The effects of sport involvement, sponsor awareness and corporate image on intention to purchase sponsors' products

Abstract

This study examined theoretical relationships between key variables of sponsorship effectiveness that include sponsor awareness, corporate image and future purchase intention. Involvement in the sport of soccer was also examined as a key consumer variable. Results suggested that favourable purchase intentions were more likely to occur when consumers held a positive image of the sponsoring companies and had a high level of sports involvement; and that consumers' sports involvement positively influenced sponsor awareness, corporate image and purchase intention.

Is Sport Sponsorship Global? Evidence from the United States, the United Kingdom, and India

“…However, awareness may be country-dependent and therefore, less useful in a global environment (Amis & Cornwell, 2005). To illustrate, Ko, Kim, Claussen, and Kim (2008) found a positive relationship between awareness and purchase intentions in South Korea, which was consistent with those of previous sponsorship awareness and purchase intentions studies conducted in the U.S. (cf. Maxwell & Lough, 2009).…”

“…It seems that there is no need to identify a company as a sponsor of an event for a sponsorship message to be effective (Amis & Cornwell, 2005) as there is no certainty that a fan's opinion of the sponsor is likely to change (Woodside & Summers, 2012) even if the sponsor is recollected at a cross-national level. Moreover, while this study and previous research has revealed that a sponsorship is capable of creating awareness (e.g., Ko et al, 2008), there is no conclusive evidence that awareness prompts purchase intentions (Woodside & Summers, 2012). Given that the majority of companies who are involved with sponsorship have a primary objective to increase brand awareness (Ko et al, 2008), the findings from this study are particularly valuable.…”

“…Moreover, while this study and previous research has revealed that a sponsorship is capable of creating awareness (e.g., Ko et al, 2008), there is no conclusive evidence that awareness prompts purchase intentions (Woodside & Summers, 2012). Given that the majority of companies who are involved with sponsorship have a primary objective to increase brand awareness (Ko et al, 2008), the findings from this study are particularly valuable. For sponsorship managers, this means that solely measuring awareness is not adequate when evaluating the effectiveness of sponsorship at a cross-national level.…”

Sport Sponsorship: The Relationship Between Team Loyalty, Sponsorship Awareness, Attitude Toward the Sponsor, and Purchase Intentions

“…Recent empirical studies have examined the role of fans' psychological attachment to their teams on pivotal reactions to the sponsors, such as sponsorship awareness (Ko, Kim, Claussen, & Kim, 2008;Lee, Harris, & Lyberger, 2011 ), attitude toward the sponsor and purchase intentions (Gwinner & Bennett, 2008;Hong, 2011). The concept of psychological attachment is often discussed in the sports literature as a means to capture the attitudinal component of team loyalty (Bauer, Stokburger-Sauer, & Exler, 2008;Iwasaki & Havitz, 2004;Neale & Funk, 2006).…”

Sponsorship investments: do they deliver brand awareness for all sponsors?

“…Exploring the types of sports consumers was necessary in this study as literature has found that consumers' sport involvement positively influenced sponsor awareness, corporate image and consumer purchase intentions (Ko, Kim, Claussen & Kim, 2008). If consumers are motivated by various aspects to consume rugby or have varying levels of involvement, surely this may impact their ability to pay attention to marketing messages during rugby games.…”