Inferring Corporate Motives: How Deal Characteristics Shape Sponsorship Perceptions

Abstract

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 different sponsorships. Study 2 largely confirms the findings of the field study in an experimental field 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.

Football clubs as mediators in sponsor-stakeholder relations

“…Furthermore, perceived alignment of sponsor and sponsored club is one central dimension in the "Brand Image Transfer" model proposed by Smith (2004). This strategic fit between the sponsor and sponsee has in a number of studies been shown to be an important dimension in generating a favourable attitude towards the sponsor (Becker-Olsen and Hill, 2006;Cornwell et al, 2005;Donlan, 2014;Grohs et al, 2004;Lacey and Close, 2013;Woisetschläger et al, 2017;Zaharia et al, 2016). A lack of fit, e.g.…”

The role of fan benefits in shaping responses to sponsorship activation

“…While activation campaigns should seemingly support a sponsor's strategic objectives, there is a major caveat to be considered: Sponsorship audiences are becoming more sensitive to commercial activities, and, in particular, to sponsor's calculative motivations (Meenaghan 2001;Woisetschläger, Backhaus, and Cornwell 2017). A representative study in the context of soccer in Germany found that more than 75% of respondents believe sponsors in the German Bundesliga initiate activation measures for egoistic motives (Woisetschläger, Backhaus, Dreisbach, and Schnöring 2014).…”

“…Important sponsor characteristics that may influence sense making of the sponsorship are the reputation of a sponsor as a firmfor instance if it operates in a controversial industry such as tobacco, alcohol or gambling (Crompton 2014). Activation-induced effects may also depend on the extent to which both sponsorship partners express their identities as sport clubs and sponsors (Woisetschläger, Backhaus, and Cornwell 2017). In addition, sponsorship activation could be more effective when sponsees support sponsors in their activation campaign (Farrelly and Quester 2003), and when activation clutter is low (Cornwell and Relyea 2000).…”

“…In addition, sponsorship activation could be more effective when sponsees support sponsors in their activation campaign (Farrelly and Quester 2003), and when activation clutter is low (Cornwell and Relyea 2000). Activation effects could be also influenced by contextual boundaries such as differences in audience sensitivity to commercialization (McDaniel and Chalip 2002), property type (Gwinner 1997), and the professional level of the property (Woisetschläger, Backhaus, and Cornwell 2017).…”

“…Thereby, depending on the nature and communication of the benefits, inference of activation campaignrelated motives is likely to differ. In correspondence with sponsor-sponsee relationships in sports, three motives are of general relevance (Woisetschläger et al 2017). First, consumers may perceive a sponsor to primarily engage out of self-interest or egoistic motives.…”