Contents for SMQ Issue 30:1
| Abstract: Sport Marketing Quarterly, Volume 30, No. 1, March 2021. |
| Branding a Professional Sport Team that Reenters the Same Marketplace: Stakeholders’ Perspectives Authors: François Rodrigue, Gashaw Abeza, Benoît Séguin, and Eric MacIntosh |
| Abstract: This study explored stakeholder’s perspectives in building a professional sport franchise brand that is reentering the same marketplace for a third time following the folding of two previous franchises within the same sport league. To accomplish the study’s purpose, a qualitative method was employed where semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 stakeholders of the reentering franchise. The findings uncovered five antecedents: game-extensions, owners’ credibility, community outreach, cross-promotions, and aligning with established brand. Theoretical contributions, practical recommendations, and directions for future research are provided. |
| How Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Identities Lead to Corporate Brand Equity: An Evaluation in the Context of Sport Teams as Brand Extensions Authors: Shang-Chun Ma and Kyriaki Kaplanidou |
| Abstract: This study examines relationships among perceived corporate social responsibility (CSR), perceived team CSR, social identities, and corporate brand equity in the context of using Chinese professional baseball teams as brand extensions. Data from online surveys of Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) consumers (N = 467) were analyzed using structural equation modeling and the SPSS macro PROCESS. Findings revealed that perceived CSR and perceived team CSR have a direct positive effect on corporate brand equity. The results also showed that consumer-company identity mediates the relationship between perceived CSR and corporate brand equity; the relationship between perceived team CSR and corporate brand equity is sequentially mediated by team identity and consumer-company identity. Beyond the CSR initiatives, city identity positively influenced corporate brand equity via team and consumer-company identity. Implications for fostering brand equity and brand values are discussed, focusing on using CSR and city identity as the means of positive influence. |
| The Effect of Ownership Marketing Expertise on MLB Attendance and Digital Consumption Authors: Ted Hayduk and Matthew Walker |
| Abstract: Scholarship has established that characteristics of a firm’s upper echelon affect firm-level outcomes in a range of industries. In professional sport, firms depend on live game attendance and, increasingly, the consumption of online content to generate local revenue. The ability to drive these two revenue streams depends on a franchise’s competencies in marketing, relationship management, and brand building. In this research, we speculate those competencies start at the top, i.e., with ownership. Using upper echelons theory (UET), we hypothesize that franchises with owners who have substantial marketing expertise are better able to drive attendance and online search traffic. Using a panel dataset of 30 teams over a 10-season period, we found that ownership expertise in marketing was generative of significantly more attendance but perhaps not significantly greater online traffic. The results are discussed in the context of UET, and implications for practitioners are presented. |
| The Influence of Second Screen Multitasking on Sponsorship Effects Authors: Sanghak Lee |
| Abstract: Sponsorship is a marketing communication tool used to increase brand awareness, brand attitudes, and sales. Sponsorship activities are realized through various media, but television has been the most important medium to deliver these activities to sport fans. More recently, however, the importance of television has been challenged via the widespread use of smartphones (i.e., second screen). Media multitasking (e.g., using a smartphone while watching television) has become a common phenomenon, and sponsorship exposure through television is affected. Therefore, this study examines how multitasking influences sponsorship effects such as brand recall and attitude towards the brand. Data was collected from 203 participants who were randomly divided into three groups: no-multitasking, low-multitasking, and high-multitasking. In addition, sport involvement was also included in the study as a moderating variable. The results indicated that multitasking negatively influenced both sponsoring brand recall and attitude toward the brand. Sport involvement positively influenced only attitude toward the brand independently. Detailed explanations and business implications are provided. |
| Understanding the Lack of Team Identification Research in Women’s Sport Authors: Elizabeth B. Delia, Matthew Katz, and Cole G. Armstrong |
| Abstract: For decades, scholars have sought to understand individuals’ identification with sport teams. As a result, we have great knowledge of how team identification influences a variety of attitudinal and behavioral out-comes as well as the impact of identifying with a team on an individual’s sense of self. However, nearly all studies of team identification have dealt with men’s sport rather than women’s sport. The authors addressed this issue in the current study by using the Delphi technique to solicit expert opinion on the lack of team identification research in women’s sport, including reasons for the lack of research, the extent to which context matters in studying team identification, and potential contributions to the team identification literature by examining the concept in women’s sport settings. The authors conclude by discussing experts’ opinions, the extent to which some views may underpin the lack of research, and implications for future studies of team identification. |
| The Influence of Logo Change on Brand Loyalty and the Role of Attitude Toward Rebranding and Logo Evaluation Authors: Antonio S. Williams, Sungwook Son, Patrick Walsh, and Jin Park |
| Abstract: Despite sport rebranding becoming an emerging topic for both academia and industry, there has been a limited number of investigations on how sport rebranding influences sport fans. The aim of this study is to investigate how sport rebranding in the form of logo redesign influences fan loyalty. Through an experimental approach, the results indicate that attitude toward rebranding plays a significant role in fan response when sport rebranding occurs. Additional findings suggest that logo evaluation partially mediates the relationship between logo change and brand loyalty. This study makes significant contributions to the body of knowledge on sport rebranding by revealing how fans’ attitudes toward rebranding affects brand loyalty. The proposed model suggests directions for future sport rebranding research, and the paper provides implications for how sport marketers can use various rebranding strategies to improve rebranding outcomes and diminish negative responses from sport fans. |
