Managing a Sponsored Brand: The Importance of Sponsorship Portfolio Congruence

International Journal of Advertising, 31(1), pp. 63-84, 2012

22 Pages Posted: 11 Sep 2013

See all articles by Mark Groza

Mark Groza

Northern Illinois University

Joe Cobbs

Northern Kentucky University - College of Business

Tobias Schaefers

Copenhagen Business School - Department of Marketing

Date Written: 2012

Abstract

The congruence or fit between a sponsored brand (i.e., brand of a team, league, or event) and sponsoring firm is a central tenet of sponsorship research. The influence of such congruence on the sponsored brand however, has received scant attention. This question is important because the strength of a sponsored organization's brand equity is the basis for many sponsorship alliances. The two experiments undertaken in this paper empirically evaluate the effects of sponsor portfolio congruence on perceptions of the sponsored organization's brand equity. The results of Study 1 indicate sponsor incongruence is particularly detrimental to the brand equity of the sponsored organization at the title sponsor level (i.e., the sponsor’s name is incorporated into the title of the sponsored event; such as the Meijer 300 NASCAR race). Study 2 shows this adverse effect can be attenuated by increasing the number of congruent sponsors at the presenting level (e.g., the Meijer 300 presented by Bridgestone Tires and Autozone). The second study also provides support for nationality as a salient congruence dimension in an international sporting context.

Keywords: advertising, sponsorship, sports marketing

Suggested Citation

Groza, Mark and Cobbs, Joe and Schaefers, Tobias, Managing a Sponsored Brand: The Importance of Sponsorship Portfolio Congruence (2012). International Journal of Advertising, 31(1), pp. 63-84, 2012, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2322537

Mark Groza

Northern Illinois University ( email )

1425 W. Lincoln Hwy
Dekalb, IL 60115-2828
United States

Joe Cobbs (Contact Author)

Northern Kentucky University - College of Business ( email )

Highland Heights, KY 41099
United States

Tobias Schaefers

Copenhagen Business School - Department of Marketing ( email )

Copenhagen
Denmark

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