The complementarity factor in the leveraging of sponsorship

Abstract

The complementarity factor stipulates that a sponsorship leveraging strategy can lead to suboptimal consumer responses unless advertising complements, rather than reinforces, the nature of the event-sponsor relationship. Study 1 showed that the best strategy when the sponsor is an official product provider for the event is to leverage the sponsorship through advertisements that emphasise its overall image and value as opposed to its products. However, the reverse is true when the sponsor is an official event partner, where a product-oriented sponsorship leveraging yields the best outcomes. Study 2 replicated the complementarity factor effect using a different event and different set of stimulus brands. It showed that consumer attributions, with respect to the sponsor's motivations, are the key mediating psychological mechanism.

Citation

Carrillat, F.A. and d'Astous, A. (2013), "The complementarity factor in the leveraging of sponsorship", International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship, Vol. 15 No. 1, pp. 15-34. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSMS-15-01-2013-B003