The role of fan benefits in shaping responses to sponsorship activation

As sponsorship in sports, arts and entertainment has grown, so have the myriad ways to activate partnerships. This study investigates the mechanisms through which sales-oriented activation campaigns affect consumer evaluations. Based on a benefit typology derived from real-world sponsorship activations, a conceptual framework is developed that links financial, symbolic and social benefit dimensions to consumer inferred activation motives and subsequent sponsor outcomes. An experimental field study of 1356 soccer fans employing three activation scenarios and a control group tests the framework. Results of a structural equation model show that altruistic motives are key in determining sponsorship outcomes, and that activation campaigns designed for symbolic or social benefits are most effective in inducing inference of altruistic motives

Shared Brand Equity

19 pagesMany brand collaboration platforms—such as sponsorship, celebrity endorsement, influence rmarketing, product placement, cobranding, and human branding—build strong relationships between brands and contribute to the brand equity of two or more brands. Brand equity, since inception, has been concerned with the value of a brand, how this value is built and measured,and how the marketplace responds to it. Based on previous work and in response to current marketing practices, the authors suggest that the concept of shared brand equity, where collaborative efforts result in connectivity between brands, is needed to better explain and guide advertising and marketing communications research and practice. Drawing on developments in cognitive psychology, we explain how shared brand equity is developed and how it persists,the role it plays in semantic/associative neighborhoods, and how it explains research findings.We offer a set of research propositions, as well as concrete examples of the usefulness of the theoretical approach

Mellowing skeptical consumers: An examination of sponsorship-linked advertising

This research provides insight into the complex relationship between consumer response to persuasion attempts and skepticism, suggesting that erstwhile targets may be swayed by campaigns pitched as a form of entertainment. The authors examine consumer responses to an important sponsorship-leveraging tool: sponsorship-linked advertising (SLA). A theoretical model of consumer response to SLA is proposed, drawing on important resistance mechanisms to persuasion, including ad skepticism, attributed advertiser motives, and the nature of thoughts. Results confirm existing research on consumer skepticism suggesting its transitory nature and hence potential for advertisers to strategically temper it through specific cues in ad execution. Differential processing between SLA and traditional advertising is supported, such that SLA elicits more favorable cognitive response

Measuring Unethical Consumer Behavior Across Four Countries

The huge amounts spent on store security and crime prevention worldwide, not only costs international businesses, but also amounts to a hidden tax on those law-binding consumers who bear higher prices. Most previous research has focused on shoplifting and ignored many other ways in which consumers cheat businesses. Using a hybrid of both qualitative research and survey approaches in four countries, an index of 37 activities was developed to examine consumers’ unethical activities across UK, US, France, and Austria. The findings indicate that around three quarters of consumers in all four countries can be classified as heavy offenders for these minor cheats. The paper argues that government agencies, marketers, and retailers should adopt more pro-active preventative approaches, rather than reactive loss limitation measures to combat unethical behavior

Alternative Thinking about Starting Points of Obesity: Development of Child Taste Preferences

50 p.Food marketers are at the epicenter of criticism for the unfolding obesity epidemic as societies consider banning advertising to children and taxing “junk” foods. While marketing’s role in obesity is not well understood, there is clear evidence that children are regularly targeted with calorie-dense, nutrient-poor food. Much of the past research seeks to understand how marketing influences brand preference and child requests. The authors argue that understanding palate development offers new insights for discussion. Two studies consider whether a sugar/fat/salt (SFS) palate is linked to children’s knowledge of food brands, experience with products, and advertising. In study 1, the authors develop a survey measure of taste preferences and find that a child’s SFS palate (as reported by parents) relates significantly to children’s self-reported food choices. Study 2 examines how knowledge of certain branded food and drinks is related to palate. Findings show that children with detailed mental representations of fast-food and soda brands - developed via advertising and experience - have higher scores on the SFS palate scale

Dependence in Consumer Behavior Research: Exploring Measurement Dependence in Consumer Behavior Research: Exploring Measurement

Abstract (75-100 words)This paper proposes that healthy, normal dependency is a construct that would be valuable in consumer behavior research. The area of family life cycle research has always considered the very important implications of the dependent child but other areas of normal dependency have not been examined. Based on a survey of 97 undergraduate students, a dependency scale having three factors: social, financial and physical; is shown to have some value in predicting several recent purchases. ABSTRACT This paper proposes that healthy, normal dependency is a construct that would be valuable in consumer behavior research. The area of family life cycle research has always considered the very important implications of the dependent child but other areas of normal dependency have not been examined. Based on a survey of 97 undergraduate students, a dependency scale having three factors: social, financial and physical; is shown to have some value in predicting several recent purchases

Inferring Corporate Motives: How Deal Characteristics Shape Sponsorship Perceptions

Sponsoring joins brands with sports, the arts, and events in mutually beneficial partnerships. In the context of sports, the authors examine how sponsorship deal characteristics affect consumer inferences, attitudes, and behavioral intentions toward a sponsor and a sport property in a partnership. The authors develop a conceptual framework that links a holistic set of sponsorship deal characteristics (i.e., contract length, regional proximity of the sponsor, sponsorship fee, and sponsorship type) to individual consumer perceptions. Study 1 tests the framework in a field study of 2,787 consumers across 44 sponsorships. Study 2 largely confirms the findings of the field study in an experimental study. Overall, the results show that regionally proximate and long-term partnerships benefit as consumers make positive inferences about partnership fit and sponsor motives. In contrast, consumers associate high sponsorship fees, international sponsors, and naming-rights relationships with calculative motives and perceive these factors negatively. For managers, finding that sponsorship deal characteristics matter is important not only for sponsor–property relationships but also for relationships between the sponsoring brands and consumers