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1 – 10 of 28Felix Boronczyk, Christopher Rumpf and Christoph Breuer
The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of exposure-related and consumer-related factors on the return of sponsorship investment through their influence on viewers’…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of exposure-related and consumer-related factors on the return of sponsorship investment through their influence on viewers’ attention for sponsor signage.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected through an experimental study (n=92) involving eye-tracking and a questionnaire, and were analyzed using regression analysis.
Findings
The results show that viewers’ attention for sponsor signage is affected by the signage color of concurrent sponsors, as well as viewers’ brand familiarity, and sport involvement. In particular, the findings reveal that viewers’ attention for sponsor signage increases with greater color contrast between concurrently visible sponsor signage. Further, signage receives more attention if viewers are familiar with the brand and less involved with the sponsored event. Given that attention is an important prerequisite for further processing of sponsorship information, these findings have important implications for managers seeking to evaluate the return on their sponsorship investment.
Practical implications
When assessing the return on a sponsorship investment, marketers should consider the characteristics of surrounding sponsor signage and the audience with regard to their impact on viewers’ attention for their own signage. Ideally, marketers should attempt to create a greater color contrast between their own signage and its surroundings in order to maximize viewer attention.
Originality/value
This paper provides valuable information on the importance of concurrently visible sponsor signage and audience characteristics for the return on investment of sponsorships through their impact on viewers’ attention.
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Felix Boronczyk, Christopher Rumpf and Christoph Breuer
Technological innovations could allow for real-time control of sponsor exposure during sport broadcasts to increase the capacity of sponsor messages to attract attention. While…
Abstract
Purpose
Technological innovations could allow for real-time control of sponsor exposure during sport broadcasts to increase the capacity of sponsor messages to attract attention. While such an approach requires knowledge on the interplay between in-game events and viewers' attention to sponsor signage previous studies have disregarded factors pertaining to the competition itself. To address this gap, this paper investigates the impact of game-related variables on the allocation of viewer attention in live broadcasts.
Design/methodology/approach
Eye tracking is used to examine the impact of variations in score, ball position and ball possession on soccer fans' attention to sponsor messages during broadcasts. In total, the data comprise n = 36,604 second-by-second observations from 11 participants and games.
Findings
Logistic regression analysis reveals game time effects and significant interaction effects between possession and the score as well as the ball position variable. Sponsors receive less attention if the attacking team controls the ball near the opponents' goal, particularly if the viewers' preferred team is in possession.
Practical implications
Property owners and sponsors can exploit these findings to determine the value of sponsor brand exposure more precisely. New systems could further increase message effectiveness through adjustments of sponsor exposure based on real time match event data.
Originality/value
This study is the first to explore the influence of game-related variables on attention to sponsors. By employing live broadcasts in a near-realistic setting, it further addresses a gap in the literature and adds to the knowledge on sponsor message processing.
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Felix Boronczyk and Christoph Breuer
This study examines how brand attitude formation with respect to sport event sponsors is affected by feelings related to the sponsor brand, the sponsored event, and concurrent…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines how brand attitude formation with respect to sport event sponsors is affected by feelings related to the sponsor brand, the sponsored event, and concurrent sponsors.
Design/methodology/approach
Using systematically manipulated press releases, 216 sport-interested participants were presented with different sponsorships of a major sport event. Sponsor information was systematically manipulated both within the stimulus text and the accompanying photo, which contained clearly visible sponsor signage. Participants' brand-related feelings and attitudes toward the stimulus brands were assessed through an online questionnaire following the treatment and analyzed using structural equation modeling.
Findings
The results show that sponsor brand-related feelings represent an important step in the creation of brand attitudes. Sponsor brand attitudes are further revealed to be in part determined by event- and co-sponsor-related feelings through several indirect pathways.
Practical implications
The findings presented in this study suggest that managers who seek to create favorable brand responses need to consider the feelings associated with their brands, the event and concurrent sponsors. Brands may experience both beneficial and detrimental effects, depending on whether the feelings involved are positive or negative.
Originality/value
To date, no research has investigated the relationships between brand-related feelings and brand attitudes in event sponsorship while accounting for the influence of the sponsored event and concurrent sponsors. Therefore, this study contributes to a better understanding of the role of feelings in sponsor brand attitude formation.
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Joern Schlimm, Sebastiano Mereu and Christoph Breuer
Over the past years, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have sparked growing interest in the sport industry. NFTs are unique digital assets verified using blockchain technology. Each NFT…
Abstract
Purpose
Over the past years, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have sparked growing interest in the sport industry. NFTs are unique digital assets verified using blockchain technology. Each NFT has a distinct identifier that sets it apart from other tokens, documenting its uniqueness and ownership. NFTs promise innovative growth opportunities by generating revenue via novel products such as digital collectibles which can be owned and traded on dedicated platforms. Despite this promising outlook, it currently seems unclear how sports NFTs should be designed and which features they should offer to align with consumer values, effectively meet their needs and ultimately drive Purchase Intention. This study will therefore attempt to answer the following research question: Which consumer values and consumer needs have a positive impact on PI of sports NFTs? Based on the results, the study seeks to offer advice on concrete characteristics sports NFTs should possess in order to foster mainstream adoption.
Design/methodology/approach
To address the current gap in the literature and provide an answer to the research question, this paper uses structural equation modelling exploring the impact of consumer values and consumer needs or wants on purchase intention regarding sports NFTs.
Findings
The results of this study indicate that social needs or wants (SNW) have the strongest impact on purchase intention, as well as on experiential and functional needs or wants. NFTs should therefore possess characteristics that foster community, interaction and connection with other team or athlete supporters while enhancing the overall consumer experience. Incorporating these elements into future NFTs can help sports organizations tap into the social SNW of consumers by providing opportunities for connection, interaction and collective experiences within supporter communities.
Research limitations/implications
Due to the low response rate of Baby Boomers, the results of the study cannot be applied to this cohort. Additional research, potentially using physical in-stadium surveys and targeted specifically at the BB cohort may shed light on their particular values, needs or wants and impact on sports NFT purchase intention. Moreover, Generation Z respondents may statistically be underrepresented in the sample due to the fact that only respondents aged 18 and older were included in the study. Hence, the part of Generation Z, which was born after March 2006 and had not yet come of age at the time of this research, was explicitly excluded from the survey. Results should be applied carefully to the population of sports team or athlete supporters due to the method of data collection which was based on convenience sampling and may therefore not be representative. Since the survey was exclusively administered online, people with no Internet access are not represented in this research.
Practical implications
Sports organizations and marketers can leverage the strong impact of SNW identified in this study to position their NFT portfolio accordingly. Using athletes themselves or other influencers as product ambassadors may trigger purchase intention of consumers. Additionally, it is crucial that socializing agents, such as family, friends, colleagues and other team supporters with a strong influence on consumers own or promote NFTs. Marketers can support this adoption process by encouraging testimonials, reviews and user-generated content that showcase how NFTs have positively impacted others. Reaching a critical mass of adoption among supporters as a first step will ultimately impact consumers’ desire to satisfy ENW and FNW as well. Consumers may then recognize the benefits of using NFTs to enhance their overall consumer experience and to make their lives easier, for instance by using NFTs as season tickets or to collect loyalty points they can redeem later.
Originality/value
This study is the first attempt to determine the relationship between consumer values, consumers’ needs or wants and their impact on purchase intention regarding sports NFTs.
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Aaron von Felbert and Christoph Breuer
Endorsement research has focused primarily on determining the effectiveness of single endorsers, whereas marketing practice shows that companies usually engage multiple endorsers…
Abstract
Purpose
Endorsement research has focused primarily on determining the effectiveness of single endorsers, whereas marketing practice shows that companies usually engage multiple endorsers to promote their brands and products. As academic evidence for multiple endorsers is limited and extant findings are ambiguous, the purpose of this study is to determine the influence of different multiple endorser combinations on consumers' purchase intentions for a sports-related product endorsement and to identify whether endorser-product congruence and consumers' involvement with the endorsed product moderate endorsers' influences.
Design/methodology/approach
Two-hundred thirty-three useful responses were collected to an online experiment, and endorsers' direct and indirect influences on consumers' purchase intentions were analyzed in serial mediation analyses. Potential moderating effects of endorser-product congruence and consumers' involvement with the endorsed product were tested in moderated regression analyses.
Findings
The study's findings show that using multiple endorsers has an overall positive influence on consumers' purchase intentions, which is mediated by their attitudes toward the advertisements and the endorsed brand. Endorser-product congruence moderates an endorsement's effectiveness, whereas a moderating effect of consumers' product involvement was not supported.
Originality/value
This study adds to the extant body of endorsement research by confirming the overall effectiveness of using multiple endorsers to influence consumers' intentions to purchase the endorsed product. In addition, by showing that endorser-product congruence determines endorsers' effectiveness in a multiple endorser context, the study extends the current research perspective and provides practical implications for marketing professionals on how to combine multiple endorsers.
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Joern Schlimm and Christoph Breuer
This paper explores sports consumer interest in virtual environments (VE) and Web3 activations, specifically how the level of psychological involvement, consumers' generational…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper explores sports consumer interest in virtual environments (VE) and Web3 activations, specifically how the level of psychological involvement, consumers' generational cohorts and previous experience with VE and Web3 activations influence consumer interest in VE and Web3 products and services related to their favorite sports team.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey instrument was developed and distributed online resulting in a sample size of n = 526. The survey was designed to measure consumers' psychological involvement with their favorite sports team based on the Psychological Continuum Model, and to determine respondents' interest in potential VE and Web3 activations. Finally, the survey collected demographical information and data regarding respondents' previous experience with VE and Web3 applications. Multiple regression analysis was subsequently conducted to predict the impact of (1) psychological involvement, (2) consumers' generational cohorts and (3) previous experience with VE and Web3 activations on the dependent variable consumer interest in VE and Web3 activations.
Findings
The regression model showed a significant impact of the independent variables on consumer interest in VE and Web3 activations with consumer involvement exerting the highest influence. Consumers' previous experience with VE and Web3 applications also seems to trigger interest, in line with the consumption capital theory. This study also suggests that younger generational cohorts are not intrinsically more attracted to VE and Web3 activations but their interest seems to depend on the type of activation.
Research limitations/implications
This study is intended as a first assessment of independent variables that may have an impact on sports consumer interest in VE and Web3 activations. Further research is needed to assess the impact these variables combined with other indicators may have on consumer interest, for instance by employing a Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) approach. This research included selected VE and Web3 applications comprising online games, NFTs and cryptocurrencies, to calculate a VE and Web3 Literacy Score for the purpose of this paper. However, the “umbrella term Web3” (Wang et al., 2022) could indicate a number of additional applications not considered in this research. Future studies could examine sports consumer experience with additional Web3 activations when assessing VE and Web3 Literacy.
Practical implications
The results of this research imply the need for a diversification of the VE and Web3 portfolio offered by sports teams to cater to different consumer segments. Upcoming challenges for sports teams include motivating younger consumers to take an interest in Web3 activations beyond gaming. Additionally, sports teams should encourage loyal supporters in the advanced stages of the PCM who possess limited VE and Web3 experience, to engage in VE and Web3 activations through simplified offers complementing their overall fan experience.
Originality/value
VE and Web3 activations currently offered by sports teams are still in their early stages and data underpinning their success is scarce. This is the first study examining variables that may influence consumer interest in a sports context.
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Aaron von Felbert and Christoph Breuer
As the superiority of sports celebrities' endorsements has been questioned, the purpose of this study is to identify various types of endorsers' direct and indirect effects on…
Abstract
Purpose
As the superiority of sports celebrities' endorsements has been questioned, the purpose of this study is to identify various types of endorsers' direct and indirect effects on consumers' purchase intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
Empirical data were collected from 240 useful responses to an online experiment, and research hypotheses were tested using (moderated) serial mediation analyses.
Findings
The study's findings indicate that an endorser has a positive influence on consumers' purchase intentions through their perceptions of the advertisement and the endorsed brand. A moderated serial mediation analysis finds differences in the four types of endorsers analyzed. A sports celebrity is the most effective type of endorser in increasing consumers' purchase intentions, whereas endorsements by company managers and peer consumers, while also positive, are less effective in influencing advertising outcomes. An expert's endorsement is comparable to that of a manager but not significant.
Research limitations/implications
The generalizability of the study's findings is limited because of a restricted data sample, the use of fictitious endorsers and the limited number of product categories and brands analyzed.
Originality/value
The study systematically analyzes the behavioral influence of four types of endorsers on consumers' purchase intentions, mediated by their perceptions of the advertisements and the endorsed brand. The results of this analysis extend the current state of endorsement research, indicating that endorsements should be integrated into companies' marketing strategies and provide marketing professionals practical guidance on which type of endorser is most effective in influencing advertising outcomes.
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Kirstin Hallmann, Christoph Breuer, Michael Ilgner, Thomas Giel and Lea Rossi
The purpose of this paper is to identify the determinants of success of elite athletes by applying the concept of career success to a sporting context. The concept of career…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify the determinants of success of elite athletes by applying the concept of career success to a sporting context. The concept of career success includes extrinsic (i.e. tangible) career accomplishments like medals as well as intrinsic factors referring to subjective judgements about career attainments. Thereby, a holistic perspective is taken which has not been studied extensively before.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on previous literature, a theoretical model was derived outlining how human capital, motivation, organisational characteristics and socio-demographics affect both intrinsic and extrinsic career success. To measure the impact of these factors, primary (n=1,249) and secondary data of elite athletes were collected. Regression analyses indicated that all factors included in the theoretical model were associated with extrinsic and intrinsic success.
Findings
Institutional support was an important driver for intrinsic career success while financial support affected extrinsic career success. There was no significant influence of extrinsic career success on intrinsic career success.
Practical implications
These findings imply that policy makers should offer enhanced dual career options, such as mentoring programmes, aspects like sport-psychological support and nutrition counselling, and long-term, stable financial support for athletes to maximise career success.
Originality/value
This paper applies the construct of career success to sports. A focus on the athletes’ intrinsic career success is placed as this area has been neglected in past research.
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Kirstin Hallmann, Christoph Breuer, Jannik Disch, Thomas Giel and Tobias Nowy
Kirstin Hallmann, Kyriaki Kaplanidou and Christoph Breuer
Sports events are tourist attractions and their image components can relate to the destination image concept and structure. This study examined sports event images held by active…
Abstract
Sports events are tourist attractions and their image components can relate to the destination image concept and structure. This study examined sports event images held by active and passive sports tourists at four marathon races in Germany. Some differences in the perception of event images were found for active and passive sports tourists as well as for different types of destinations. For active sports tourists, emotional, physical and organisational image associations were clustered closer. For passive sports tourists, social and historical image associations were clustered closer. The type of destination elicited different event images among active and passive sports tourists.
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