Optimizing the Online Channel in Professional Sport to Create Trusting and Loyal Consumers: The Role of the Professional Sports Team Brand and Service Quality

2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 463-478 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie Carlson ◽  
Aron O'Cass
Keyword(s):  
Service Quality ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Critical Issue ◽  
Professional Sport ◽  
Brand Strength ◽  
Marketing Environment ◽  
Sport Team ◽  
Sport Teams ◽  
Team Brand

How professional team-based sport organizations can optimize their e-service platform and manage their brand in an increasingly multichannel marketing environment is a critical issue. This study examines how sports consumers’ (i.e., fans’) perceptions of e-service quality, brand strength, and image congruency between the sport brands’ offline image and online image affects the development of consumers’ trust in the team’s website. In addition, the study explores the role of team website trust in developing team website loyalty, as well the role of loyalty in actual purchase frequency from the teams’ website. Data were collected via an online survey of sports consumers of e-services delivered by professional sport teams. The results indicate that sport team brand strength, followed by teams website e-service quality and brand image congruency between the teams online and offline activity are significant determinants of trust in the teams’ website, with online trust strongly influencing website loyalty intentions.

CSR in sport sponsorship consumers' perceptions of a sponsoring brand's CSR

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 371-388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Apollo Demirel
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Study ◽  
Field Study ◽  
Consumer Response ◽  
Professional Sport ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Sport Sponsorship ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sport Team ◽  
Sport Teams

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the link between sponsorship of professional sport teams and consumers' socially responsible perceptions of a sponsoring brand. More specifically, this research investigates if sponsorship of professional sport teams in itself leads consumers to perceive a sponsoring brand as socially responsible, and what factors may produce CSR perceptions and subsequent consumer response.Design/methodology/approachAn experimental study was conducted to examine the impact of sponsorship of professional sport teams on consumers' CSR perceptions of a sponsoring brand. Further, a field study was used to explore the role of sponsorship fit in generating CSR perceptions.FindingsThe results from the experimental study indicated that brand sponsorship of professional sport teams contributes to the socially responsible image of that brand, and sponsorship fit induces consumers' CSR perceptions of a sponsoring brand. Additionally, the results from the field study identified CSR perceptions as an underlying process driving the effect of sponsorship fit on consumers’ behavioral intentions toward a sponsoring brand. Lastly, the role of team identification was shown as a boundary condition shaping the effects of sponsorship fit.Practical implicationsBrands specifically seeking to create a socially responsible image, thanks to sponsoring a sport team, should consider the importance of perceived fit between their brand and the sponsored sport team as it is a key predictor of CSR perceptions.Originality/valueThis paper provides empirical evidence for the sport sponsorship and CSR perceptions link and sheds light on important predictors for consumer response.

Sport Teams as Promoters of Pro-Environmental Behavior: An Empirical Study

2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 417-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuhei Inoue ◽  
Aubrey Kent
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Intentions ◽  
Sport Organizations ◽  
Proenvironmental Behavior ◽  
Environmental Practices ◽  
Sport Team ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sport Teams ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Insight Into

The purpose of this study was to explain the process of how a sport team could induce consumers to engage in proenvironmental behavior. Building on Kelman’s (1958, 1961, 2006) internalization perspective, this study demonstrated that positive environmental practices by a team increased consumer internalization of the team’s values. In turn, this increased internalization mediated the relationship between environmental practices and proenvironmental behavior measured by two behavioral intentions: intention to support the team’s environmental initiative and intention to engage in proenvironmental behavior in daily life. The results of this study contribute to the literature by highlighting the significant role of internalization. This research further provides a significant insight into the social impacts of sport organizations.

scholarly journals The Effect of League Brand on the Relationship Between the Team Brand and Behavioral Intentions: A Formative Approach Examining Brand Associations and Brand Relationships

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 317-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thilo Kunkel ◽  
Daniel C. Funk ◽  
Daniel Lock
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Intentions ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Brand Associations ◽  
Brand Association ◽  
Professional Soccer ◽  
Team Brand ◽  
The Relationship

Understanding the role of the league brand on consumers’ support for individual teams is important for the successful management and marketing of both leagues and teams. In the current research, brand architecture and brand association literature are integrated to examine the role of the league brand on the relationship between the team brand and team-related behavior. Data from an online survey of professional soccer league consumers (N = 414) were analyzed using structural equation modeling with bootstrapping procedures. The relationship between the team brand and team-related behavior was partially mediated by the league brand. Findings of this research contribute new knowledge by empirically demonstrating that characteristics of the league brand have an influence on team-related behavioral intentions. Furthermore, we contribute a different analytical approach for brand association research using formative indicators to measure team and league brand associations. In the managerial implications, we outline how league managers can support individual teams and how team managers can leverage off the league brand to attract consumers.

Development of a Scale to Measure Team Brand Associations in Professional Sport

2006 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 260-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen D. Ross ◽  
Jeffrey D. James ◽  
Patrick Vargas
Keyword(s):  
Discriminant Validity ◽  
Professional Sport ◽  
Brand Associations ◽  
Sport Team ◽  
Brand Association ◽  
Free Thought ◽  
Panel Review ◽  
Professional Sport Team ◽  
Team Brand ◽  
Community Team

The Team Brand Association Scale (TBAS), which is intended to measure professional sport team brand associations, was developed through the use of a free-thought listing technique in combination with a confirmatory factor analysis procedure. Information was provided by individuals regarding their favorite sports team, and 11 dimensions underlying professional sport team brand associations were identified: nonplayer personnel, team success, team history, stadium community, team play characteristics, brand mark, commitment, organizational attributes, concessions, social interaction, and rivalry. Review of the TBAS psychometric properties indicated that eight dimensions had acceptable reliabilities (Cronbach’s alpha scores ranging from .76-.90), as well as content validity (verified by a 3-member expert panel review), discriminant validity (based on correlations among latent constructs and their standard errors), concurrent validity (significant correlations with an external measure), and construct validity.

The role of title sponsor’s philanthropy and team authenticity on fan identity and citizenship behaviors

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 148-169
Author(s):  
Inje Cho ◽  
Minseong Kim ◽  
Kiki Kaplanidou
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Citizenship Behavior ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Citizenship Behaviors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sport Team ◽  
Sport Teams ◽  
Fan Identity

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships between sport team authenticity, fan identity and citizenship behaviors, and how the link between sport team authenticity and fan identity is moderated by sponsor philanthropy. Design/methodology/approach A web survey was distributed to baseball fans in an online community in South Korea. A total of 383 valid answered questionnaires were collected and tested with confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. Findings The findings suggested interrelationships between sport teams’ brand authenticity and fan identity and between fan identity and citizenship behavior. This work also confirms the moderating effect of a title sponsor’s philanthropic activities on the relationship between sport team authenticity and fan identity. Practical implications A sport team’s effort to maintain authenticity would intensify fan identity levels. Action plans that relate to team’s authenticity among fans are necessary. For example, the team could create a plan for the players to give back to the community by volunteering in community projects with the support of the sponsor. Building a team’s authentic culture with well-integrated philanthropy programs of a title sponsor would benefit the team in sustaining competitive advantages in a market. Originality/value The findings contribute to the literature by demonstrating the role of title sponsor’s philanthropic behavior on the sport industry. The relative importance of the team’s authenticity (congruency and fan orientation) for fan identity was increased when the perception of the sponsor’s philanthropy was high.

Professional Team Sport and Twitter: Gratifications Sought and Obtained by Followers

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 188-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Gibbs ◽  
Norm O’Reilly ◽  
Michelle Brunette
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Professional Sport ◽  
Sport Communication ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sport Teams ◽  
Twitter Users ◽  
Media Experience ◽  
Fan Engagement ◽  
Depth Interviews

Without exception, all professional sport teams in North America use social media to communicate with fans. Sport communication professionals use Twitter as one of the strategic tools of engagement, yet there remains a lack of understanding about how users are motivated and gratified in their Twitter use. Drawing on a specific sample from the Twitter followers of the Canadian Football League, the researchers used semistructured in-depth interviews, content analysis, and an online survey to seek an understanding of what motivates and satisfies Twitter followers of professional sport teams, measured through the gratifications sought and the fulfillment of these motives through the perceived gratifications obtained. The results add to the sport communications literature by finding 4 primary gratifications sought by Twitter users: interaction, promotion, live game updates, and news. Professional sport teams can improve strategic fan engagement by better understanding how Twitter followers use and seek gratification in the social-media experience.

Sport team brand-equity index: a new measurement

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anish Yousaf ◽  
Anil Gupta ◽  
Abhishek Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Brand Equity ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sport Team ◽  
The Core ◽  
Emotional Bonds ◽  
Sport Teams ◽  
Equity Index ◽  
Team Brand ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeSport teams not only compete with other teams for the ultimate prize but also for a share of customer mind space. For winning fan loyalty and resultant economic success, management of sport teams need to focus on team-branding, and thus, developing and measuring a team’s brand equity becomes essential, which is the core purpose of this paper. Design/methodology/approachCurrent work builds upon previous efforts to develop a reliable and, more importantly, a parsimonious sport team brand-equity (STBE) index, as opposed to the usual multi-dimensional reflective scales, too complicated and not of much use to practitioners. FindingsThe authors propose that the STBE index having eight indicators is enough to capture the full domain of the concept and provide a snapshot about the ability of a team’s administration to create strong emotional bonds with its fans. Research limitations/implicationsApart from demographics of the respondents, an important drawback is that the STBE index is from the perspective of television or online viewers and not those watching live in stadiums. This work contributes to extant sports brand equity literature by proposing a simpler scale made of casual variables, as opposed to reflective scales running into large number of similar items, a first of its kind in this domain. The authors also are able to forward the growing call for developing more of such scales through this effort. Practical implicationsNot only can the present scale be easily used by sport-marketers and researchers, it will be especially useful for marketing managers who want to associate their brands with sport teams, as it affects performance of their own brand. Originality/valueThe work represents a novel effort for developing a team-based brand equity and, to the authors’ knowledge, has not been attempted in this literature before.

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