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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the cross-effects of on-site sponsorship on online sponsorship effectiveness in communities. The research evaluates how members’ commitment to a sports-oriented community and attitude to brands providing sponsorship developed through sponsorship on-site, and sponsor-community fit, influence the effectiveness of online sponsorship measured as the intention to purchase the same brands online through sponsoring banners displayed on the community web site.

Data were collected through a web-survey from a self-selected sample of 272 respondents belonging to non-professional sports communities. By drawing on the principal tenets of the theory of reasoned action, the authors developed a theoretical framework and tested it through a structural equation model to evaluate the role of attitude to sponsor brands developed through sponsorship on-site, and its antecedents, on the intention to purchase the same brands online through sponsoring banners exposed on the community web site.

The attitude to sponsor brands developed through sponsorship on-site affects the intention to make online purchases of the same brands through sponsoring banners exposed on the web sites of non-professional communities. On the other hand, antecedents of sponsorship on-site, that is, sponsor-community fit and commitment to the community, affect the intention to purchase the same brands online through sponsor banners displayed on the community web site, with attitude playing a different mediating role.

The research contributes to sponsorship literature by establishing the existence of cross-effects of on-site sponsorship on online sponsorship effectiveness and providing insights into the central role of commitment and attitude developed on-site. Managerially, non-professional communities emerge as attractive targets for multiple sponsorship investment owing to their on-site and online social interaction that offers managers an opportunity to exploit sponsorship cross-effects.

The study contributes to the scant body of knowledge on the cross-effects of on-site sponsorship on online sponsorship and provides insights into the importance of communities as a beneficial target of sponsorship investment.

The purpose of this research is to develop a more precise evaluation of sport sponsorship efficiency in participant-based sport, by investigating the specific aspects of participants' attitude and behavior toward sponsors. In more detail, this research develops a comprehensive sponsorship model in the participant sport context, integrating the following constructs: sport involvement, sincerity, social media use, beliefs about sponsorship, satisfaction with event, sponsor's image, awareness of sponsors, attitude toward sponsors, purchase and word of mouth intentions.

A quantitative method was utilized and 1,056 questionnaires were effectively collected and analyzed via SPSS and AMOS. Using structural equation modeling, this research tested a conceptual framework analyzing the role of different factors for sponsorship efficiency in a participant sport context.

The present research proposes a model of 10 variables which altogether permits a complete comprehension of how to expand the linkages among antecedents and outcomes of sport sponsorship in participant-based sports. The proposed factors assume a critical role in upgrading sponsorship effectiveness, which is reflected through a continuum of responses that regularly begins with sponsorship awareness and, at last, leads to increments in participants' purchase and word of mouth intentions regarding sponsors' products.

Various implications for future studies as well as strategies to boost the advantages for sponsoring firms in participant-based sports, can be drawn from the suggested model.

Up to the present, there is a scarcity of research exploring the effectiveness of sponsorship in participant-based sports. The majority of sponsorship studies measure the impact of sponsorship on spectators, neglecting the role of participants as potential vehicles in the sport sponsorship setting. This study is the first to exploring the role of sport participants in sport sponsorship literature, provides a comprehensive framework, which can guide future studies and enhance sponsorship efficiency in a participant sport context.

The purpose of this paper is to measure participants’ sponsorship awareness, and assess a model designed to predict participants’ behavioral intentions toward the sponsors of the Fayetteville Race Series.

The study is based on non-experimental survey research design using path analysis.

Perceived sponsor goodwill had a positive direct effect on participants’ sponsor behavioral intentions, as well as a positive indirect effect partially mediated by sponsor image. Sponsor image and future event participation also had positive direct effects on behavioral intentions. Overall, participants had very positive perceptions of the sponsors’ goodwill and image, and indicated positive future intentions. Participants’ ability to identify event sponsors through aided recall was inconsistent between the two events studied.

The positive outcomes for sponsors observed in this study should make small, regional, participant-based sport events appealing marketing channels, especially for generating goodwill in the community. Further, even small sponsorship spends can have a significant impact on these smaller events, since traditional funding sources continue to be cut.

Existing literature on sponsorship of participant sport-based events has generally focused on large events (i.e. marathons that draw participants nationally), despite the prevalence of smaller scale, regional events around the world.

Many destination marketers organise events to draw economic benefits over the short and long term. However, this chapter suggests that events can result in more than economic benefits, as they can be used to improve a destination’s branding and image. The authors explain how the organisation and implementation of successful events can enhance the destination’s attributes. They explore the consumer-based brand equity (CBBE) of the event and examine its relationship with other variables, including the destination’s image. Moreover, they maintain that music festivals can enhance the destination’s image and branding, particularly, when the visitors share their positive experiences with others. The authors make reference to two Portuguese events: NOS Primavera Sound event and NOS ALIVE. In conclusion, they imply that such music events are improving the brand equity among customers and adding value to the destination marketing of Portugal.

Advertisers frequently use social media for interactive and customer-oriented relationship marketing (RM) purposes. Moreover, sports clubs and players have been using their social media accounts to post content of their sponsors and other advertising companies. Such posts create visibility and have value for these advertising companies, something which has not been empirically quantified in the existing literature. Hence, this paper's purpose is to identify the factors or attributes that influence the value of such advertisement posts.

A discrete choice approach is used to empirically estimate the utility that sponsorship managers derive from a post advertising their company or product on football clubs' and players' social media.

The results indicate that more followers, better on-field performance and a lower price significantly increase the advertising company's utility. Moreover, the used social media channel has a significant influence too, since Facebook and Instagram are preferred over Twitter, due to the latter's limited degrees of freedom for advertisers.

Considering additional factors such as the image fit between sponsor and sponsee and presence on the Chinese social media market offers an interesting avenue for future research.

The empirical estimates allow commercial managers of clubs and players to derive companies' relative willingness to pay (WTP) for changes in characteristics of advertisements on their social media from the calculated utilities. This information can be used in the pricing decision when social media posts are sold or included in sponsorship packages.

This is the first study applying discrete choice modelling to link social media marketing (SMM) and sports marketing.