American Marketing Students’ Attitudes towards Online Classes

A sample of 304 American marketing students from four regionally diverse universities provided insight regarding their attitudes towards online education. Positives included scheduling flexibility, opportunities to take more classes offered by their own and by other universities, and the elimination of time and cost constraints. Most disconcerting was the absence of studentteacher interaction. Traditional and hybrid offerings were generally deemed to be superior to those courses using the “delivered entirely online (DEO)” format. Students need to be made more aware of the advantages of online education from both an educational and a temporal perspective. A meaningful segment is comprised of those students who have yet to take an online course and tend to exhibit more reluctance towards online education. Another constituency that needs to be targeted so as to change the existing negative perceptions is the employers who look to higher education institutions for students with the skills needed to help their organizations achieve their own goals. Another key group comprises prospective faculty, many of whom have yet to fully embrace this evolving paradigm germane to the delivery of the educational product

An Examination of the Marketing of a Floundering Sport: The Case of Powerboat Racing

A sample of 308 attendees at an APBA sanctioned powerboat race in July of 2015 provided insight regarding a number of key considerations germane to the decision to attend the race. Race organizers were seeking ways to reinvigorate interest in what they see as a floundering – if not sinking – sport. A self-administered survey was distributed at the race with those completing it having a chance to win a souvenir shirt from the races. The results indicate that better marketing is needed. WOM represented the most common means by which attendees learned about the event; much of this was from family members. While the race was important to the fans, they clearly had greater expectations regarding the peripheral product and the associated merchandising. Yet the vast majority of those attending indicated that they had either a good, a very good, or a fantastic time. Race organizers will use this information to attempt to bring in more fans to future races. They also plan on engaging in a follow-up study to see what they have learned

Student Perceptions of Internships: What Are the Perceived Benefits for the Interested Parties?

A sample of 259 marketing students from two universities provided their perceptions of the benefits associated with marketing internships. They agree that an array of benefits accrue to the student interns, the organizations for which the students serve in internship positions, the university, and the general student population at their own university. Among the benefits that are strongly acknowledged by the students are that an internship helps the student interns learn more about their chosen career path, that organizations benefit from the enthusiasm of an eager subset of workers, that successful internships help their university develop strong partnerships with the hiring organizations, and that successful marketing internships help students in other majors secure their own internships in their respective disciplines. It appears that the benefits far outweigh the students’ concerns, the most meaningful of which is the requirement that they pay tuition for internship credit. The results still document the need for Career Services to do a better job of allaying their concerns. One might say they need to do a better job of marketing

The Nexus of Payroll, Performance, Ticket Prices, and Attendance in MLB

This study uses secondary data from the past ten seasons to explore key issues germane to Major League Baseball. Focusing on attendance, payroll, performance, and the cost of attending, several key relationships were identified. Huge disparities in spending are documented. Perhaps most importantly, there is a meaningful relationship between performance and attendance. Equally important is the concurrent relationship between performance and the team’s payroll. Other relationships were documented and suggestions are articulated. These suggestions include future research and managerial issues such as the implementation of a hard salary cap and a corresponding salary floor

An Examination of the Marketing of a Floundering Sport: The Case of Powerboat Racing

A sample of 308 attendees at an APBA sanctioned powerboat race in July of 2015 provided insight regarding a number of key considerations germane to the decision to attend the race. Race organizers were seeking ways to reinvigorate interest in what they see as a floundering – if not sinking – sport. A self-administered survey was distributed at the race with those completing it having a chance to win a souvenir shirt from the races. The results indicate that better marketing is needed. WOM represented the most common means by which attendees learned about the event; much of this was from family members. While the race was important to the fans, they clearly had greater expectations regarding the peripheral product and the associated merchandising. Yet the vast majority of those attending indicated that they had either a good, a very good, or a fantastic time. Race organizers will use this information to attempt to bring in more fans to future races. They also plan on engaging in a follow-up study to see what they have learned

The Nexus of Payroll, Performance, Ticket Prices, and Attendance in MLB

This study uses secondary data from the past ten seasons to explore key issues germane to Major League Baseball. Focusing on attendance, payroll, performance, and the cost of attending, several key relationships were identified. Huge disparities in spending are documented. Perhaps most importantly, there is a meaningful relationship between performance and attendance. Equally important is the relationship between performance and the team’s payroll. Other relationships were documented and suggestions are articulated. These suggestions include future research and managerial issues such as the implementation of a hard salary cap

Differences in Eco-Friendly Attitudes and Behaviors among Consumers in the United States Across an Array of Demographics

A sample of 938 consumers residing in the United States responded, by invitation, to an online survey on anti-consumption attitudes and behaviors. Drawing from one aspect of that survey, the primary focus of this study is sustainability. The relationship between four of the measured sustainability-related variables and five commonly examined demographics was evaluated using a t-test, ANOVA, and the Scheffé Method of Multiple Comparisons. Age was the most common variable to be associated with attitudes and behavior regarding sustainability. The most common dependent variable to be associated with the five demographic variables was the frequency in which the respondent chose to engage in a personal boycott. Other meaningful results were documented and are discussed. This discussion includes pertinent information regarding a marketer’s efforts to enact green initiatives that focus on sustainability

Spies!

This article comprises two distinct components. First is the delineation of a typology that encompasses the various approaches by which marketers can track the behavior of an individual in the marketplace. A total of 17 broad approaches were identified. Associated with each technique is the issue of whether personal information is being extracted via the tracking process, whether consumers’ involvement is voluntary, and – if voluntary – what action was required on the part of the consumer. The 17 approaches are far from reflecting a homogeneous approach to the data gathering process. The second part of the study focused on two specific techniques: Shopkick and shopperception. But these techniques merely represent opposite ends of a continuum in that Shopkick is purely voluntary whereas shopperception is involuntary, and consumers are likely unaware that their behavior is being monitored. A sample of 307 respondents indicated reasons why each approach might be acceptable, and why each might not be. Comparing results from two independent samples, it was found that consumers consider Shopkick to be considerably more ethical than Shopperception. The implication is that surveillance techniques that are voluntary, transparent, rely on consumer involvement, and provide tangible benefits to the consumer are viewed as less invasive and more acceptable than are the more surreptitious alternatives for observing consumers in the marketplace

A Preliminary Model Reflecting the Potential Contributions Shared by the Four Parties within the Realm of Sports Sponsorship

Sports sponsorships have become an increasingly large investment for many organizations. IEG (citation) has forecast that in 2017, total global sponsorship spending will be approximately $62.8 billion, up 4.2$44 billion, of total sponsorship spending will be directed towards the sponsoring of sports events, leagues, teams and individual sports personalities. And the bulk of these investments will be implemented by marketers such as McDonald’s and Coca-Cola in efforts to create a sports overlay so as to increase demand for nonsports products. Who benefits from this outpouring of money by companies? Of course, the sports sponsors themselves that are seeking a return on their investments in terms of financial and intrinsic gain are beneficiaries; otherwise these companies would not invest in this marketing strategy. We propose that in addition to sponsors, others who gain from sports sponsorships are threefold: the sports that receive resources from sponsors, the spectators of sporting events, and society as a whole. We propose a model of the various interactions among these four parties and the benefits received by each of these entities in the following paper

Revisiting the Beneficiaries of the SCOTUS Ruling Striking Down PASPA

A Supreme Court ruling in 2018 essentially rendered restrictions on sports gambling to run counter to states’ rights, thus in conflict with the Constitution of the United States. As a consequence, 13 states and the District of Columbia now have legalized sports gambling. Initial research into the consequences of this ruling identified 12 potential beneficiaries. Subsequent research entailing an assessment of new literature and a survey of executive opinion involving a number of marketing executives who work within the field of sports marketing expanded the findings from the earlier study. This extension of the preliminary study found 14 beneficiaries rather than the original 12. Furthermore, the number of benefits accruing to the set of 14 beneficiaries increased from 149 to 201 with 14 of the 52 newly identified benefits accruing to the two newly identified beneficiaries – Native American Indian tribes and communications companies. Thus an additional 38 benefits for the original 12 beneficiaries were delineated