Purpose -The aim of this paper is to examine the factors that induced people to follow the 2005 Ashes cricket series on television and to explore the implications of these factors for the marketing of English cricket as a brand. Design/methodology/approach -A total of 427 members of the public who reported that they had watched at least part of the 2005 Ashes series on television were questioned about their motives for having done so. Specific motives were then related to viewing intensity and to an individual's intention to follow cricket in the future. Findings -The study finds that viewers who had been motivated to watch the Ashes series because of cricket's nostalgic associations with England's past were more likely than others to have followed the series intensively and to state that they would continue to be interested in cricket. Patriotic motivations led to short-but not to long-term support. Social pressure, prior involvement with cricket, and several variables identified from a review of the general academic literature in the sports marketing area also exerted significant influences on future intentions to watch cricket. Research limitations/implications -It was not feasible to establish the socio-demographic, cultural and economic backgrounds of individuals who exhibited strong tendencies in relation to the motivations covered by the study. Thus it was not possible to relate these background characteristics to decisions to follow cricket in the longer period. Practical implications -The results suggest that English cricket may indeed be regarded as a brand, and that certain aspects of cricket's brand identity should be incorporated into marketing communications that promote the sport. Originality/value -This was the first empirical study to analyse the factors underlying the highly successful rebranding of English cricket that occurred between 1997 and 2004.
Taylor & Francis 60 2 000000June 2008 RogerBennett r.bennett@londonmet.ac.uk A questionnaire was distributed to the heads of graduate recruitment in 900 British firms querying the recipients' views on (1) the main benefits alleged to accrue to students on vocational degrees who complete work experience periods; (2) the value for graduate employability of paid work undertaken during term time and vacations; and (3) the contributions to employability of academic group work within vocational degrees. A conjoint analysis examined the participants' evaluations of the relative importance of a job applicant having graduated from a programme that included a work placement, compared with the candidate possessing a 'good' class of degree, a qualification from a pre-1992 university rather than a post-1992 institution, and a degree with substantial group-work content. It emerged that (despite the many changes in the British higher education environment occurring over the last couple of decades [top-up fees, widening participation, students engaging extensively in termtime employment, etc.]) most of the respondents held generally positive opinions regarding the usefulness of work placements. Sample members also tended to favour job applicants whose degrees had contained elements of group work. The class of degree a person had obtained and the type of university attended were seen as substantially less important for employability than whether the individual had completed a work placement.
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