Contents for SMQ Issue 23:4

SMQ 23.3 whole issue
Authors: : Brody J. Ruihley, Andrew C. Billings, Coral Rae, Nancy L. Lough, Jennifer R. Pharr, Jason O. Owen, Patrick J. Rishe, Michael Mondello, Brett Boyle, Ashley Stadler Blank, Kristi Sweeney, Rhema D. Fuller, Mike Golub, Mark Pritchard, Mark Dodds, Kevin Heisey, and Chrysostomos Giannoulakis
Abstract: Sport Marketing Quarterly, Volume 23, No. 4, December 2014

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A Note from the SMA President, p. 183
Authors: Nancy Lough
Abstract: What’s your favorite sport moment? Our good friend and colleague Buffy Filippell from TeamWork Online posed this question to a handful of students during a break at the recent Sport Marketing Association (SMA) conference in Philadelphia, and I watched as all four students instantly shared a meaningful memory and quickly formed a bond because of this special and unique experience we call sport.

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Industry Insider: Mike Golub, pp. 184-186
Authors: Mark Pritchard
Abstract: An interview with Mike Golub, Chief Operating Officer and President of Major League Soccer’s Portland Timbers

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As Time Goes By: Deciphering the Fantasy Sport Playing Teenager, pp. 187-197
Authors: Brody J. Ruihley, Andrew C. Billings, and Coral Rae
Abstract: Fantasy sport now involves over 41 million Americans (Fantasy Sport Trade Association, 2014). Past research has identified reasons why adults are motivated to participate; yet little research has focused upon why younger participants—a key demographic for the growth of the industry—are participating. Utilizing 1,360 online questionnaires pertaining to player’s demographics, habits, consumption, and motivations, comparisons were made between the 12-19 year-old demographic and other older age groups. Teen motivations for participation varied considerably from other age demographics, as this younger group was more inclined to play for reasons of ownership and passing time while frequently being less likely to participate for more social reasons, such as camaraderie and keeping in touch with others. Friends were the main teen influencers for starting and continuing participation, sports media consumption was significantly lower for teens, and overall satisfaction with the activity was significantly lower for teens than all other groups.

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Runner Identity and Sponsorship: Evaluating the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon, pp. 198-211
Authors: Nancy L. Lough, Jennifer R. Pharr, and Jason O. Owen
Abstract: The economic value of participation sport has been reported to eclipse spectator sport significantly. However, scholars have acknowledged the relative lack of research on this important segment of the sport market. The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between runner identity and race sponsor effectiveness. Surveys were sent to participants in the Las Vegas Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon. The survey was constructed to measure runner identity, and sponsor effectiveness as interpreted through rates of recognition, recall and purchase intention. Runners were divided into three groups based on their runner identity score. Of the predictive variables, only runner identity was a significant predictor of sponsor recognition and recall and one of two significant variables for purchase intention. The current study established runner identity as a unique construct and shows how runner identity is tied to measures that can be used by race organizers to attract or retain sponsors.

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How Event Significance, Team Quality, and School Proximity Affect Secondary Market Behavior at March Madness, pp. 212-224
Authors: Patrick J. Rishe, Michael Mondello, and Brett Boyle
Abstract: Though most academic research on sports pricing finds that sports organizations price their tickets in the inelastic region of consumer demand, most events do not consist of several micro-events contested in different locations where the event participants are not known until days before the event occurs. The Division I Men’s College Basketball tournament offers a contrast to most sporting events because there are several micro-events occurring at different sites, and there is greater uncertainty regarding event quality because participating teams are unknown until just days before each event. Using a sample of 2,160 tickets purchased on the secondary market for the 2013 tournament, it is concluded that (1) the NCAA does not price all of their March Madness micro-events in the inelastic range of demand, and (2) secondary market behavior is significantly influenced by perceptions of event significance and the attractiveness of an event’s draw, the latter of which being influenced by consumers’ perceptions of the quality of participating teams and the proximity of participating schools from the host site of their competition.

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Room for Growth in Professional Sport: An Examination of the Factors Affecting African-American Attendance, pp. 225-240
Authors: Ashley Stadler Blank, Kristi Sweeney, and Rhema D. Fuller
Abstract: Due to the growing buying power of diverse consumers and the importance of attendance to professional sports in the US, this study qualitatively examines the factors affecting African-American attendance at professional sporting events and identifies several attendance drivers and constraints, including alternative forms of commitment, atmosphere, comfort and convenience, cost, exposure and access to the sport, image and identity, performance and entertainment, social nature of sport, and value. These findings support and extend prior research by offering seven new factors affecting African-American attendance at professional sporting events—an important first step in enabling sport managers to reach out to a more diverse group of spectators to not only enhance diversity in attendance but subsequent revenue and profitability as well.

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Riddell vs. United States Casts Legal Light on Tariff Engineering, pp. 241-243
Authors: Mark Dodds and Kevin Heisey
Abstract: Should football jerseys, pants, and girdles be considered clothing or sporting goods for import tariff purposes? Recently, Riddell challenged the Court of International Trade’s (“CIT”) classification of the importation of such items as articles of apparel (Riddell, Inc. v. United States, 2014). Riddell contended the items should be classified as sports equipment, which creates a lower import tariff for Riddell. In deciding the case, the U.S. Court of Appeals rejected Riddell’s argument for the reclassification of the football jerseys and pants but it allowed a different apparel classification for football girdles.

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Sponsorship of Non-Profit Sporting Events: The Case of the Well-Being Festival, pp. 244-252
Authors: Chrysostomos Giannoulakis
Abstract: Abstract: Elias Katirtsigianoglou is an interesting figure: outgoing, charming, active, sociable, energetic, successful, and well educated. By the time he reached his early 30s, he had acquired for himself what he called “the package.” He worked as a sales manager in a multinational company for renewable energy and had a personal sales record of approximately $60 million. He owned a house in the United Kingdom, a fancy car, and was in a fruitful relationship. However, at the age of 32, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer and doctors gave him six months to live. As he was resting in a hospital bed, in the midst of his chemotherapy treatment, Elias asked himself three crucial questions: Why me? What am I leaving behind? What now? It was at that time he promised himself that when he was released from the hospital he would cross the Aegean Sea with his beloved kite surf. Sure enough, a few months later Elias crossed 16 nautical miles of the Evoikos Gulf in the Aegean Sea with his kite, accompanied by 23 friends with sailing boats, kites, windsurfs, and kayaks. The purpose of the Solidarity Crossing was to convey the message that nothing is impossible, especially in a cancer-surviving situation. The team also raised funds for the Global Kiter Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps people with disabilities get into kiting on land and water, while improving environmental awareness.

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