Social media-based sponsorship activation – a typology of content

Abstract

Purpose: This paper thematically categorises sports sponsorship-linked Twitter content and, by drawing on uses & gratifications (U&G) theory, maps the extent to which these categories cohere with known user motivations for consuming social media. Findings:From the data, a typology is developed, comprising 17 categories grouped under four main types: informing, entertaining, rewarding and interacting. The majority of sponsor Tweets (68%) fell into the informing type, with 17% categorised as interacting. While few (2%) Tweets were categorised as entertaining, the link to the sponsored event implies a degree of entertaining content even in ostensibly informative, rewarding or interactional sponsorship-linked Tweets. Therefore, the typology categories highlight Twitter content produced by sponsors which engages customers, fostering dialogue alongside providing informative and entertaining content. Originality:The typology extends existing understanding of the use of social media within sponsorship activation campaigns by thematically categorising content and mapping this against known user motivations for consuming brand-related social media content. Practical implications:The typology can inform practitioners' future sports sponsorship activation planning decisions and can also aid rights holders in tailoring appropriate sponsorship opportunities to potential sponsors, based on an appreciation of the nature of content sought by brand followers.

International Sport Federations’ Social Media Communication: A Content Analysis of FIFA’s Twitter Account

“…The use of such social media platforms such as Twitter can prove to be very beneficial in building meaningful relationships between both parties (Abeza et al, 2013), with organizations gradually moving forward from simply creating a one-way communication to a two-way communication scheme in order to build long-term relationships with their customers. Likewise, Gillooly, Anagnostopoulos, and Chadwick (2017)…”

“…"Personalizing" communication consisted of conversing with individual followers (Gillooly et al, 2017;Stavros et al, 2014). In this case these could be either followers/football fans or sport people, mainly football players.…”

“…Although academics have claimed there has not been enough research done in this area (O'Shea & Alonso, 2011), there have been a growing number of studies within the field of social media and the influence it has within the sport industry (see Abeza, O'Reilly, Seguin, & Nzindukiyimana, 2015Filo, Lock, & Karg, 2015). While some authors have focused on defining the reasons why individuals (including professional athletes) engage in social media (Hambrick, Simmons, Greenhalgh, & Greenwell, 2010;Mahan, 2011;Meng, Stavros, & Westberg, 2015;Witkemper, Lim, & Waldburger, 2012), others have considered the impact of social media activity on sport brand association and management (Parganas, Anagnostopoulos, & Chadwick, 2017;Wallace, Wilson, & Miloch, 2011), and focused on understanding the different motives for virtual interaction in regards to fans and followers (Gillooly, Anagnostopoulos, & Chadwick, 2017;Jordan, Upright, & Forsythe, 2017;Stavros, Meng, Westberg, & Farrelly, 2014).…”

Exploring user sentiment towards sponsorship and ambush marketing

“…To date, however, there remains a dearth of theoretical investigation into fans' motivations for engaging with sport brands online; rather, much of the contemporary study of social media sponsorship engagement and activation has centred on the strategic competencies and directions of brands themselves (Gillooly et al, 2017;Ko et al, 2017). This thus represents an important area of research in need of further development.…”

“…Non-sponsor campaigns enjoyed greater share of voice prior to and immediately following the event; however, during the finals period sponsor campaign buzz significantly outweighed non-sponsor-hashtag usage. This predominance of sponsor engagement during the tournament is illustrative of the competitive advantage afforded to brands via official sponsorship, as well as the ability of brands to embrace and exploit new media's role in contemporary marketing across myriad objectives and means (Gillooly et al, 2017;Mangold and Faulds, 2009).…”