how Olympic audiences utilized Twitter to follow American National Governing Bodies (NGBs) during the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.Design/methodology/approachGuided by economic demand theory, the researchers sought to explore whether factors such as the content of social media messages, athlete’s performance, event presentation, scheduling, and TV broadcasting contribute to enhancing fans’ interests in following NGBs on Twitter during the Olympic Games. In total, 33 American NGB Twitter accounts formed the data set for this study. Each of NGBs’ Twitter data was collected every night at midnight from August 7 to 23, 2016. Data collected from each NGB account included number of followers, number of accounts followed, number of tweets, and number of “likes.”FindingsResults of this study revealed that team’s performance and the number of tweets had direct and positive relationships with increasing the number of NGB’s Twitter followers on each competition day. The number of “likes,” however, had a significant negative relationship with fans’ interests in following NGBs’ Twitter.Originality/valueThe results of the study are expected to help Governing Bodies in the Olympic sports have a better understanding of fans’ social media usage.

Haro-González, Mónica; Pérez-Ordás, Raquel; Grao-Cruces, Alberto; Nuviala, Román; Nuviala, Alberto

2018 International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

doi: 10.1108/ijsms-08-2016-0044

The purpose of this paper is to determine how an instrument – designed to assess quality, value, and satisfaction – works, and compare results obtained in female users of unisex sports services and fitness centres and female users of exclusively female sports services and fitness centres.Design/methodology/approachA total of 745 women belonging to 62 sports services and fitness centres took part in this study; 36.60 per cent were members of female-exclusive centres. The average age was 32.97±14.11 years. In total, 38.70 per cent of the women surveyed used the sports services and fitness centres twice a week for 66.37±32.87 minutes on average. The EPOD2 questionnaire was used. This instrument is made up of 25 items and measures quality, value, and satisfaction. The invariance of the factorial structure in the two groups was verified and regression coefficients were calculated for the relationships in the model.FindingsThe model is stable in both of the groups. Quality is a predecessor of value and satisfaction. Value is related to a large extent to Satisfaction. The dimensions of quality (activity, sports instructors, service personnel, and space) are directly related to value and/or satisfaction. There are significant differences in the standardised values that relate quality and its dimensions with the value and satisfaction between women users of female-exclusive centres and women users of unisex centres.Originality/valueThis paper is important because the findings of this study can be applicable to help sports services and fitness centres, whether unisex centres or female-exclusive centres, obtain better assessments from female users.

Hazari, Sunil

2018 International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

doi: 10.1108/ijsms-01-2017-0007

Using the context of Rio Olympic games, the purpose of this paper is to investigate attitude toward sponsorship outcome as it relates to purchase behavior, gender, sponsor patronage, sports enthusiasm, and social media consumption.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using an online survey of 265 participants. Questions regarding demographics, viewing habits, sports participation, enthusiasm, attitude toward Olympic events were included in the survey. The four sub-scales were sponsorship attitude, sponsor patronage, social media consumption, and sports enthusiasm.FindingsThe findings of the study showed that social media consumption is positively related to attitude toward event and sports patronage. There was a significant gender difference on attitude toward event, social media consumption, and sports enthusiasm. Predictors for making a purchase as a result of seeing a social media advertisement were gender, playing competitive sport, and social media consumption.Practical implicationsThis study will add to the body of academic and practitioner research on sponsorship outcomes, and provides an opportunity for marketers to leverage social media networks for sponsorship communication.Originality/valueAs the use of social media networks has increased over the past few years, no previous study has investigated association of sports enthusiasm, gender, or social media consumption toward sponsor patronage which relates to consumers seeking out sponsors and being influenced to make a purchase as a result of marketing communication of sponsors.

Liang, Huai-Liang; Lin, Ping-I

2018 International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

doi: 10.1108/ijsms-03-2017-0022

Enterprises must select the best optimal endorser-product fit in order to maximize the limited budget available for endorsements. Previous studies have determined that the influence of athlete endorsers is greater than is that of celebrity endorsers on consumer attitudes toward sport products. However, different endorsers may possess different levels of influence on products. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approachThis study developed two field experiments to investigate the influence of endorser-product fits on consumer purchase intentions. Participants in Study 1 were 295 individuals (220 male consumers, 75 female consumers, M age=32 yr) in the two Baseball Stadiums in Taiwan. Participants in Study 2 were 317 EMBA students (204 men, 113 women, M age=34 yr) at a certain university in Taiwan.FindingsThe results determined no significant moderating effect of celebrity endorser-product fit and purchase intention, whereas athlete endorser-product fit enhanced consumers’ purchase intentions in low product involvement scenarios. In high product involvement scenarios, a moderating relationship between endorser-product fit and purchase intentions was observed. These findings can provide a reference regarding endorsers and product patterns for enterprises to maximize the value of endorsers.Originality/valueUsing the multiple endorser-product patterns, this study provides useful findings in terms of the perceived value of endorser-product and purchase intention. The results of this study can help enterprises to choose the most suitable endorser when they are subject to budget constraints. Detailed descriptions of the expected results and discussion are reported in the text.

Dick, Christopher

2018 International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

doi: 10.1108/ijsms-04-2017-0028

The few studies on the effects of a sponsorship termination do not consider the effects of different exit options on consumers’ attitudes toward the exiting sponsor. To fill this gap, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of the extent of the exit (gradual vs entire) as well as the timing of the announcement (early vs late) on consumers’ attitudes. Moreover, this research considers the mediating role of the perceived abandonment of the sponsored party.Design/methodology/approachThis research uses an experimental study (n=204). Data were collected among supporters of a German second division soccer team.FindingsThe results emphasize that the extent of the exit as well as the timing of the announcement influences consumers’ attitudes. They develop negative attitudes toward the withdrawing sponsor, especially when the sponsor exits entirely instead of gradually and announces the decision late instead of early. Furthermore, the results reveal that the perceived abandonment of the sponsored party mediates the effect of the extent of exit on attitudes.Practical implicationsThe results help to formulate several exit options for the withdrawing sponsor that will help to minimize the possible negative effects on their brand. Specifically, the author recommends a gradual exit as well as an early announcement of the decision to prevent negative effects on the sponsor brand.Originality/valueThis study expands the research on the effects of a sponsorship termination on consumers’ attitudes toward the sponsor brand. Specifically, it is the first study that considers several aspects regarding the sponsor management of a sponsorship termination as important determinants of consumers’ attitudes.

Lee, J. Lucy; Kim, Yukyoum; Won, June

2018 International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

doi: 10.1108/ijsms-03-2017-0018

The purpose of this paper is to identify the location of sport brands in sport consumers’ minds using a perceptual map of multiple positions; and examine whether there is congruence between the sport brands’ purported images and the targeted consumers’ perception of the brands’ images.Design/methodology/approachA mixed method was used. Four steps of data collections (i.e. face-to-face, focus group interviews, and questionnaires) and analyses (i.e. content analysis, MDS analysis, PROXSCAL analysis, multiple regressions analysis, frequency analysis, and congruence score) were performed.FindingsFour positioning typologies (i.e. great quality equipment, equipment for professionals, innovation, and tradition) were identified; each brand’s positions in consumers’ minds were distinctly portrayed in the perceptual map; and the congruence between intended and perceived positions was found in two brands – Titleist and Ping – implying they established a high position-congruity and providing evidence of positioning effectiveness.Practical implicationsThe findings will aid practitioners and scholars in positioning and its effectiveness: the results provide information for managers to select, implement, and manage effective positioning strategies and the study provides initial evidence about whether companies and their brands are well-positioned in the sport consumer’s perception.Originality/valueThe authors attempt to examine how consumers perceive brands and how effectively brand positions are portrayed in consumers’ minds. The effectiveness and competitiveness of positioning strategies were examined via a perceptional map.