Chapter 9: Sponsorship
= an investment (time, money, employees) in cash or kind in an activity, in return for access to the
exploitable commercial potential associated with this activity.
- Two-way street: you want something in return
- Building a good image around your brand, part of a bigger marketing strategy
- Thematic communications instrument, with explicit communications and commercial
objectives
- Company promotes its interests and brands by tying them to a specific and meaningfully
related event or cause
- Integrated part of the communications effort
What is it NOT?
- Advertising more in control of the message here, objective = raising brand awareness,
changing brand attitude, CHANGE CONSUMERS MINDS, change what is in their brains, LONG
TERM
Sponsorship Advertising
Similar objectives: generate awareness and Similar objectives: generate awareness and
promote positive messages and favorable promote positive messages and favorable
attitudes (long term) attitudes (long term)
Less control over message More control over message
content/environment content/environment
Implicit and indirect messages Explicit and direct messages
No elaborate processing of message required Often elaborate processing of message
(association between sponsor and sponsee) required
Less cluttered , less overload More cluttered
Financially more attractive, reach a lot of Financially less attractive
consumers
Less effective in gaining attention More effective in gaining attention
(distraction factor) part of the environment
- Event marketing: Uses several elements of the communications mix (advertising, PR,
sponsorship) to create an event for the purpose of reaching strategic marketing objectives.
o Sponsor can be integrated into a PR campaign
o Example: inbound conference powered by Hubspot
- Value marketing: is a strategy in which a company links its activities to a philosophy of general
societal interest (value system that is not product-related)
, o Sponsorship can be part of the value marketing
o Example: Body shop combines fair business, social conscience, and profitability with
environmentally friendly products (natural ingredients, not tested on animals,
recycled packaging) sponsor the same events who stand for the same things
Sponsorship target groups
- Active participants in the events: soccer
players, athletes, musicians
- Live spectators attending the event: fans,
museum visitors
- Media followers of the event
Sponsorship objectives
- Marketing objectives: awareness and
image
- Corporate objectives: corporate image
and goodwill
o Employee related goals
o Corporate hospitality
- Leveraging effect of media coverage of
event
How does it work?
Why would it be effective in influencing our minds?
Cognitive theories:
- Carry over effect
o Positive emotions for the event carrying over to the brand
o Stronger for more involved people
- Mere exposure effect
o Exposure to sponsor’s name increased familiarity of the brand increased liking
of the brand
- Congruity theory
o People best remember information that is congruent/fits with prior expectations
o Sponsorship consistent with expectations of target groups about the product could
be better recalled
o You think football club will wins, they do, brands that you see, will have positive
emotions too
Affective theories:
- Context effects
o Context of message is important in how message is perceived
o Sponsorships occur mostly in positively evaluated environments positive mood
positive image of sponsoring brand (transfers)
o Veel bij wereldkampioenschappen
= an investment (time, money, employees) in cash or kind in an activity, in return for access to the
exploitable commercial potential associated with this activity.
- Two-way street: you want something in return
- Building a good image around your brand, part of a bigger marketing strategy
- Thematic communications instrument, with explicit communications and commercial
objectives
- Company promotes its interests and brands by tying them to a specific and meaningfully
related event or cause
- Integrated part of the communications effort
What is it NOT?
- Advertising more in control of the message here, objective = raising brand awareness,
changing brand attitude, CHANGE CONSUMERS MINDS, change what is in their brains, LONG
TERM
Sponsorship Advertising
Similar objectives: generate awareness and Similar objectives: generate awareness and
promote positive messages and favorable promote positive messages and favorable
attitudes (long term) attitudes (long term)
Less control over message More control over message
content/environment content/environment
Implicit and indirect messages Explicit and direct messages
No elaborate processing of message required Often elaborate processing of message
(association between sponsor and sponsee) required
Less cluttered , less overload More cluttered
Financially more attractive, reach a lot of Financially less attractive
consumers
Less effective in gaining attention More effective in gaining attention
(distraction factor) part of the environment
- Event marketing: Uses several elements of the communications mix (advertising, PR,
sponsorship) to create an event for the purpose of reaching strategic marketing objectives.
o Sponsor can be integrated into a PR campaign
o Example: inbound conference powered by Hubspot
- Value marketing: is a strategy in which a company links its activities to a philosophy of general
societal interest (value system that is not product-related)
, o Sponsorship can be part of the value marketing
o Example: Body shop combines fair business, social conscience, and profitability with
environmentally friendly products (natural ingredients, not tested on animals,
recycled packaging) sponsor the same events who stand for the same things
Sponsorship target groups
- Active participants in the events: soccer
players, athletes, musicians
- Live spectators attending the event: fans,
museum visitors
- Media followers of the event
Sponsorship objectives
- Marketing objectives: awareness and
image
- Corporate objectives: corporate image
and goodwill
o Employee related goals
o Corporate hospitality
- Leveraging effect of media coverage of
event
How does it work?
Why would it be effective in influencing our minds?
Cognitive theories:
- Carry over effect
o Positive emotions for the event carrying over to the brand
o Stronger for more involved people
- Mere exposure effect
o Exposure to sponsor’s name increased familiarity of the brand increased liking
of the brand
- Congruity theory
o People best remember information that is congruent/fits with prior expectations
o Sponsorship consistent with expectations of target groups about the product could
be better recalled
o You think football club will wins, they do, brands that you see, will have positive
emotions too
Affective theories:
- Context effects
o Context of message is important in how message is perceived
o Sponsorships occur mostly in positively evaluated environments positive mood
positive image of sponsoring brand (transfers)
o Veel bij wereldkampioenschappen
